famine

noun

fam·​ine ˈfa-mən 

1

: an extreme scarcity of food

The famine affected most of the country.

2

archaic : starvation

3

archaic : a ravenous appetite

4

: a great shortage

Transportation problems resulted in a coal famine.

Synonyms

• crunch
• dearth
• deficiency
• deficit
• drought
• drouth
• failure
• inadequacy
• inadequateness
• insufficiency
• lack
• lacuna
• paucity
• pinch
• poverty
• scantiness
• scarceness
• scarcity
• shortage
• undersupply
• want

Examples of famine in a Sentence

The famine affected half the continent.

millions killed by war, drought, and famine

Recent Examples on the Web

Half of those trucks will be directed to Gaza’s north, where experts had warned famine was imminent. —Astha Rajvanshi, NBC News, 22 Jan. 2025

No other society has ever faced a steeper population decline absent war, disease or famine. —Micah McCartney, Newsweek, 22 Jan. 2025

The pause in fighting is the first phase of the truce, announced last week, and will bring relief to the people of Gaza who have experienced destruction and famine in the region. —Lauren Irwin, The Hill, 19 Jan. 2025

Depressions, recessions, and famines in the nineteenth century brought catastrophic unemployment and poverty, which governments had to offset. —Foreign Affairs, 14 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from feim, faim hunger, from Latin fames

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

famine

noun

fam·​ine ˈfam-ən 

1

: an extreme general shortage of food

2

: a great shortage