Translation guide
The state of being in short supply; not enough of something. Japanese expresses this through nouns, adjectives, and set phrases depending on what is scarce and the context.
To say that something is scarce or in short supply in a general sense.
The most common and versatile word for 'shortage' or 'insufficiency'. Can be used for tangible and intangible things.
Water scarcity is serious.
We're struggling with a labor shortage.
A more formal term for 'scarcity' or 'dearth', often used in economic or medical contexts.
Food scarcity has become a problem.
A formal, somewhat literary term for 'scarcity' or 'exhaustion of supply', often used in economic reports.
Supplies are running scarce.
Referring to the fundamental economic problem of limited resources.
Describing items or qualities that are not easily available.
An i-adjective meaning 'rare' or 'uncommon'. Used for things that are not often seen or found.
Water is scarce in this region.
A na-adjective meaning 'rare' or 'scarce', often used for valuable resources or collectibles.
A colloquial phrase meaning 'hard to come by' or 'not easily found'.
A restaurant this good is scarce.
Expressing that there is not enough of something specific like time or money.
不足 is the most general and commonly used term for shortage. 欠乏 is more formal and often implies a severe lack, especially in medical or economic contexts. 希少性 is specifically the economic concept of scarcity.
Directly translating 'scarcity' as 不足 in all contexts can sound unnatural. For example, 'Time is scarce' is more naturally 時間が足りない rather than 時間の不足がある.
Water scarcity is a global issue.
The scarcity of affordable housing is worsening.
We need to understand the scarcity of resources.
The price of scarce metals is soaring.