as in hunger
suffering or death caused by having nothing to eat or not enough to eat; the condition of someone who is starving
The famine brought mass starvation. Millions of people face starvation every day. They died from starvation.
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
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 starvation
Keeping up with food demand Two years of war and Israeli restrictions on aid have pushed the population of Gaza to the brink of starvation, with the world’s leading authority on hunger declaring a famine in August in part of northern Gaza, including Gaza City.
—
Mithil Aggarwal, NBC news, 19 Oct. 2025
If that point never arrives, then starvation enters a terminal stage—one that scientists have seldom documented in humans.
—Clayton Dalton, New Yorker, 18 Oct. 2025
Nina Turner: Only a demonic soul would not celebrate the cessation of the ethnic cleansing and starvation of millions of Palestinian people.
—Newsweek Contributors, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Oct. 2025
With the resumption of large-scale aid deliveries, Gaza’s population may be able to return from the brink of starvation.
—Joost R. Hiltermann, Foreign Affairs, 9 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for starvation
Mithil Aggarwal, NBC news, 19 Oct. 2025
If that point never arrives, then starvation enters a terminal stage—one that scientists have seldom documented in humans.
—Clayton Dalton, New Yorker, 18 Oct. 2025
Nina Turner: Only a demonic soul would not celebrate the cessation of the ethnic cleansing and starvation of millions of Palestinian people.
—Newsweek Contributors, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Oct. 2025
With the resumption of large-scale aid deliveries, Gaza’s population may be able to return from the brink of starvation.
—Joost R. Hiltermann, Foreign Affairs, 9 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for starvation
Recent Examples of Synonyms for starvation
Noun
-
Beat Afternoon Hunger Chia seeds make a satisfying midday snack when hunger hits.—
Morgan Pearson,
Verywell Health,
7 Nov. 2025
-
About one out of every seven California residents depends on CalFresh — the state’s branding for the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP — to stave off hunger.—
JOSÉ LUIS VILLEGAS,
Sacbee.com,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
El Fasher in western Darfur, and Kadugli in South Kordofan province, are now officially suffering from famine, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) confirmed on Monday.—
Rebecca Schneid,
Time,
3 Nov. 2025
-
Twenty other areas in Darfur and Kordofan, where fighting has intensified in recent months, are also at risk of famine, according to the IPC.—
NPR,
NPR,
3 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Famine was confirmed in August in Gaza City, and Gaza’s entire under-five population, 320,000 children, is at risk of acute malnutrition.—
Catherine Russell,
Time,
3 Nov. 2025
-
Your height is determined by a combination of genes (traits passed down in families) and environmental factors, such as an unbalanced diet, malnutrition, economic status, and certain conditions.—
Mark Gurarie,
Health,
1 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Starvation.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/starvation. Accessed 8 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share