shortfall
noun
shortfall is spelled S-H-O-R-T-F-A-L-L: 9 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 1.0 times per million words in written English, the 28,214th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, shortfall means “An instance of falling short, of not meeting a quota, an obligation, or more generally any expected target” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of shortfall is shortfalls.
How many letters and syllables are in shortfall?
| Letters | 9: S-H-O-R-T-F-A-L-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.0 times per million words; the 28,214th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is shortfall?
Shortfall appears 1.0 times per million words in written English, the 28,214th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce shortfall?
Shortfall has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Words people confuse with shortfall
Also written: short-fall (one word or two).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of shortfall
- shortfalls plural
- short-fall
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does shortfall mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
An instance of falling short, of not meeting a quota, an obligation, or more generally any expected target.
Due to a shortfall in revenue, we will have to make some cuts.
- 2
The amount by which such a quota, obligation, etc., was missed.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Shortfall in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense instance of not meeting a quota or of having an insufficient amount:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | insuffisance, manquement, défaut de paiement |
| Portuguese | insuficiência |
| Spanish | déficit, insuficiencia, deficiencia |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does shortfall come from?
Deverbal from fall short. By surface analysis, short + fall.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).