ravenous

[rav-uh-nuhs]

adjective

1. extremely hungry; famished; voracious.

   feeling ravenous after a hard day's work.

   Synonyms: greedy

2. extremely rapacious.

   a ravenous jungle beast.

   Synonyms: predatory

3. intensely eager for gratification or satisfaction.

ravenous

/ ˈrævənəs /

adjective

1. famished; starving

2. rapacious; voracious

Other Word Forms

• ravenously adverb
• ravenousness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of ravenous¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Old French ravineus, equivalent to ravin(er) “to plunder” ( See raven ² ) + -eus -ous

Word History and Origins

Origin of ravenous¹

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

Synonym Study

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.

Example Sentences

I don’t know why, but I was suddenly ravenous and wolfed down a dozen saltines and two chocolate chip cookies just to chase the taste of my humiliation.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

You always know where you stand with a drooling, ravenous killing machine.

Read more on Salon

Their ravenous need for attention makes them perfect propagandists in the social media era.

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Their brief mission extends to an overnight stay on the mainland when Jamie and Spike are discovered by a group of Alphas — zombies of the sprinting, ravenous and homicidal kind.

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In their ravenous quest for revenue, soccer clubs, leagues and governing bodies have crowded the calendar with invented competitions that have drained both fans’ bank accounts and players’ energy levels.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• ferocious 
• greedy 
• insatiable 
• rapacious 
• voracious 

When To Use

What does ravenous mean?

Ravenous means extremely hungry, as in After being unable to eat solid foods for a week, Isaac was now ravenous.Ravenous in this sense is often used figuratively. You might be hungry but not literally starving and still describe yourself as ravenous.Ravenous also means extremely greedy or predatory. It’s especially used to describe predatory animals, but it’s also used to describe people. Ravenous people may be greedy for riches, fame, or something else that they think will give them satisfaction if they have a lot of it. (Whether they can ever be satisfied is another discussion.)Example: After a long day hiking up the mountain, the hikers were ravenous, inhaling their dinner in a matter of minutes.