dearth Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun an acute insufficiency
    famine; shortage.
  2. noun an insufficient quantity or number
    paucity.

WordNet

Dearth noun
Etymology
OE. derthe, fr. dere. See Dear.
Definitions
  1. Scarcity which renders dear; want; lack; specifically, lack of food on account of failure of crops; famine.
    There came a dearth over all the land of Egypt. Acts vii. 11.
    He with her press'd, she faint with dearth. Shak.
    Dearth of plot, and narrowness of imagination. Dryden.

Webster 1913