artificial scarcity

Meanings

1. 1noununcountable

   A situation in which something is deliberately made hard to get, even though it could be produced or shared in larger amounts.

   Grammar: No plural and no article: 'Artificial scarcity keeps prices high.'

   Patterns

   • create artificial scarcity
   • artificial scarcity of something
   • through artificial scarcity

   The company creates artificial scarcity by releasing only a few hundred pairs of the shoes each year.

   Critics say artificial scarcity of tickets pushes prices up on resale sites.

   In economics class we discussed how artificial scarcity can protect a brand's image.

2. 2noununcountabletechnical

   A shortage of something that is caused by human decisions rather than by a real lack of supply.

   Grammar: Often followed by 'of' plus the thing that is short: 'artificial scarcity of water'.

   Patterns

   • artificial scarcity of something
   • cause artificial scarcity

   The report blamed artificial scarcity of housing on planning rules, not on a lack of land.

   Digital copies cost almost nothing to make, so any shortage is artificial scarcity.

Common combinations

create artificial scarcity

Some software firms create artificial scarcity by limiting how many licenses they sell.

artificial scarcity of something

There is an artificial scarcity of rare earth metals because of export limits.

deliberate artificial scarcity

The deliberate artificial scarcity of seats keeps demand high.

accused of artificial scarcity

The publisher was accused of artificial scarcity when it stopped printing the book.

Synonyms and how they differ

manufactured scarcity

Very close in meaning, but 'manufactured' sounds more negative and suggests a plan to deceive.

shortage

A general word for not having enough; it does not suggest that anyone caused it on purpose.

Opposites

Word family

artificially adverb

In a way that is made by people rather than natural: 'artificially high prices'.

scarcity noun

A lack of something; the basic situation that 'artificial scarcity' describes as man-made.

scarce adjective

Existing in small amounts and hard to find.

Commonly confused: artificial scarcity or artificial intelligence?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “artificial scarcity”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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