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
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Recent Examples of famine
Catholic Relief Services has fed those who are suffering during famines.
—
Elizabeth Dias, New York Times, 15 Feb. 2025
Humanitarian assistance to save lives in disasters, civil wars, and famines should always be based on need.
—Andrew Natsios, Foreign Affairs, 7 Feb. 2025
In the first half of the 16th century, the region experienced years of intense heat and droughts which negatively affected crops and led to famine.
—Lauren Liebhaber, Miami Herald, 14 Feb. 2025
The first half of the 16th century was marked by extreme weather events, including hot summers and severe droughts — particularly between 1527 and 1544 — that devastated agriculture and led to famine.
—Jenny Lehmann, Discover Magazine, 13 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for famine
Elizabeth Dias, New York Times, 15 Feb. 2025
Humanitarian assistance to save lives in disasters, civil wars, and famines should always be based on need.
—Andrew Natsios, Foreign Affairs, 7 Feb. 2025
In the first half of the 16th century, the region experienced years of intense heat and droughts which negatively affected crops and led to famine.
—Lauren Liebhaber, Miami Herald, 14 Feb. 2025
The first half of the 16th century was marked by extreme weather events, including hot summers and severe droughts — particularly between 1527 and 1544 — that devastated agriculture and led to famine.
—Jenny Lehmann, Discover Magazine, 13 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for famine
Recent Examples of Synonyms for famine
Noun
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And the longer the staffing shortages persist, the longer some ATCs risk exhaustion and burnout.—
Holly Yan,
CNN,
8 Mar. 2025
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Some states are reviving older methods of capital punishment due to drug shortages, even as other states reconsider them entirely.—
Hannah Parry,
Newsweek,
8 Mar. 2025
Noun
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While winds will be much weaker and temperatures much cooler, dry vegetation due to lack of recent rainfall combined with the dry air will once again enhance the wildfire danger across the western Carolinas and northeast Georgia.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
2 Mar. 2025
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Despite weaker winds and cooler temperatures Sunday, dry air combined with dry vegetation due to lack of recent rainfall are keeping the wildfire danger high across the Carolinas and northeast Georgia.—
Karina Tsui,
CNN,
2 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Flash droughts are extreme droughts that develop rapidly due to lack of precipitation and dry conditions in the atmosphere.—
Lauren Lowman,
The Conversation,
5 Mar. 2025
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Years of severe drought in Barcelona resulting in water restrictions for residents in 2024, but none for tourists, also exacerbated hard feelings.—
Chadd Scott,
Forbes,
4 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Famine.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/famine. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025.
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