Scarce
/skɛərs/noun
Insufficient for a demand or need; not abundant.
Did you know?Scarce comes through Old French from a Germanic root related to cutting, and its deeper cousin appears in words like score and share—reminders that old languages often framed value through division.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*skeraną
“to cut, shear”
Old Norse / Old English
ON/OE
skerra / sc(e)ar
“to cut off, trim; sharp, bare”
Old French
OF
eschars
“stingy, sparing; scanty”
14th Century
English
scarce
“sparing, meager, not plentiful”
Modern English
English
scarce
“insufficient in quantity; hard to find”