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ravenous

 - 2 dictionary results

rav⋅en⋅ous

  [rav-uh-nuhs]
Use ravenous in a Sentence
–adjective
1. extremely hungry; famished; voracious: feeling ravenous after a hard day's work.
2. extremely rapacious: a ravenous jungle beast.
3. intensely eager for gratification or satisfaction.
Origin:
1350–1400; ME < OF ravineus, equiv. to ravin(er) to raven 2 + -eus -ous

Related forms:
rav⋅en⋅ous⋅ly, adverb
rav⋅en⋅ous⋅ness, noun

Synonyms:
1. greedy, starved, devouring. Ravenous, ravening, voracious suggest a greediness for food and usually intense hunger. Ravenous implies extreme hunger, or a famished condition: ravenous wild beasts. Ravening adds the idea of fierceness and savagery, esp. as shown in a violent manner of acquiring food: ravening wolves. Voracious implies craving or eating a great deal of food: a voracious child; a voracious appetite. It may also be used figuratively: a voracious reader. 2. predatory.

Antonyms:
1. sated.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To ravenous
rav·en·ous   (rāv'ə-nəs)   
adj.  

  1. Extremely hungry; voracious.

  2. Rapacious; predatory.

  3. Greedy for gratification: ravenous for power. See Synonyms at voracious.


[Middle English, from Old French ravineux, from raviner, to take by force, from Vulgar Latin *rapīnāre, from Latin rapīna, plunder; see rapine.]
rav'en·ous·ly adv., rav'en·ous·ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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