dearth

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The Word of the Day for July 17 is: 

dearth   \DERTH\   noun 
     1 : scarcity that makes dear; specifically : famine
    *2 : an inadequate supply : lack
                
Example sentence: 
     Teri had forgotten to bring a book, and the dearth of reading material in 
her uncle's house had her visiting the town library the first morning of her 
stay.

Did you know?
     The facts about the history of the word "dearth" are quite simple: the 
word derives from the Middle English form "derthe," which has the same meaning 
as our modern term. That Middle English form is assumed to have developed from 
an Old English form that was probably spelled "dierth" and was related to 
"deore," the Old English form that gave us the word "dear." ("Dear" also once 
meant "scarce," but that sense of the word is now obsolete.) Some form of 
"dearth" has been used to describe things that are in short supply since at 
least the 13th century, when it often referred to a shortage of food. 

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.




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