ravenous

adjective

rav·​en·​ous ˈra-və-nəs 

ˈrav-nəs

1

: rapacious

ravenous wolves

2

: very eager or greedy for food, satisfaction, or gratification

a ravenous appetite

ravenously adverb

ravenousness noun

Did you know?

ravishing or ravenous?

Ravenous and ravishing are not synonyms, and mixing these two words may lead to potentially awkward writing or conversation. Ravenous is commonly used with the meaning “very eager or greedy for food, satisfaction, or gratification,” and ravishing means “unusually attractive, pleasing, or striking.” If you find yourself hungry and standing in front of a spectacular-looking meal you would say (of the food) “that looks ravishing,” and (of yourself) “I am ravenous.” You may, of course, describe yourself as ravishing, but should be aware that you are commenting on your appearance rather than your hunger.

Synonyms

• edacious
• esurient
• gluttonous
• greedy
• hoggish
• piggish
• rapacious
• swinish
• voracious

Choose the Right Synonym for ravenous

voracious, gluttonous, ravenous, rapacious mean excessively greedy.

voracious applies especially to habitual gorging with food or drink.

teenagers are often voracious eaters

gluttonous applies to one who delights in eating or acquiring things especially beyond the point of necessity or satiety.

an admiral who was gluttonous for glory

ravenous implies excessive hunger and suggests violent or grasping methods of dealing with food or with whatever satisfies an appetite.

a nation with a ravenous lust for territorial expansion

rapacious often suggests excessive and utterly selfish acquisitiveness or avarice.

rapacious developers indifferent to environmental concerns

Examples of ravenous in a Sentence

By the time dinner was ready, we were ravenous.

we were ravenous after our canoe paddling, and the chili bubbling over the campfire smelled heavenly

Recent Examples on the Web

The continental United States is jam-packed with reminders of our ravenous oil appetite. —Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 5 Dec. 2024

But a sloppy end of the third quarter, with more miscues in the fourth, and the ravenous home crowd keeping the energy up, gave France an opening. —David Aldridge, The Athletic, 10 Aug. 2024

The film’s parody of self-serious disaster movies found a ravenous audience, and marked the first time Leslie Nielsen starred in a Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker project. —Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 26 Nov. 2024

Black bears, which can be brown, reddish, or blond, are defensive and lazy, smart and resilient, ravenous and opportunistic. —Paige Williams, The New Yorker, 25 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English ravynous, raveynous, from ravyn, raveyn "robbery, rapacity" + -ous -ous — more at ravin

Note: Alternatively, and perhaps more likely, ravynous, etc., may be a derivative of an unattested Middle English verb—see the note at raven entry 3.

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing ravenous

• ravenous appetite

Kids Definition

ravenous

adjective

rav·​en·​ous ˈrav-(ə-)nəs 

: very eager for food or satisfaction

ravenously adverb

ravenousness noun