Synonyms of ravenous

ravenous

adjective

ˈra-və-nəs 

as in greedy

having a huge appetite

we were ravenous after our canoe paddling, and the chili bubbling over the campfire smelled heavenly

Synonyms & Similar Words

• greedy
• hungry
• voracious
• starving
• gluttonous
• starved
• rapacious
• piggish
• hoggish
• swinish
• edacious
• esurient
• insatiable
• wolfish
• devouring
• unquenchable
• famished
• gobbling
• hearty
• gorging
• peckish
• malnourished
• gormandizing
• underfed
• undernourished
• gulping
• unslakable
• empty

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• satisfied
• full
• content
• stuffed
• sated
• satiated
• glutted

Synonym Chooser

How is the word ravenous different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of ravenous are gluttonous, rapacious, and voracious. While all these words mean "excessively greedy," ravenous implies excessive hunger and suggests violent or grasping methods of dealing with food or with whatever satisfies an appetite.

a nation with a ravenous lust for territorial expansion

In what contexts can gluttonous take the place of ravenous?

The meanings of gluttonous and ravenous largely overlap; however, gluttonous applies to one who delights in eating or acquiring things especially beyond the point of necessity or satiety.

an admiral who was gluttonous for glory

When might rapacious be a better fit than ravenous?

The words rapacious and ravenous are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, rapacious often suggests excessive and utterly selfish acquisitiveness or avarice.

rapacious developers indifferent to environmental concerns

When can voracious be used instead of ravenous?

The words voracious and ravenous can be used in similar contexts, but voracious applies especially to habitual gorging with food or drink.

teenagers are often voracious eaters

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of ravenous

But there’s also a ravenous demand for easy escapism. —Katie Marie Davies, Christian Science Monitor, 11 June 2025

Read’s defense team alleges she was framed for O’Keefe’s murder by cops who beat O’Keefe, let a ravenous dog attack him and then dropped his bloodied and bruised body outside in the freezing cold. —Karissa Waddick, USA Today, 4 June 2025

There’s a fascinating rawness to the way the film portrays Andy that echoes Mia (Sophie Wilde) in Talk to Me, someone who disguised her ravenous neediness with a grin and a joke, all her grief bottled up inside. —Alison Willmore, Vulture, 30 May 2025

Forget The Very Hungry Caterpillar—scientists have discovered that another notoriously ravenous insect can eat its very first meal before it is even born. —Ian Randall, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 May 2025