forage
Americannoun
verb (used without object)
-
forages,
present (3rd person singular)
-
foraged,
past participle, past
-
foraging
present participle
verb (used with object)
-
forages,
present (3rd person singular)
-
foraged,
past participle, past
-
foraging
present participle
-
to collect forage from; strip of supplies; plunder.
to forage the countryside.
-
to supply with forage.
-
to obtain by foraging.
noun
-
food for horses or cattle, esp hay or straw
-
the act of searching for food or provisions
-
military a raid or incursion
verb
-
to search (the countryside or a town) for food, provisions, etc
-
(intr) military to carry out a raid
-
(tr) to obtain by searching about
-
(tr) to give food or other provisions to
-
(tr) to feed (cattle or horses) with such food
Synonym Usage
See feed.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
foragesimple
-
foragessimple
-
have foragedperfect
-
has foragedperfect
-
am foragingprogressive
-
are foragingprogressive
-
is foragingprogressive
-
have been foragingperfect progressive
-
has been foragingperfect progressive
Past
-
foragedsimple
-
had foragedperfect
-
was foragingprogressive
-
were foragingprogressive
-
had been foragingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of forage
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English, from Old French fourrage, derivative of fuerre fodder (from Germanic )
Explanation
To forage is to wander around looking for food. When it’s cold and snowy outside, birds may forage for food in your backyard, digging around for whatever they can find. The verb forage often describes animals searching for food, but it can also be applied to people. In those circumstances it retains the slightly desperate sense of coming up with whatever is available. For example, if you want to cook dinner but have no time to go to the grocery store, you might forage your refrigerator and cabinets to find good substitutes for ingredients in your recipe.
Vocabulary lists containing forage
Touching Spirit Bear
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
The One and Only Ivan
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
"The Hunger Games" Vocabulary from Chapter 1
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
They will be entitled to import forage from outside their zone, and use some supplements.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
It enabled our ancestors to forage for food and water during the hottest period of the day, with sweat to keep them from overheating.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 16, 2026
Species that feed on invertebrates, forage along the bottom, or rely on ambush strategies to catch prey also showed higher rates of contamination compared with other fish.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 3, 2026
The rescue service said the prolonged harsh weather conditions placed significant strain on many wildlife species that relied on calmer conditions to forage successfully.
From BBC ● Jan. 28, 2026
Other times, we pay for forage, if it’s Loyalist.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
We were planning adventures, date nights and what we would cook with our forages from the farmers market.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 8, 2026
Not the kind you get at a tiny restaurant with exposed brick and a chef who forages.
From Salon ● Apr. 7, 2026
Ellora Coupe, who lives in south-west London, says she forages for mushrooms once a year on Wimbledon Common with her children.
From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2024
A curious sea otter pup peeks out from behind a column of kelp while it forages for crabs or snails off California’s Monterey Bay.
From National Geographic ● Nov. 14, 2023
Emma didn’t mind his experiments with her flowers or his forages into her sewing box for threads to use in his experiments.
From "Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith" by Deborah Heiligman
In mid-May, public health officials in Napa County said three people had been hospitalized after eating poisonous wild mushrooms foraged in the Deer Park community.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 30, 2026
Their diet centered on smaller marine mammals including harbor seals and harbor porpoises, and they usually traveled and foraged in groups of about five.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 20, 2025
“With these foraged apples, you can sprinkle that in to add complexity.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2025
Her legal team had argued she unintentionally foraged lethal fungi, then "panicked" upon accidentally poisoning family members she loved.
From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2025
I foraged along with the bonobos, making sure to keep clear of Anastasia.
From "Endangered" by Eliot Schrefer
It also serves as a winter foraging site for Cook Inlet beluga whales, whose numbers have dropped to around 300.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
After only three days, the bees exposed to glyphosate showed a 13 percent decline in foraging activity.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 6, 2026
The nonprofit has long maintained that the land — reportedly the last undeveloped sliver of Big Bear Lake’s shoreline — represents critical foraging habitat for the eagles.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
Dr Paul Williams, a bumblebee expert at the Natural History Museum, says foraging is an energy calculation for bumblebees.
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
After what seemed like hours of constant foraging she was still hungry—but not starving.
From "Julie of the Wolves" by Jean Craighead George
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
