The original Jamestown colonists believed they would have a COPIOUS or plentiful supply of food. But this expectation proved to be tragically wrong. A combination of drought, a breakdown in trade with the local Native Americans, and a lack of farming skills among the gentlemen settlers led to a severe PAUCITY or shortage of food. During the Starving Time of the winter of 1609 – 1610, desperate colonists resorted to eating horses, dogs, cats, and even deceased settlers!
Although the plight of the Jamestown colony provides memorable examples of COPIOUS and PAUCITY, it will not appear on your SAT. Instead, these two antonyms frequently appear in the Blood Chemistry Cluster. As we discussed in our Blood Chemistry Post, there are COPIOUS studies of the effect of high altitude on blood chemistry, but a PAUCITY of studies at low altitude.
PAUCITY has begun to appear in other vocabulary in context questions. For example, everyone agrees that a healthy honeybee population plays a vital role in pollinating a variety of crops. Unfortunately, recent studies are warning that there is a PAUCITY or shortage of genetic diversity among American honeybees.
COPIOUS – plentiful; abundant
PAUCITY – a shortage; scarcity; dearth