food

[ food ]

/ fud /

noun

any nourishing substance that is eaten, drunk, or otherwise taken into the body to sustain life, provide energy, promote growth, etc.

more or less solid nourishment, as distinguished from liquids.

a particular kind of solid nourishment: a breakfast food; dog food.

whatever supplies nourishment to organisms: plant food.

anything serving for consumption or use: food for thought.

Nearby words

fonticulus, fontina, foo yong, foo-pah, foochow, food, food additive, food additives, food and agriculture organization, food and drug administration, food ball

Origin of food

before 1000; Middle English fode, Old English fōda; compare Old English fēdan, Gothic fōdjan to feed; cf. fodder, foster

SYNONYMS FOR food

1 nutriment, aliment, bread, sustenance, victuals; meat, viands; diet, menu.

Related forms

food·less, adjectivefood·less·ness, nounnon·food, noun, adjective

Synonym study

1. Food, fare, provisions, ration ( s ) all refer to nutriment. Food is the general word: Breakfast foods have become very popular. Many animals prefer grass as food. Fare refers to the whole range of foods that may nourish a person or animal: an extensive bill of fare; The fare of some animals is limited in range. Provisions is applied to a store or stock of necessary things, especially food, prepared beforehand: provisions for a journey. Ration implies an allotment or allowance of provisions: a daily ration for each man of a company. Rations often means food in general: to be on short rations.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for foodless

The act finishes with Commendatore crashing a foodless and propless feast—“You invited me to supper, and I have arrived!”
Don Giovanni in Los Angeles: Mozart Meets the Future|Isabel Wilkinson|May 20, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Anything which did fly so high for any reason would never land on sloping, foodless stone.
Nightmare Planet|Murray Leinster
The journey was no more than fifteen miles, but took them across grassy, foodless plains which had never been worth negotiation.
The Devil's Asteroid|Manly Wade Wellman
Accustomed to warmer lands, men and horses starved with cold and famine in the inclement and foodless Cordillera.
Spanish America, Its Romance, Reality and Future, Vol. 1|Charles Reginald Enock

Unarmed and foodless, how shall he ever succeed in finding his way back to safety?
Forging the Blades|Bertram Mitford
The approaches to these outlets lie over waterless, foodless plateaux, broken up by deep salt lakes.
The British Expedition to the Crimea|William Howard Russell

British Dictionary definitions for foodless

food

/ (fuːd) /

noun

any substance containing nutrients, such as carbohydrates, proteins, and fats, that can be ingested by a living organism and metabolized into energy and body tissueRelated adjective: alimentary

nourishment in more or less solid form as opposed to liquid formfood and drink

anything that provides mental nourishment or stimulusfood for thought

Derived Forms

foodless, adjective

Word Origin for food

Old English fōda; related to Old Frisian fōdia to nourish, feed, Old Norse fœthi, Gothic fōdeins food; see feed, fodder

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Medicine definitions for foodless

food

[ fōōd ]

n.

Material, usually of plant or animal origin, that contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals, and is ingested and assimilated by an organism to produce energy, stimulate growth, and maintain life.