Definition of famine
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.
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Examples of famine in a Sentence
The famine affected half the continent.
millions killed by war, drought, and famine
Recent Examples of famine from the Web
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There is also an acute lack of basic food stuffs, mainly maize, during famine, which affects all segments of the population.
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Coastal communities in my home state of Florida are already seeing a rise in sea levels, while drought, flooding, disease and famine are certain to become more severe as the effects of climate change take hold here and around the globe.
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Sir Charles Trevelyn, the British official who cheered the famine on, stressed the moral issue.
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More than one million people died, mostly from famine and disease after the Nigerian army blockaded Biafra.
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The head of the U.N.’s food and agriculture agency warned Tuesday that conflict in South Sudan could undermine hopes of avoiding a new famine next year.
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The world wars, the Irish famine, the Vietnam War, the civil-rights movement, the attacks on 9/11, the Holocaust, and even the Civil War itself have inspired brilliant works of public art.
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Washington (AP) -- When President Donald Trump met Pope Francis this week, the U.S. leader renewed a commitment to fighting global famine and proudly announced a new multimillion-dollar American aid contribution to four African nations in crisis.
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Tech luminaries gather in Silicon Valley to further the vision of mouse inventor Engelbart: Networked computers can help people work together, raise humanity’s collective intelligence and help end pollution, famine, disease and war.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'famine'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of famine
Middle English, from Anglo-French, from feim, faim hunger, from Latin fames
First Known Use: 14th century
FAMINE Defined for English Language Learners
famine
playDefinition of famine for English Language Learners
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: a situation in which many people do not have enough food to eat
FAMINE Defined for Kids
famine
playDefinition of famine for Students
: a very great shortage of food that affects many people over a wide area
Learn More about famine
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See words that rhyme with famine Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for famine Spanish Central: Translation of famine Nglish: Translation of famine for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of famine for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about famine
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