famine

American  

[fam-in] / ˈfæm ɪn /

noun

• famines
  plural

1. extreme and general scarcity of food, as in a country or a large geographical area.

2. any extreme and general scarcity.

   Synonyms:

   scantness, meagerness, poverty, paucity, dearth

3. extreme hunger; starvation.

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famine British  

/ ˈfæmɪn /

noun

1. a severe shortage of food, as through crop failure or overpopulation

2. acute shortage of anything

3. violent hunger

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famine Idioms  

1. see feast or famine.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• famines
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of famine

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, from Middle French, derivative of faim “hunger,” from Latin famēs; cf. famish

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Explanation

A famine is a severe shortage of food, but not the "I forgot to go to the grocery store and there's nothing to eat in the house" type of shortage. A famine is usually caused by crop failure or disaster. Although the "extreme shortage of food" meaning is most common, the noun famine can also mean any shortage or insufficiency, and it is often used idiomatically in the phrase "feast or famine." This usage refers to something that is alternately plentiful and scarce — like the feast and famine experienced by an artist who only occasionally sells his paintings.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

famine famines

In parts of Africa, Central America, and India, drought is already strangling crop yields and threatening famine.

From Slate ● Sep. 28, 2026

Manchester United constantly seem to flip between feast and famine, when often they've simply been fine.

From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026

“But as Irish people we know all too well about genocide, forced famine, and violent occupation.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026

Muratov abandoned art and returned to the army, and then, after the 1917 Revolution, devoted his skills to famine relief.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026

A famine caused by an inadequate Nile flood in 245 aggravated native resentment against the Greek monarchy and the burdensome cost of its imperial rivalries.

From "Circumference" by Nicholas Nicastro

It asserted that widespread famines and mass starvation would doom huge swaths of mankind because the world’s population was growing too rapidly.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 17, 2026

“Drawing from our experience with previous famines, we know that widespread deaths have already occurred by the time a famine is officially declared.”

From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2024

Wars, famines, outbreaks, natural disasters … There are, sadly, many reasons why populations might be forced or feel compelled to leave their homes in search of refuge elsewhere, and these cases continue to grow.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 3, 2024

With powerful statistical models, the researchers analyzed 30,000 years of archaeological records, tracing the impact of wars, famines and climate change.

From New York Times ● May 1, 2024

The archive reflects the human need to document every deed and directive, to place a veil of administrative tidiness over the disorder of famines and plagues and natural disasters and crimes and wars.

From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann

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Related Words

• drought
• misery
• poverty
• scarcity
• starvation

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