Hunger — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

a physiological need for food; the consequence of food deprivation

strong desire for something (not food or drink)

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/hˈʌŋɡɚ/

🇬🇧British English

/hˈʌŋɡə/

🇮🇳Indian English

/hˈʌŋɡə/

2 syllables Say it as /hˈʌŋɡɚ/.

Examples

a thirst for knowledge
hunger for affection
Let's eat--I'm starving!

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

lust thirst famish hungriness starve crave thirstiness

Antonyms

be full

Parts of Speech

noun	a physiological need for food; the consequence of food deprivation
noun	strong desire for something (not food or drink) “a thirst for knowledge”
verb	feel the need to eat
verb	have a craving, appetite, or great desire for
verb	be hungry; go without food “Let's eat--I'm starving!”

Word Forms

hungry	adjective	feeling hunger; feeling a need or desire to eat food
hunger	verb	feel the need to eat
thirsty	adjective	(usually followed by `for') extremely desirous
thirst	verb	have a craving, appetite, or great desire for
hunger	noun	a physiological need for food; the consequence of food deprivation
craving	noun	an intense desire for some particular thing
thirst	noun	strong desire for something (not food or drink)
lust	noun	a strong sexual desire
starvation	noun	a state of extreme hunger resulting from lack of essential nutrients over a prolonged period

Around the World

Europe

🇫🇷French

faim

un besoin physiologique de nourriture ; la conséquence de la privation de nourriture

🇪🇸Spanish

hambre

una necesidad fisiológica de alimento; la consecuencia de la privación de alimentos

🇮🇹Italian

fame

un bisogno fisiologico di cibo; la conseguenza della privazione del cibo

🇳🇱Dutch

honger

een fysiologische behoefte aan voedsel; het gevolg van voedselgebrek

🇵🇹Portuguese

fome

uma necessidade fisiológica de alimentação; a consequência da privação alimentar

🇷🇺Russian

голод

физиологическая потребность в пище; последствия пищевого голодания

India

🇮🇳Hindi

भूख

भोजन की शारीरिक आवश्यकता; भोजन की कमी का परिणाम

🇧🇩Bengali

ক্ষুধা

খাদ্যের জন্য একটি শারীরবৃত্তীয় প্রয়োজন; খাদ্য বঞ্চনার পরিণতি

🇮🇳Tamil

பசி

உணவுக்கான உடலியல் தேவை; உணவு பற்றாக்குறையின் விளைவு

🇮🇳Telugu

ఆకలి

ఆహారం కోసం శారీరక అవసరం; ఆహార లేమి యొక్క పరిణామం

🇮🇳Marathi

भूक

अन्नाची शारीरिक गरज; अन्नाच्या कमतरतेचा परिणाम

🇮🇳Gujarati

ભૂખ

ખોરાક માટે શારીરિક જરૂરિયાત; ખોરાકના અભાવનું પરિણામ

🇮🇳Kannada

ಹಸಿವು

ಆಹಾರಕ್ಕಾಗಿ ಶಾರೀರಿಕ ಅಗತ್ಯತೆ; ಆಹಾರದ ಅಭಾವದ ಪರಿಣಾಮ

🇮🇳Malayalam

വിശപ്പ്

ഭക്ഷണത്തിനുള്ള ഫിസിയോളജിക്കൽ ആവശ്യം; ഭക്ഷണമില്ലായ്മയുടെ അനന്തരഫലം

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਭੁੱਖ

ਭੋਜਨ ਲਈ ਇੱਕ ਸਰੀਰਕ ਲੋੜ; ਭੋਜਨ ਦੀ ਘਾਟ ਦਾ ਨਤੀਜਾ

🇵🇰Urdu

بھوک

کھانے کی جسمانی ضرورت؛ خوراک کی کمی کا نتیجہ

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

饥饿

对食物的生理需求；食物匮乏的后果

🇯🇵Japanese

飢え

食物に対する生理学的欲求。食糧不足の結果

🇰🇷Korean

굶주림

음식에 대한 생리적 욕구; 식량 부족의 결과

🇻🇳Vietnamese

đói

nhu cầu sinh lý về thực phẩm; hậu quả của việc thiếu lương thực

🇹🇭Thai

ความหิว

ความต้องการอาหารทางสรีรวิทยา ผลที่ตามมาของการกีดกันอาหาร

🇮🇩Indonesian

kelaparan

kebutuhan fisiologis akan makanan; akibat kekurangan pangan

🇵🇭Filipino

gutom

isang physiological na pangangailangan para sa pagkain; ang kahihinatnan ng kawalan ng pagkain

🇲🇾Malay

kelaparan

keperluan fisiologi untuk makanan; akibat kekurangan makanan

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

الجوع

الحاجة الفسيولوجية للغذاء. نتيجة الحرمان من الطعام

🇮🇷Persian

گرسنگی

نیاز فیزیولوژیکی به غذا؛ پیامد محرومیت از غذا

🇹🇷Turkish

açlık

gıdaya yönelik fizyolojik bir ihtiyaç; gıda yoksunluğunun sonucu

🇮🇱Hebrew

רָעָב

צורך פיזיולוגי במזון; תוצאה של מחסור במזון

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'hunger'?

The primary meaning of 'hunger' is 'a physiological need for food; the consequence of food deprivation'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'hunger' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'hunger' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'hunger' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'hunger' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'hunger' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'hunger' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'hunger' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'hunger' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'hunger' in a professional email?

Very likely

Somewhat likely

Not very likely

Never

Would you classify 'hunger' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

Pick an option to see how others voted