hungry

hun‧gry S2 /ˈhʌŋɡri/ adjective (comparative hungrier, superlative hungriest)
[Word Family: noun: hunger; adverb: hungrily; adjective: hungry]
1. wanting to eat something ⇨ thirsty:
   • I was cold, tired, and hungry.
   • If you get hungry, there’s some cold chicken in the fridge.
   • Do you still feel hungry?
2. ill or weak as a result of not having enough to eat for a long time:
   • We can’t justify wasting food when half the world is hungry.
3. go hungry to not have enough to eat:
   • Thousands of families go hungry every day.
4. wanting or needing something very much SYN eager
  hungry for
   • She is hungry for success.
  hungry to do something
   • Stan was hungry to learn.
5. the hungry [plural] people who do not have enough food to eat
6. power-hungry/news-hungry etc wanting power, news etc very much:
   • a power-hungry politician
     • • •

THESAURUS

■ wanting to eat

   ▪ hungry wanting to eat something: • We were really hungry after our long walk. | • It’s hard work cooking for a bunch of hungry kids.
   ▪ peckish [not before noun] British English informal a little hungry: • I’m feeling a bit peckish. What’s in the fridge?
   ▪ starving/ravenous /ˈrævənəs/ (also starved American English) [not before noun] spoken very hungry and wanting to eat as soon as possible: • I missed lunch and I’m absolutely starving. | • Sam’s always ravenous when he gets home from school.
   ▪ famished very hungry. Famished is less common and sounds a little more formal than starving or ravenous: • Everyone was famished by the time they arrived.
   ▪ I could eat a horse! spoken used to say that you are very hungry: • ‘Are you hungry?’ ‘Yeah, I could eat a horse.’
   ▪ appetite the desire for food that you have when you are hungry: • Exercise usually gives me an appetite. | • It’s healthy to have a good appetite.

■ ill because of lack of food

   ▪ hungry ill or weak because of not having enough to eat: • terrible pictures of hungry children in Africa
   ▪ starving not having had enough food for a long time and likely to die soon without food: • Because of the drought, millions of people were starving. | • the starving refugees from the war
   ▪ malnourished formal unhealthy and thin because you have not had the right kinds of food over a long period of time: • According to the report, one-fifth of the world’s population are malnourished. | • malnourished infants

Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

hungry

hun·gry [hungry hungrier hungriest] [ˈhʌŋɡri] [ˈhʌŋɡri] adjective (hun·grier, hun·gri·est)

1. feeling that you want to eat sth

• I'm really hungry.

• She wasn't feeling very hungry.

• Is anyone getting hungry?

• All this talk of food is making me hungry.

• I have a hungry family to feed.

2. not having enough food to eat

• Thousands are going hungry because of the failure of this year's harvest.

3. the hungry noun plural people who do not have enough food to eat

4. only before noun causing you to feel that you want to eat sth

• All this gardening is hungry work.

5. ~ (for sth) having or showing a strong desire for sth

• Both parties are hungry for power.

• power-hungry

• The child is simply hungry for affection.

• His eyes had a wild hungry look in them.

Derived Word: hungrily

Word Origin:

Old English hungrig, of West Germanic origin; related to Dutch hongerig, German hungrig, also to hunger.

Thesaurus:

hungry adj.

• This talk of food is making me hungry.

starving • • ravenous •

hungry/starving for sth

hungry/starving children/people

Example Bank:

• We were all ravenously hungry after the walk.

• the number of children who have to go hungry

• His eyes had a wild, hungry look in them.

• I'm really hungry.

• There were eight hungry mouths to feed at home.

• They've compiled a list of the ten most power-hungry companies in the country.

• Thousands are going hungry because of the failure of this year's harvest.

• We like to use small agencies that are hungry for our business.

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary - 4th Edition

hungry / ˈhʌŋ.ɡri / adjective (NEEDING FOOD)

A1 wanting or needing food:

By four o'clock I felt/was really hungry.

The children are always hungry when they get home from school.

There are too many hungry people (= people without enough to eat) in the world.

She often goes hungry herself (= does not eat) so that her children can have enough to eat.

Digging the garden is hungry work (= makes you feel hunger) .

hungrily / -ɡrɪ.li / adverb

They sat down and ate hungrily.

He looked at her hungrily (= showing desire for her) .

hungry / ˈhʌŋ.ɡri / adjective (WANTING)

C2 having a strong wish or desire for something:

She was so hungry for success that she'd do anything to achieve it.

Journalists were hungry for details.

hungrily / -ɡrɪ.li / adverb

They sat down and ate hungrily.

He looked at her hungrily (= showing desire for her) .

Collins Advanced Learner’s English Dictionary

hungry

/hʌŋgri/
(hungrier, hungriest)

1.
When you are hungry, you want some food because you have not eaten for some time and have an uncomfortable or painful feeling in your stomach.
My friend was hungry, so we drove to a shopping mall to get some food...
≠ full
ADJ
• hun‧gri‧ly
James ate hungrily.
ADV: ADV with v

2.
If people go hungry, they do not have enough food to eat.
Leonidas’ family had been poor, he went hungry for years.
PHRASE: V inflects

3.
If you say that someone is hungry for something, you are emphasizing that they want it very much. (LITERARY)
I left Oxford in 1961 hungry to be a critic.
= eager
ADJ: usu v-link ADJ for n, v-link ADJ to-inf [emphasis]
•
Hungry is also a combining form.
...power-hungry politicians.
COMB in ADJ
• hun‧gri‧ly
He looked at her hungrily. What eyes! What skin!
ADV: ADV with v

Merriam-Webster's Advanced Learner's Dictionary

hungry

hun·gry /ˈhʌŋgri/ adj hun·gri·er; -est
1 a : suffering because of a lack of food : greatly affected by hunger
• There are millions of hungry people throughout the world.
• Too many people in the world go hungry every day. [=suffer every day because they do not have enough food to eat]
b : having an uncomfortable feeling in your stomach because you need food : feeling hunger
• That girl is always hungry.
• I'm hungry. When's dinner?
• I feel hungry.
2 not used before a noun : feeling a strong desire or need for something or to do something
• The prisoners' families were hungry for more information.
• They were hungry to learn more.
• hungry for success/attention/power
- often used in combination
• power-hungry politicians
3 always used before a noun : showing hunger or desire
• hungry eyes
• a hungry look
4 : feeling a strong desire and determination to succeed
• The coach wants the players to stay hungry. [=to continue feeling a strong desire to win]
- hun·gri·ly /ˈhʌŋgrəli/ adv
• The dog stared hungrily at the food on the table.