Dearth Definition
Other Word Forms of Dearth
Noun
Origin of Dearth
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First attested at least as early as the late 1400s, and appearing in Tyndale’s Pentateuch (1530) as well as the Coverdale Bible (1535). From Middle English derþe, probably from Old English *dīerþ, *dīerþu, from Proto-Germanic *diuriþō (“costliness, preciousness, honour”), corresponding to dear + -th. Cognate with West Frisian djoerte (“love, dearness, value, worth”), Dutch duurte (“dearness; scarcity, dearth”), Icelandic dýrð (“honour, glory”).
From Wiktionary
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Middle English derthe from Old English dēorthu costliness from dēore costly dear1
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
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