the use of lack of

[manhhiep2509]

In question 54 of review verbal 2, the official explanation says that "lack of some other doctor" is not idiomatic.

I search the word "lack" in oxford dictionary and see that in the dictionary there is a contradiction in the use of "lack". It says "lack of something" in the definition section, but it gives a different example, i.e. "lack of volunteers".

volunteers cannot be something, isn't it?

So, I am not sure whether "lack of people" is incorrect. As a result, I cannot tell which part in the phrase "lack of some other doctor" is not idiomatic.

Please clarify the use of "lack of" and which part in the phrase "lack of some other doctor" is not idiomatic.

Thank you.

[RonPurewal]

In question 54 of review verbal 2, the official explanation says that "lack of some other doctor" is not idiomatic.

I search the word "lack" in oxford dictionary and see that in the dictionary there is a contradiction in the use of "lack". It says "lack of something" in the definition section, but it gives a different example, i.e. "lack of volunteers".

It doesn't make sense.

First, remember how "some" is used.

* If "some" is used in front of something uncountable (food, water, etc.), or in front of something countable in the plural form (doctors, shirts, hats, etc.), then it just means "a non-zero (usually non-negligible) quantity of". Irrelevant here, but worth mentioning in general.

* If "some" is used in front of something SINGULAR and countable -- as in "some doctor" -- then it means, basically, "a particular one (whose identity is usually not precisely known)".
E.g., My friend's sister ran away to Indiana with some guy, or If you let your little dog run out in the street, some big mastiff is going to come eat her.

So, a "lack of some xxx" just means a lack of one particular ingredient.
This can make sense in some instances. E.g., The last five times Cody has cooked, he's been unable to use this recipe because he has lacked some ingredient. (I.e., each of these 5 times, Cody has been missing some particular thing that he needs to prepare the food according to that particular recipe.)

This is something I've never thought about explicitly, ever, until this exact moment, but it's just completely literal thinking.

"Lack of some doctor" is incorrect here, because the sentence isn't referring to the lack of one particular (perhaps unknown) doctor. It's referring to the fact that no doctor can testify.

[RonPurewal]

So, I am not sure whether "lack of people" is incorrect. As a result, I cannot tell which part in the phrase "lack of some other doctor" is not idiomatic.

Nothing wrong with "lack of ____" if ____ is some kind of person or animal. (The lack of children in an arctic mining town might make someone depressed. Ill people may have a hard time finding treatment in an area with a severe lack of doctors. Etc.)