Where does “shortage” come from?
Shortage comes from Middle English schort, from Old French -age, from Latin -aticum, from Latin -aticus, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European (s)ker-.
shortage (English): A lack or deficiency; an insufficient amount
Definitions
- A lack or deficiency; an insufficient amount
Ancestry of “shortage”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | short | Having a small distance from one end or edge to... |
| 2 | Middle English | schort | short as opposed to being tall or long |
| 3 | Old English | sċeort | — |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | skurt | short; lacking, deficient |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | skurtaz | short; lacking, deficient |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)ḱer- | dung, manure, filth; manure, dung, filth |