malnutrition

noun

mal·​nu·​tri·​tion ˌmal-nu̇-ˈtri-shən 

-nyu̇-

: faulty nutrition due to inadequate or unbalanced intake of nutrients or their impaired assimilation or utilization

Examples of malnutrition in a Sentence

a program to help poor children suffering from malnutrition

Recent Examples on the Web

According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, at least thirty-two Palestinians, including twenty-eight children, had died of malnutrition or starvation at Gaza’s hospitals. —David D. Kirkpatrick, New Yorker, 5 Oct. 2025

There is mounting concern over the malnutrition crisis in Gaza and its impact on civilians. —Richard Hall, Time, 5 Oct. 2025

But the debate gradually shifted from how to measure malnutrition to how to estimate how many Americans lacked sufficient access to food. —Tracy Roof, The Conversation, 2 Oct. 2025

Up to June 2026, at least 132,000 children under the age of five are expected to suffer from acute malnutrition, including more than 41,000 severe cases of children at heightened risk of death, the IPC added. —Soph Warnes, CNN Money, 2 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1862, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for malnutrition

• abolition
• acquisition
• admonition
• ammunition
• apparition
• apposition
• coalition
• competition
• composition
• definition
• deglutition
• demolition

Kids Definition

malnutrition

noun

mal·​nu·​tri·​tion ˌmal-n(y)u̇-ˈtrish-ən 

: faulty nutrition especially due to inadequate intake of nutrients

Medical Definition

malnutrition

noun

mal·​nu·​tri·​tion ˌmal-n(y)u̇-ˈtrish-ən 

: faulty nutrition due to inadequate or unbalanced intake of nutrients or their impaired assimilation or utilization

malnutritional

-ᵊl 

adjective