spärlicher

Spärlich is a German adjective meaning sparse, scant, or meager in distribution or quantity. It is used to describe things that are not abundant or that occur only in small amounts or over limited areas. Common contexts include vegetation, population distribution, light, evidence, or resources. For example, a forest can be spärlich bewachsen (barely covered with vegetation), or a region can have spärlich verteilte Bewohner (sparsely distributed inhabitants). The term can also describe data or proofs that are scarce, as in spärliche Belege for a theory.

Grammatical information: spärlich has the comparative form spärlicher and the superlative form spärlichste (or am spärlichsten in predicative or adverbial use). It declines like a regular adjective in German: ein spärlicher Vorstoß, der spärliche Verkehr, spärliche Ressourcen; die Vorräte sind spärlich. In attributive position, endings follow the usual German adjective declension rules. Predicative usage is common as well: Die Ausbeute war spärlich.

Etymology and related terms: spärlich derives from the German root spär-, meaning meager or scant. It is cognate with the English word sparse, reflecting a common Germanic origin that denotes limited amount or distribution. Synonyms and near-synonyms include dürftig, knapp, mager, and selten, depending on nuance: dürftig emphasizes insufficiency, knapp emphasizes closeness to a limit, while selten highlights infrequency.

See also: sparse, scarcity, sparsity in data contexts, and related German terms for limited distribution.