hunger strike

noun

: refusal (as by a prisoner) to eat enough to sustain life
hunger striker noun

Examples of hunger strike in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web It’s been a decade since prisoners incarcerated under the worst conditions in California organized a massive hunger strike that roped in thousands of participants and helped scale back the use of solitary confinement statewide. Nate Gartrell, The Mercury News, 24 Feb. 2024 Dozens of students, like Ide, are now urging the UC regents to move forward with the proposal by engaging in a hunger strike. Mathew Miranda, Sacramento Bee, 25 Jan. 2024 Some activists participated in a hunger strike in an effort to force Sinema to change her position. Ronald J. Hansen, The Arizona Republic, 5 Mar. 2024 While in prison, Navalny went on a hunger strike that captured international attention to protest the conditions of his imprisonment. Mary Ilyushina, Washington Post, 16 Feb. 2024 My mom moved the lettuce around her plate, continuing her hunger strike. Kate Brody, New York Times, 13 Jan. 2024 Protesters have marched through the streets, staged a hunger strike, interrupted congressional hearings and been arrested on Capitol grounds. Ellie Silverman, Washington Post, 1 Feb. 2024 Behrens provided histrionics, declaring a hunger strike and fainting in the courtroom. Jack Kresnak, Detroit Free Press, 21 Jan. 2024 The 2022 decision to close several of the district’s small community campuses, which the district said were suffering from low enrollment, sparked widespread backlash in the community and even hunger strikes from two Oakland educators. Shomik Mukherjee, The Mercury News, 19 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'hunger strike.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1889, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of hunger strike was in 1889

Dictionary Entries Near hunger strike

Cite this Entry

“Hunger strike.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hunger%20strike. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

hunger strike

noun
: refusal (as by a prisoner) to eat enough to stay alive

More from Merriam-Webster on hunger strike

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