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
For more than a year, the country has been embroiled in a civil war that has displaced millions of people, pushed some communities to the brink of famine, and crippled the national banking, health care, and telecommunications systems.
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Dylan Matthews, Vox, 3 Dec. 2024
Instead, little now stands in the way of famine in northern Gaza and the deepening of the devastation that grips the rest of the territory.
—Jeremy Konyndyk, Foreign Affairs, 2 Dec. 2024
Experts already warned of famine in the northernmost part of Gaza, which Israeli forces have almost completely isolated since early October.
—Natalie Meltzer and Sally Abou Aljoud, Los Angeles Times, 2 Dec. 2024
Experts already warned of famine in the north, which Israeli forces have almost completely isolated since early October.
—Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 2 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for famine 
Dylan Matthews, Vox, 3 Dec. 2024
Instead, little now stands in the way of famine in northern Gaza and the deepening of the devastation that grips the rest of the territory.
—Jeremy Konyndyk, Foreign Affairs, 2 Dec. 2024
Experts already warned of famine in the northernmost part of Gaza, which Israeli forces have almost completely isolated since early October.
—Natalie Meltzer and Sally Abou Aljoud, Los Angeles Times, 2 Dec. 2024
Experts already warned of famine in the north, which Israeli forces have almost completely isolated since early October.
—Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 2 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for famine
Recent Examples of Synonyms for famine
Noun
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There is a shortage of cheery Tennessee high school football news this week.Tyler Palmateer, The Tennessean, 20 Dec. 2024
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Travelers destined for Hawaii's Big Island this holiday season are running into a roadblock before even boarding the plane thanks to a shortage of rental cars on the island – and price gouging of what remains.Kait Hanson, Travel + Leisure, 20 Dec. 2024
Noun
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Windows 11 is still an appalling tablet OS with a crippling lack of touch-friendly apps, and the stylus has an irritating input lag that makes scribbling on screen unsatisfactory.Barry Collins, Forbes, 14 Dec. 2024
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There is a lack of medical supplies, including prosthetics, wheelchairs and essential medications to treat people with injuries that have left them disabled, the press release said.Diaa Ostaz, ABC News, 14 Dec. 2024
Noun
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The drought watch, which began on Nov. 2, remains in effect.Joseph Wilkinson, New York Daily News, 17 Dec. 2024
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Bijan Robinson, who gained 125 of the Falcons’ 168 rushing yards, provided much of the offensive spark, while Kirk Cousins threw a first-half touchdown pass to Drake London to end the quarterback’s touchdown drought that spanned his team’s last four losses.Vic Tafur, The Athletic, 17 Dec. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near famine
Cite this Entry
“Famine.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/famine. Accessed 24 Dec. 2024.
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