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

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of ravenous The first four episodes of season 2 crept onto Netflix earlier this month, throwing our favorite heartless teenager (played by Jenna Ortega) headfirst into a new mystery, complete with secret experiments, ravenous zombies, and a spat of unsettling bird murders. Allison Degrushe Published, EW.com, 15 Aug. 2025 Berg also interviews Buckley’s bandmates and peers, like guitarist Michael Tighe, drummer Matt Johnson, Aimee Mann, and Ben Harper, and each of them speaks of Buckley’s ravenous and eclectic musical appetite. Madison Bloom, Pitchfork, 6 Aug. 2025 Sophie's scandal was related to photos taken while on vacation and sold to the ravenous British press by a friend. Meredith Kile, People.com, 5 Aug. 2025 For many years the ravenous far left in Connecticut has advocated taxing Yale University in New Haven. Chris Powell, Hartford Courant, 4 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for ravenous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ravenous
Adjective
  • Suddenly, Mickey is offering him a chance to play the main stage, which sets Sam’s greedier instincts into overdrive.
    Peter Debruge, Variety, 13 Sep. 2025
  • But his greedy schemes and her desire to keep her dog immortal led to the downfall of her once-thriving business and turned her into a woman on the run.
    Emily Blackwood, PEOPLE, 11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • Its free lunch program for the homeless and hungry draws more than 200 people in a week, and a free drop-in mental health clinic operates from offices on-site.
    Sophie Carson, jsonline.com, 14 Sep. 2025
  • But until now, such light sources required large, power-hungry tabletop systems.
    Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 13 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • Well, utilities are getting a lot of attention as a way to play AI’s voracious appetite for electricity.
    Michael Foster, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2025
  • These butterflies utilize cole crop foliage for laying eggs, out of which hatch voracious larvae that decimate the foliage and put an end to your fantasies about a hefty cole crop harvest.
    Joshua Siskin, Oc Register, 29 Aug. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Ravenous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ravenous. Accessed 16 Sep. 2025.

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