scarcer; scarcest
1
: deficient in quantity or number compared with the demand : not plentiful or abundant
2
: intentionally absent
made himself scarce at inspection time
scarceness
noun
Examples of scarce in a Sentence
Adjective
Food was getting scarce during the drought.
food was a bit scarce last winter
Adverb
I could scarce believe what I was hearing.
Recent Examples on the Web
Sharon Goldman, Fortune, 15 Oct. 2025
The best time to put out bird feeders is in late fall when the weather turns cold and food becomes scarce.
—Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 15 Oct. 2025
To this day, details of what happened to Keaton are scarce.
—Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 15 Oct. 2025
As oceans rise, glaciers melt and some parts of the world flood while others bake in drought, good news about climate change is scarce.
—John M. Crisp, Mercury News, 15 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for scarce
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Adjective
The timing of the deal comes as Big Tech firms race to secure scarce land, power, and compute capacity—the foundational resources underpinning the AI race.
—Sharon Goldman, Fortune, 15 Oct. 2025
The best time to put out bird feeders is in late fall when the weather turns cold and food becomes scarce.
—Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 15 Oct. 2025
To this day, details of what happened to Keaton are scarce.
—Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 15 Oct. 2025
As oceans rise, glaciers melt and some parts of the world flood while others bake in drought, good news about climate change is scarce.
—John M. Crisp, Mercury News, 15 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for scarce
Cite this Entry
“Scarce.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scarce. Accessed 20 Oct. 2025.
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