ravenous

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/ˈrævənəs/
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Extremely hungry, or figuratively driven by an intense and often excessive desire.
Practice using ravenous in conversation until it feels natural

Examples

  • By noon I was ravenous enough to eat anything.
  • A ravenous demand for housing pushed prices higher.
  • After the long hike, everyone was ravenous.
  • Her ravenous curiosity made every archive feel too small.
  • The children came home from swimming ravenous and cold.

Similar words

famished
voracious
voracious
edacious
insatiable
starving
insatiable
avid
covetous
greedy

Meanings

Extremely hungry

adjective
food
neutral
So hungry that food feels urgently needed, often with a sense of powerful appetite.

Usage

Use ravenous for hunger stronger than simply hungry, especially after exertion, a long wait, or going without food.

Examples

  • After the long hike, everyone was ravenous.
  • The children came home from swimming ravenous and cold.
  • By noon I was ravenous enough to eat anything.
  • The rescue team found the dog weak and ravenous.
  • A ravenous crowd lined up outside the bakery.
  • Skipping breakfast always leaves him ravenous by midmorning.

Common mistakes

Ravenously is the adverb, and ravenous does not describe tiredness, thirst, or a difficult journey by itself.
IncorrectCorrect
She felt ravenously after the race. She felt ravenous after the race.
The hike was ravenous and left us exhausted. The hike was exhausting and left us ravenous.
He drank water because he was ravenous. He drank water because he was thirsty.
They ate ravenous after practice. They ate ravenously after practice.

Similar words

famished
starving
voracious
hungry
insatiable
edacious

Greedily eager

adjective
figurative
neutral
Driven by an intense and often excessive desire for something such as power, money, attention, or information.

Usage

Use ravenous figuratively when the desire feels consuming or predatory, not for mild interest or ordinary enthusiasm.

Examples

  • The empire had a ravenous appetite for land.
  • Her ravenous curiosity made every archive feel too small.
  • The company faced criticism for its ravenous expansion.
  • A ravenous demand for housing pushed prices higher.
  • The tabloids showed a ravenous interest in the scandal.
  • His ravenous ambition left little room for friendship.

Common mistakes

The word is too strong for ordinary interest, and it must modify a noun rather than stand as a noun itself.
IncorrectCorrect
She had a ravenous for new books. She had a ravenous appetite for new books.
The team was ravenous about finishing the form. The team was eager to finish the form.
His ravenous for power worried everyone. His ravenous hunger for power worried everyone.
The market grew ravenously for cheap loans. The market grew ravenous for cheap loans.

Similar words

rapacious
greedy
voracious
insatiable
avid
covetous

Usage

Use ravenous for a powerful appetite, literal or figurative. For the manner of eating or desiring, use the adverb ravenously.

Common mistakes

Ravenous is an adjective, so forms such as felt ravenously and a ravenous for power are wrong. Use ravenous before a noun or after linking verbs such as be, feel, and become.

Etymology

From Middle English ravenous, from Old French ravineux or related forms meaning rapacious, from ravine, violent rush or plunder. It is connected with ravin and ravish, not directly with the bird name raven.

FAQ

What does ravenous mean?

Ravenous means extremely hungry, or figuratively full of intense desire for something.

Is ravenous an adjective?

Yes. Ravenous is an adjective. The adverb is ravenously.

Can ravenous be used without food?

Yes. It can describe a greedy or consuming desire, as in ravenous ambition or a ravenous appetite for power.

Is ravenous stronger than hungry?

Yes. Ravenous means very hungry, often urgently or intensely so.

Does ravenous come from the bird raven?

No. It is historically tied to words for plunder and violent seizing, though the bird name has encouraged folk associations.

Comments & contributions

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Bright Bunting
Jun 20
for books and info I reach for voracious way more than ravenous. Voracious reader is the normal phrase. Ravenous reader sounds like you are making a joke, like the person is chewing through the library. Ravenous for attention, cash, information works, because it still has that grabbing appetite vibe
5
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Quirky Owl
Jul 5
agree. i'm not native and ravenous for novels feels tempting, but voracious is safer there
1
Contribution
Violet Fox
Jun 15
People mix up ravenous with ravishing, and it gets funny fast. If the curry looks amazing, it can look ravishing. You are the ravenous one waiting for it. "The soup is ravenous" sounds like the soup is about to eat somebody lol
13
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Nifty Leopard
Jun 19
lol yes, ravenous dessert makes the dessert the hungry one
2
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