malnourished
adjective
mal·nour·ished
ˌmal-ˈnər-isht 
-ˈnə-risht
: supplied with less than the minimum or an unbalanced amount of the nutrients or foods essential for sound health and growth : marked by malnutrition
When it comes to certain nutrients, in fact, an estimated 80 to 90 percent of obese individuals are malnourished.—
Maria Konnikova
Maria Konnikova
especially
: undernourished sense 1
How do you help malnourished children and assure that they won't go hungry again after you leave? —Melissa Hendricks
Melissa Hendricks Patients may become malnourished from being unable to take food by mouth … —Laura Landro
Laura Landro Examples of malnourished in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
At a center for malnourished children in the Red Sea city of Port Sudan, health staff weighed crying babies and fed some through a tube in their nose.
—Samy Magdy, Los Angeles Times, 15 Apr. 2026
The number of severely malnourished children entering the center has doubled since the war began, to 60 a week, staff said.
—ABC News, 14 Apr. 2026
Two gray whales were found dead on the Oregon coast in April 2026, both malnourished and one with evidence of a ship strike.
—Daniel Crocker, The Conversation, 13 Apr. 2026
Mulhouse Public Prosecutor Nicolas Heitz speaks to the press after a boy was discovered naked and malnourished on a pile of rubbish in a van where he had been kept locked up, in Hagenbach, eastern France, on April 10, 2026.
—CBS News, 11 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for malnourished
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Samy Magdy, Los Angeles Times, 15 Apr. 2026
The number of severely malnourished children entering the center has doubled since the war began, to 60 a week, staff said.
—ABC News, 14 Apr. 2026
Two gray whales were found dead on the Oregon coast in April 2026, both malnourished and one with evidence of a ship strike.
—Daniel Crocker, The Conversation, 13 Apr. 2026
Mulhouse Public Prosecutor Nicolas Heitz speaks to the press after a boy was discovered naked and malnourished on a pile of rubbish in a van where he had been kept locked up, in Hagenbach, eastern France, on April 10, 2026.
—CBS News, 11 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for malnourished
Cite this Entry
“Malnourished.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/malnourished. Accessed 21 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
malnourished
adjective
mal·nour·ished
(ˈ)mal-ˈnər-isht
-ˈnə-risht
: poorly nourished : undernourished
Medical Definition
malnourished
adjective
mal·nour·ished
(ˈ)mal-ˈnər-isht, -ˈnə-risht
: supplied with less than the minimum or an unbalanced amount of the nutrients or foods essential for sound health and growth : marked by malnutrition
When it comes to certain nutrients, in fact, an estimated 80 to 90 percent of obese individuals are malnourished.—Maria Konnikova
Maria Konnikova
especially
: undernourished
How do you help malnourished children and assure that they won't go hungry again after you leave? —Melissa Hendricks
Melissa Hendricks Patients may become malnourished from being unable to take food by mouth … —Laura Landro
Laura Landro Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
