famine

noun

ˈfa-mən How to pronounce famine (audio)
Definition of faminenext
as in shortage
a falling short of an essential or desirable amount or number there's a famine of good general practitioners in many rural areas

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 famine About 26 million people are facing food insecurity and imminent famine has been flagged in several areas of Darfur. — Janine Di Giovanni, Vanity Fair, 25 June 2026 The result is an epidemic of solitude, if not loneliness; a dramatic drop in fertility; and a romantic famine across North and South America, Europe, and China. — Simon Sebag Montefiore, The Atlantic, 28 June 2026 Helen Cammock removed her video claiming Churchill starved Indians during the Bengal famine from London’s National Portrait Gallery. — Devorah Lauter, ARTnews.com, 23 June 2026 After 1840, immigration from Western Europe began to rise quickly as political instability in Germany and the famine in Ireland drove people to leave. — Albert Sun, New York Times, 2 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for famine
Recent Examples of Synonyms for famine
  1. shortage
  2. lack
  3. drought
Noun
  • The divergence is over whether the worker shortage is improving slowly or still getting worse, and what the Supreme Court should do about it.
    — Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times, 6 July 2026
  • Lights had been switched off to conserve electricity amid fuel shortages that have gripped Cuba since the beginning of the year.
    — Romina Ruiz-Goiriena, USA Today, 6 July 2026
Definition of shortage
Noun
  • Keli Gonzalez, a painter the museum commissioned, became frustrated by the lack of female representation.
    — Karissa Waddick, USA Today, 3 July 2026
  • The lack of a World Cup title is the one gap on his historic résumé.
    — Ashley Mowreader, NBC news, 3 July 2026
Definition of lack
Noun
  • Americans across the nation are being asked (or ordered) to conserve water, thanks to widespread drought made even worse by a punishing heat wave.
    — Jeanine Santucci, USA Today, 5 July 2026
  • Efraín Juárez, then the coach of Pumas, was asked about the possibility of his team ending a long title drought.
    — Eduard Cauich, Los Angeles Times, 5 July 2026
Definition of drought

Browse Nearby Words

family way
famine
famines
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Cite this Entry

“Famine.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/famine. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on famine

Nglish: Translation of famine for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about famine

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