ravenous

adjective rav·en·ous \ ˈra-və-nəs , ˈrav-nəs \

Definition of ravenous

1 :rapacious

ravenous wolves

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

a ravenous appetite

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ravenously

adverb

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ravenousness

noun

See ravenous defined for English-language learners

See ravenous defined for kids

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 of ravenous from the Web

In late 2013, for example, a Hong Kong newspaper published an article saying the young leader had his uncle, Jang Song-thaek, killed by a pack of ravenous dogs.

— michael holtz, The Christian Science Monitor, "How Kim rules: What the North Korean leader's unexpected directions for his country mean for the US," 28 Aug. 2017
The player lives through her ravenous hunger, as the game pushes them to swallow animals and people, providing a sense of the character's simple yet propulsive motivation.

— steven strom, Ars Technica, "How playing Edith Finch was like losing my religion again," 5 Aug. 2017
Joe Vinson ran across late last week must have been ravenous.

— todd masson, NOLA.com, "Alligator chomps Hopedale angler's redfish," 25 July 2017
Nowadays, with Instagram and Pinterest and an online food media ravenous for fresh finds and blistering hot takes, that trajectory is considerably shorter, even as enthusiasm screams louder than ever.

— john birdsall, Bon Appetit, "Why Are We Still Talking About Avocado Toast?," 19 July 2017
Italian soccer club AS Roma and Paris Saint-Germain FC, two pro teams with ravenous fan bases that attend its games, face each other in an International Champions Cup match Wednesday at Comerica Park in Detroit.

— brandon folsom, Detroit Free Press, "Detroit and MLS soccer: City could cash in if awarded a franchise," 18 July 2017
After the ceremony at St. Paul's Catholic Church in Westwood, California, Monk navigated the newlyweds through the ravenous throngs of paparazzi waiting outside, breathing a sigh of relief once they were safely ensconced in their limo.

— maria carter, Country Living, "The Sad Incident That Left Valerie Bertinelli In Tears on Her Wedding Day," 30 June 2017
When thousands of ravenous customers all crash a website, even the smallest fraction of megabyte speed can make the difference.

— jake woolf, GQ, "Your Adidas Yeezy Boost 350 V2 "Zebra" Restock Buying Guide," 20 June 2017
And the endless series of near misses by the ravenous sharks certainly qualifies them as the most inept predators on the planet.

— frank scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, "'47 Meters Down': Film Review," 16 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ravenous.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.