underpeopled
Lacking sufficient inhabitants
Underpeopled means having too few people for the available space or needs—the opposite of overpopulated.
The underpeopled rural counties struggle to maintain schools.
The term often appears in discussions of labor shortages or demographic decline: The underpeopled region couldn't attract enough workers to sustain its industries.
In a thin manner
- thinlyIn sparse layers
- scatteredSpread irregularly about
- depopulatedStripped of inhabitants
- understaffedInsufficient employees for workload
undermanned · skeleton crew · vacant · empty · unoccupied · depleted · dwindling · shrinking
Separated from others
- uninhabitedHaving no occupants
- desolateBleak and abandoned
- wildernessUncultivated, uninhabited natural region
- backcountrySparsely populated wilderness areas
hinterland · outback · frontier · secluded · inaccessible · off-grid · unvisited · untraveled
Left behind, uninhabited
- forsakenCompletely abandoned or discarded
- ghost townDeserted former inhabited place
- emptiedRemoved all contents from
- vacatedLeft a place empty
left behind · neglected · decaying · crumbling · dilapidated · shuttered · derelict · ruins
Lacking in sound
- peacefulFree from disturbance
- sereneUntroubled and composed
- uncrowdedHaving few occupants
- spaciousHaving ample room
unhurried · undisturbed · calm · unspoiled · pristine · untouched · solitude · escape
Rural area beyond towns
- villageSmall rural community
- hamletTiny rural settlement
- provincialRegional or narrow-minded
- pastoralOf countryside or clergy care
farmland · agricultural · rustic · bucolic · homestead · township · small-town · agrarian
sparsely
In a thin manner
- thinlyIn sparse layers
- scatteredSpread irregularly about
- depopulatedStripped of inhabitants
understaffed · undermanned · skeleton crew · vacant · empty · unoccupied · depleted · dwindling · shrinking · declining
isolated
Separated from others
- uninhabitedHaving no occupants
- desolateBleak and abandoned
- wildernessUncultivated, uninhabited natural region
backcountry · hinterland · outback · frontier · secluded · inaccessible · off-grid · unvisited · untraveled · far-flung
deserted
Left behind, uninhabited
- forsakenCompletely abandoned or discarded
- ghost townDeserted former inhabited place
- emptiedRemoved all contents from
vacated · left behind · neglected · decaying · crumbling · dilapidated · shuttered · derelict · ruins · post-industrial
quiet
Lacking in sound
spacious · unhurried · undisturbed · calm · unspoiled · pristine · untouched · solitude · escape · retreat
countryside
Rural area beyond towns
- villageSmall rural community
- hamletTiny rural settlement
- provincialRegional or narrow-minded
pastoral · farmland · agricultural · rustic · bucolic · homestead · township · small-town · agrarian · prairie
underpeopledoverpopulated
Excessively densely inhabited
overpeopled · overcrowded · densely populated · crowded · teeming
people, population, populate, populous, peopled, repopulate, depopulate, overpopulation, depopulation