starved; starving
1
a
: to perish from lack of food
b
: to suffer extreme hunger
2
a
archaic
: to die of cold
b
British
: to suffer greatly from cold
3
: to suffer or perish from deprivation
starved for affection
1
a
: to kill with hunger
b
: to deprive of nourishment
c
: to cause to capitulate by or as if by depriving of nourishment
2
: to destroy by or cause to suffer from deprivation
3
archaic
: to kill with cold
Examples of starve in a Sentence
Without food they would starve.
They left him to starve out in the desert.
providing food for starving children
They tried to starve their enemies into submission.
It was clear that the dog had been starved.
You don't have to starve yourself to lose weight.
Recent Examples on the Web
After Elon Musk made a public show of remedying an apparent error in DOGE’s massive cuts to foreign aid, the Trump administration has quietly doubled down on its decision to stop sending emergency food to millions of children who are starving in Bangladesh, Somalia, and other countries.
—
Hana Kiros, The Atlantic, 17 Apr. 2025
One Syria program offering food to starving pregnant people and children younger than 5 was informed that its contract has not been canceled, but a separate contract for the staff who run that program was canceled, leaving no one to oversee the work, the official said.
—Melody Schreiber, NPR, 11 Apr. 2025
In time, the lion and bull became close friends – so much so that the lion stopped hunting, and the animals in his retinue began starving.
—John Nemec, The Conversation, 7 Apr. 2025
Elsewhere, Keyshawn Johnson complained that watching the National Championship was like having to eat an undesirable meal to avoid starving.
—Gordon G. Chang, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for starve
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Hana Kiros, The Atlantic, 17 Apr. 2025
One Syria program offering food to starving pregnant people and children younger than 5 was informed that its contract has not been canceled, but a separate contract for the staff who run that program was canceled, leaving no one to oversee the work, the official said.
—Melody Schreiber, NPR, 11 Apr. 2025
In time, the lion and bull became close friends – so much so that the lion stopped hunting, and the animals in his retinue began starving.
—John Nemec, The Conversation, 7 Apr. 2025
Elsewhere, Keyshawn Johnson complained that watching the National Championship was like having to eat an undesirable meal to avoid starving.
—Gordon G. Chang, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for starve
Cite this Entry
“Starve.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/starve. Accessed 24 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
starve
verb
starved; starving
1
: to suffer or die or cause to suffer or die from lack of food
2
: to suffer or die or cause to suffer or die from a lack of something other than food
a child starving for affection
Etymology
Old English steorfan "to die (from any cause)"
Medical Definition
starve
verb
starved; starving
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