ravenous

[rav-uh-nuhs]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR ravenous ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

extremely hungry; famished; voracious: feeling ravenous after a hard day's work.

extremely rapacious: a ravenous jungle beast.

intensely eager for gratification or satisfaction.

Origin of ravenous

1350–1400; Middle English < Old French ravineus, equivalent to ravin(er) to raven² + -eus -ous

Related formsrav·en·ous·ly, adverbrav·en·ous·ness, noun

Can be confusedravenous ravaging ravishing (see synonym study at the current entry)

Synonyms for ravenous

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR ravenous ON THESAURUS.COM

1. greedy, starved, devouring. Ravenous, ravening, voracious suggest a greediness for food and usually intense hunger. Ravenous implies extreme hunger, or a famished condition: ravenous wild beasts. Ravening adds the idea of fierceness and savagery, especially as shown in a violent manner of acquiring food: ravening wolves. Voracious implies craving or eating a great deal of food: a voracious child; a voracious appetite. It may also be used figuratively: a voracious reader. 2. predatory.

Antonyms for ravenous

1. sated.

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

Related Words for ravenous

voracious, rapacious, insatiable, ferocious, greedy, avaricious, covetous, empty, famished, gluttonous, grasping, omnivorous, predatory, edacious, insatiate, ravening, wolfish

Examples from the Web for ravenous

Contemporary Examples of ravenous

It was like throwing a pack of ravenous dogs a side of raw meat.
The Absurd Case Against Sonia Gandhi
Dilip D’Souza
October 5, 2012
It was an irresistible feast for ravenous culture warriors on both sides.
Augusta’s Weird Culture War Ends With Membership for Rice, Moore
Michelle Cottle
August 21, 2012
Franco, the perpetual and ravenous learner, would get straight A's from any of those teachers.
The Yes List
August 11, 2011
Today, as our ravenous offspring turns 2, Ms. Brown sits down and subjects herself to another grilling.
The Daily Beast Turns 2!
Tina Brown
October 5, 2010
A voracious reader, and a ravenous consumer of all media, Brown has always been able to talk a good game.
The Madonna of Politics
Lloyd Grove
March 15, 2010

Historical Examples of ravenous

In a moment the prey was torn to bits by the ravenous monsters.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science September 1930
Various
Joseph is as greedy and as ravenous as Lucien, but not so frank or indiscreet.
Memoirs of the Court of St. Cloud, Complete
Lewis Goldsmith
And he cried so loud, he had wakened up so ravenous, that she decided to nurse him again.
Doctor Pascal
Emile Zola
Another quarter of an hour passed, and we were all ravenous.
The Stark Munro Letters
J. Stark Munro
The colonel had to eat, in vying admiration of Jeff, ravenous from his day's walk.
The Prisoner
Alice Brown

British Dictionary definitions for ravenous

ravenous

adjective

famished; starving

rapacious; voracious

Derived Formsravenously, adverbravenousness, noun

Word Origin for ravenous

C16: from Old French ravineux, from Latin rapīna plunder, from rapere to seize

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

Word Origin and History for ravenous

adj.

late 14c., "obsessed with plundering, extremely greedy," from Old French ravinos, of people, "rapacious, violent," of water, "swift-flowing," from raviner "to seize," from ravine "violent rush, robbery" (see ravine). Meaning "voracious, very hungry" is from early 15c. Related: Ravenously; ravenousness.