as in lacks
a falling short of an essential or desirable amount or number
there was a troubling shortage of supplies for the troops overseas this year
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Recent Examples of shortages
But the shortages of Patriot defense systems remain a concern amid reports that the Pentagon is considering diverting advanced defensive weapons earmarked for Ukraine to the Middle East.
—
Sudarsan Raghavan, New Yorker, 28 Apr. 2026
In 2022, my final year in office, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine sent fertilizer prices surging several-fold, and farmers across Central America—and around the world—saw production costs spike almost overnight, raising fears of food shortages.
—Carlos Alvarado Quesada, Fortune, 27 Apr. 2026
Delays increase the risk of injury or death on both sides, and fuel shortages can slow response times.
—ABC News, 27 Apr. 2026
While visions for parks and private development have come forward over the years — including when private developer Sunflower Redevelopment LLC purchased the site in 2005 — federal funding shortages and ongoing remediation efforts have pushed those dreams down the road.
—Taylor O'Connor, Kansas City Star, 27 Apr. 2026
Its water recycling system shows strong promise, alongside other technologies (including devices that harvest moisture from the air and various desalination methods), to address rising water shortages.
—Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 27 Apr. 2026
But decades of water shortages and new state groundwater limits are forcing growers to rethink how that land can be used.
—Jeff St. John, USA Today, 27 Apr. 2026
Vance has raised concern about munitions shortages in meetings with the president and other national-security officials.
—Michael Scherer, The Atlantic, 27 Apr. 2026
California’s housing prices, shortages and challenges are the result of decades of overreach at all levels of state and local government.
—Eliza Terziev, Oc Register, 19 Apr. 2026
Sudarsan Raghavan, New Yorker, 28 Apr. 2026
In 2022, my final year in office, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine sent fertilizer prices surging several-fold, and farmers across Central America—and around the world—saw production costs spike almost overnight, raising fears of food shortages.
—Carlos Alvarado Quesada, Fortune, 27 Apr. 2026
Delays increase the risk of injury or death on both sides, and fuel shortages can slow response times.
—ABC News, 27 Apr. 2026
While visions for parks and private development have come forward over the years — including when private developer Sunflower Redevelopment LLC purchased the site in 2005 — federal funding shortages and ongoing remediation efforts have pushed those dreams down the road.
—Taylor O'Connor, Kansas City Star, 27 Apr. 2026
Its water recycling system shows strong promise, alongside other technologies (including devices that harvest moisture from the air and various desalination methods), to address rising water shortages.
—Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 27 Apr. 2026
But decades of water shortages and new state groundwater limits are forcing growers to rethink how that land can be used.
—Jeff St. John, USA Today, 27 Apr. 2026
Vance has raised concern about munitions shortages in meetings with the president and other national-security officials.
—Michael Scherer, The Atlantic, 27 Apr. 2026
California’s housing prices, shortages and challenges are the result of decades of overreach at all levels of state and local government.
—Eliza Terziev, Oc Register, 19 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shortages
Noun
-
Dipping into 2027 draft capital to make a fifth-round selection in a draft that Schneider has repeatedly said lacks depth is a surprising move.—
Michael-Shawn Dugar,
New York Times,
25 Apr. 2026
-
Industrial composting sites—big, regionalized facilities that can churn out large volumes of organic waste—are designed to speed up the composting process using heat, moisture, and carbon control, things that a simple countertop compost container lacks.—
Francesca Krempa,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
23 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
But his athletic deficiencies could be tough to overcome.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
30 Apr. 2026
-
Britt Eastland said Camp Mystic would correct those deficiencies soon and has made several other safety changes.—
Ashley Killough,
CNN Money,
29 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Washington has run large deficits without spooking the bond market for years.—
Annie Lowrey,
The Atlantic,
28 Apr. 2026
-
Such symptoms often impair a patient’s quality of life as much as, or even more than, the primary neurological deficits.—
Eric J. Nestler,
STAT,
28 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Meanwhile, the island’s population, almost all of which lives below the poverty line according to some estimates, continues to face essential scarcities, raising fears of a humanitarian crisis.—
Prashant Rao,
semafor.com,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Still, the financial strain continued and, by the fall, dozens of staff and prisoners were telling ProPublica about unusual scarcities in facilities across the country.—
Keri Blakinger,
ProPublica,
25 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Shortages.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shortages. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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