Deficiency
Deficiency noun - A falling short of an essential or desirable amount or number.
Usage example: there is a deficiency of fresh food in the diet of many of the working poor
Shortage is a synonym for deficiency in lack topic. In some cases you can use "Shortage" instead a noun "Deficiency", when it comes to topics like weakness, excess, defect, vice. popular alternative
Shortage
Shortage noun - A falling short of an essential or desirable amount or number.
Usage example: there was a troubling shortage of supplies for the troops overseas this year
Deficiency is a synonym for shortage in lack topic. You can use "Deficiency" instead a noun "Shortage", if it concerns topics such as weakness, excess, defect, vice. popular alternative
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Cite this Source
Shortage and Deficiency. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 29, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/deficiency/shortage
Deficiency & Shortage. N.p., 2016. Web. 29 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/deficiency/shortage>.
Shortage or Deficiency. 2016. Accessed July 29, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/deficiency/shortage.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "deficiency" and "shortage" have occurred on timeline