Drought Meaning
/ˈdɹaʊ̯t/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA period of unusually low rainfall, longer and more severe than a dry spell.
nounA longer than expected term without success, particularly in sport.
Sentence Examples
The long drought was followed by famine.
Many peasants died during the drought.
Farmers are facing ruin after two years of severe drought.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The severe ____ caused crops to wither and farmers to worry deeply.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The long ____ was followed by famine.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English droughte, droghte, drouȝte, from Old English drūgaþ. Cognate with Dutch droogte, Low German Dröögde. By surface analysis, dry + -t (abstract nominal suffix).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Phoenix and Lubbock are both caught in severe drought, and it is going to get much worse. We may see many such [dust] storms in the decades ahead, along with species extinctions, radical disturbance of ecosystems, and intensified social conflict over land and water. Welcome to the Anthropocene, the epoch when humans have become a major geological and climatic force."
— 2012 January 26, Donald Worster, “A Drier and Hotter Future”, in American Scientist, volume 100, number 1, archived from the original on 26 Jan 2012, page 70:
"Kane had been going through something of a drought by his own standards. His previous England goal came 500 days ago, in a Euro 2020 qualifier against Kosovo, and his header in Tirana ended a run of 496 minutes without scoring."
— 2021 March 28, Phil McNulty, “Albania 0-2 England”, in BBC Sport:
"Thus I was; in the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night; and my sleep departed from mine eyes."
— 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Genesis 31:40:
"The consequences are, that a few days of severe drought, in the early parts of summer, or even when the grain is ripening, is sometimes fatal to the crop on moss."
— 1814, The Right Honorable Sir John Sinclair, chapter XI, in Appendix to the General Report of the Agricultural State, and Political Circumstances, of Scotland, page 16:
"The seasons most unfavourable to the crop are those of excessive drought or excessive rain."
— 1817, Adam Smith, chapter V, in An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations, volume 2, page 344:
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CEFR Practice Quiz
The severe ____ caused crops to wither and farmers to worry deeply.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The long ____ was followed by famine.