shortage
noun/ˈʃɔː(ɹ)tɪd͡ʒ/
Etymology From short + -age.
1
A lack or deficiency; an insufficient amount.
- The admirable smoothness of the riding also reflected the greatest credit on those who, despite the difficulties caused by the shortage of men and materials, have succeeded in maintaining the track in such first-class order.1946 July and August, Cecil J. Allen, “British Locomotive Practice and Performance”, in Railway Magazine, page 213:
- The dawn of the oil age was fairly recent. Although the stuff was used to waterproof boats in the Middle East 6,000 years ago, extracting it in earnest began only in 1859 after an oil strike in Pennsylvania.[…]It was used to make kerosene, the main fuel for artificial lighting after overfishing led to a shortage of whale blubber.2013 August 3, “The future of oil: Yesterday’s fuel”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8847, archived from the original on 18 Dec 2013:
1 more example
- The coup was well-planned. Fuel was artificially held back so as to create shortages and dissatisfaction with Brotherhood rule. The old state-controlled unions mounted public sector strikes that further sabotaged the economy and annoyed people. Police-controlled thugs who had been used against the Tahrir Square demonstrations in 2011 came back into action.2013 August 23, Jonathan Steele, “The west has little influence in Egypt”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 11, archived from the original on 05 Jan 2020, page 18:
- Derived terms
- preshortage, skills shortage, water shortage