What does shortage mean?
A shortage is a lack of something that is needed, wanted, or expected. It describes both the insufficient supply itself and the difficult situation that results from it. A shortage may concern physical materials, such as food, fuel, or housing, or less tangible resources, such as workers, time, money, or attention. The expression is especially common in reporting and professional discussion because it identifies not merely a reduced quantity but a failure to meet demand. Saying that there is a shortage of nurses, for example, implies that the available number is insufficient for the population or workload concerned. Shortages may be temporary, recurring, or chronic, and can be intensified by disruption, poor planning, or sudden increases in need. The word is related in meaning to scarcity, deficit, and lack, but it often carries a stronger practical implication: something essential cannot be supplied in sufficient quantity.
nounA shortage is a situation in which there is not enough of something that is needed or available. It refers both to the lack itself and to the resulting condition or problem.
- An insufficient quantity or supply of something necessary or desired.
- A situation or condition in which available resources are insufficient to meet demand.
"The hospital is dealing with a severe shortage of nurses."
"The company postponed the launch because of a shortage of components."
"Rural communities continue to face a shortage of affordable housing."
The plural is used for separate instances or kinds of insufficient supply.
"The agency is working to address shortages of food and medicine."
A shortage is not merely having less; it is not having enough of what is needed.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does shortage come from?
The word is an English formation based on the adjective short, meaning insufficient in amount or extent, together with the suffix -age, which contributes the sense of an action, condition, or resulting state. Its early development referred to a condition of being insufficient, particularly in financial and commodity contexts. The related English forms short, shorten, shortly, and shorthand share the same basic root and reflect different grammatical or semantic uses of the idea of shortness.
How shortage is actually used
The phrase is common in formal and professional contexts, especially in news, economics, health care, education, and government. It is usually followed by 'of' plus the missing resource: 'a shortage of affordable housing,' 'a shortage of qualified staff.'
Easily confused with shortage
A shortage is an insufficient quantity or supply, whereas shorthand is a system for writing or taking notes quickly.