Meaning
A drought is a long period of time with little or no rainfall, causing a shortage of water that affects the environment, agriculture, and daily life.
Grammar and Usage
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Part of speech: Noun (countable/uncountable, usually uncountable)
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Common sentence structures:
- suffer from a drought
- severe drought
- end a drought (literally: when rain comes after a drought, or figuratively: ending a long absence of success, e.g., in sports)
Common Phrases
- severe drought – a very extreme lack of rain.
- prolonged drought – drought lasting for a long time.
- drought relief – aid provided to areas affected by drought.
- end the drought – used both literally and metaphorically.
Collocations
- long drought
- worst drought
- global drought
- agricultural drought
- water shortage caused by drought
Examples
- Farmers lost their crops because of the severe drought.
- The country is suffering from its worst drought in decades.
- Heavy rains finally ended the drought.
- Many animals died due to the prolonged drought.
- The government sent emergency aid to drought-stricken areas.
- The drought caused food prices to rise.
- Conservation measures were introduced to survive the drought.
- The team ended a 20-year championship drought by winning the final.
Synonyms or Related
- Dry spell
- Aridity
- Water shortage
- Famine (when related to food shortage caused by drought)