scarce1 adjectivescarce2 adverb
scarcescarce1 /skeəs $ skers/ ●●○ adjective (comparative scarcer, superlative scarcest) 
WORD ORIGINscarce1
Origin:
1200-1300 Old North French escars, from Vulgar Latin excarpsus ‘pulled out’, from Latin excerpere; ➔ EXCERPTEXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- After the war, food and clothing were scarce.
- Cheap, clean hotel rooms are scarce in this city, especially in the summer.
- During the war, things like clothes and shoes were scarce.
- Government departments often found themselves competing for scarce resources.
- Mayors have to juggle scarce resources to keep their cities working.
- Water is always scarce in these parts.
- With the increase in trade, good timber for shipbuilding was becoming scarcer.
- Aye, but you must remember that money was so scarce in the thirties that you couldn't miss anything.
- Entirely reliable facts, other than those here mentioned, are scarce.
- In consequence, amphibian fossils become very scarce indeed in later geological periods and there are long gaps in their fossil history.
- New-model Golfs are still scarce and dealers are paying high prices to secure them.
- There is evidence that volatile materials have always been scarce on the Moon.
- There the principal threat to the diversity of fish has been competition with man for scarce supplies of water.
- Thus, female orangutans choose to live alone in strict territories, the better to exploit their scarce food resources.
THESAURUS
not existing in large numbers or in large amounts: · The law prevents the export of rare birds.· The plates are quite rare. Only about a hundred were made.
not available in large enough numbers or amounts at a particular time – used especially about things people need: · After the war, food and clothing were scarce.· People are having to compete for scarce resources.
[not before noun] fairly rare: · Silver coins of this period are not common, and could be very valuable.
formal not happening often: · As time went on, her visits became more and more infrequent.
to not be common – especially much less common than you might expect: · Luckily, accidents such as these are few and far between.· Bargains are, unfortunately, few and far between.
if something or someone is a rarity, it is surprising to find one, because very few exist: · Women are still something of a rarity in senior management positions.
informal to be extremely rare: · Good Greek restaurants are like hen’s teeth around here.
Longman Language Activatornot enough also insufficient not enough for what you need. insufficient is much more formal than not enough: · You're not getting enough sleep.not enough (something) to do something: · We didn't win enough games to get to the championship.· No matter how much money they offer me, it wouldn't be enough to make me like the job.· There was insufficient evidence to prove their allegations.not enough (something) for something: · There weren't enough apples for a pie, but they're good for eating.· Officials were worried that supplies would be insufficient for the long winter that was being predicted. not nearly enough/nowhere near enough (=much less than enough): · £1 million is not nearly enough to clean up the water in the bay.· The time they've given us is nowhere near enough.
less than you need or fewer than you need - use this especially when you are criticizing or complaining about something: · Some churches are in danger of closing because there are too few priests.· There is too little cooperation between the opposing parties to get anything done in government.too little/few to do something: · There's too little time to do everything.· There were some police officers there, but too few to control the crowd.far too little/few (=much too little or few): · Most of the students explained far too little about their research methods.
if something is scarce , there is not enough of it, so it is very difficult to get or buy: · During the war, things like clothes and shoes were scarce.· Cheap, clean hotel rooms are scarce in this city, especially in the summer.
an amount of something that is inadequate is not enough for a particular purpose: · The state pension is wholly inadequate -- no one can live on £50 a week.· Inadequate lighting made it difficult to continue the work after dinner.inadequate to do something: · The amount of fertilizer used was inadequate to ensure a good harvest.
formal not enough: · The bank charged me for having insufficient funds in my account.· There has been insufficient rainfall over the past two years, and farmers are having trouble.insufficient to do something: · The data we have is insufficient to draw any conclusions.
if a product is in short supply people cannot buy or get enough of it: · Health workers reported that medicines and basic equipment were in short supply.· The unemployment rate was at 2.5%, and talented job seekers were in short supply.
if there is a lack of something there is not enough of it, or none at all: · Fernando's eyes were red through lack of sleep.· It's lack of confidence, not lack of ability, that makes most people fail.· They threw the case out of court because of a lack of evidence.
if time or money is short , there is not as much of it as you would like: · Money's a little short this month -- we'd better be careful about spending.· The military authorities considered that the need for action was great, and time was short.
to leave quickly in order to avoid trouble, danger etc · They ran off as soon as they heard the police car coming.run off/away to · My brother ran away to South America to escape his debts.· Zimmerman was so scared, he just ran off.· Why did you run off like that? Was Joey nasty to you?
British informal to leave a place very quickly, often in order to avoid a difficult situation: · Arthur shot off before anyone could say anything.· I've really got to shoot off - I said I'd be home ten minutes ago.
British informal if you do not see someone for dust , they leave somewhere very quickly in order to avoid something, especially something that they should stay for: · If you tell him it's his turn to buy the drinks, you won't see him for dust!
informal to quickly leave a place when something embarrassing or awkward is likely to happen: · You'd better make yourselves scarce before the manager gets here.· When Gary and Clare began to argue, Reg decided to make himself scarce.
not common and existing only in small numbers an animal, plant, object etc that is rare does not exist in large numbers or in large amounts: · A new law to prevent the export of rare birds is to be introduced.· They're pretty rare. Only about a hundred were made.· The palace library contains some of the rarest books in Europe.· In Cholon's narrow streets, Europeans were far rarer than on the boulevards of Saigon.
something that is scarce , especially something that people need such as food, clothing, or water, is not available in large enough numbers or amounts at the moment: · After the war, food and clothing were scarce.· With the increase in trade, good timber for shipbuilding was becoming scarcer.scarce resources: · Government departments often found themselves competing for scarce resources.
fairly rare, especially in one particular area or group: · Silver coins of this period are not common, and could be very valuable.· Although tigers still exist, they're not very common.
British if you say that people or things of a particular type are thin on the ground , you mean that there are very few available and they are hard to find when you need them: · Our only problem is finding staff, because good programmers are really thin on the ground.· Magazines about home improvement were very thin on the ground at the time - not like now.
to not be as common as you expect or as you would like: · The schools are crowded, and good teachers are few and far between.· Toys were few and far between, but the children invented games and played together.
if something or someone is a rarity , it is surprising to find one, because very few exist: · The traditional costume is becoming a rarity, even in remote villages.be something of a rarity (=be fairly rare): · Women are still something of a rarity in senior management positions.
informal use this to say that something is rare, especially something that has been made such as a machine, car, or piece of furniture: · He drives an original Volkswagen, and there aren't many of those around these days.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY
There was fierce competition for the scarce resources.COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
There was fierce competition for the scarce resources.· Soap was a scarce commodity during the war.
· We have very limited resources.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADVERB· Is it also the most effective use of increasingly scarce resources to realize this goal?· The executives' gargantuan incomes derive from their power over what has become an increasingly scarce factor of production, capital.· They also use more fuel, therefore contributing more pollution, and use more of an increasingly scarce resource than diesels.· As resources become increasingly scarce, choices have to be made and priorities set.· The bait is becoming increasingly scarce as many beaches are designated conservation areas.
NOUN· Soap was a scarce commodity but he as doctor had priority.· The scarcest commodity within the firm was, quite simply, time.· Movie cameras have become a scarce commodity.· But what about other planets, where water may be a scarce commodity?· That may be true of land-a scarce commodity on a small island-but what about pay?
· Competition for scarce resources is seen by sociobiology as involving various forms of behaviour.· But Aristotle knew just enough about economies to know that time was a scarce resource.· Tourists and immigrants are increasing the pressures on the Galapagos's already scarce resources, from fresh water to seafood.· Rapid population growth can have other important, if less direct, consequences when it is linked to competition for scarce resources.· What is to count as a scarce resource, for example, may change over time.· The Green Party has little financial backing and is using its scarce resources to mount ballot-petition drives in selected states.· How will the new millennium children reconcile conflicting demands on scarce resources against the background of global warming?· It simultaneously deprives unprofitable industries of scarce resources.
PHRASES FROM THE ENTRY
1if something is scarce, there is not very much of it available: - For the next few days I made myself scarce, hoping his bad mood would pass.
- When Gary and Clare began to argue, Reg decided to make himself scarce.
- You'd better make yourselves scarce before the manager gets here.
- For the next few days I made myself scarce, hoping that his displeasure was temporary.
- He generally makes himself scarce in his room with his computer.
- He has refused to speak to Hundley and is making himself scarce at the Delta Center to local reporters.
- I didn't wait to be told twice and I made myself scarce.
- I made myself scarce as quickly as I could.
- Maggie had made herself useful to her stepmother by running the house, and yet continued to make herself scarce.
- The Magistrate, mortified, had made himself scarce.
Food was often scarce in the winter. There was fierce competition for the scarce resources.2make yourself scarce informal to leave a place, especially in order to avoid an unpleasant situation: I decided it was time to make myself scarce.scarce1 adjectivescarce2 adverb
scarcescarce2 adverb literary scarcely: He could scarce believe it.