voracious
/vəˈreɪʃəs/ (bre, ipa) · [vɔrˈeʃəs] /vəˈreɪʃəs/ (ame, ipa) · [vɔrˈeʃəs] /və-ˈrā-shəs How to pronounce voracious (audio) vȯ-/ (ame, mw)
voracious — adjective
- voraciouspositive
- more voraciouscomparative
- most voracioussuperlative
1. eating or wanting to eat far more food than most people would
eating or wanting to eat far more food than most people would
After the race, Constanza had a voracious appetite and ate three plates of rice.
voracious appetite — common collocation
Baraka's voracious teenage sons emptied the fridge every single afternoon.
The stray dog was so voracious it finished the bowl of food in seconds.
Lakshmi watched her voracious guest eat the whole birthday cake in five minutes.
After the long hike, Selim was voracious and ate two large pizzas by himself.
- ravenous
more intense — suggests extreme hunger close to starvation
- insatiable
emphasises that the desire can never be fully satisfied; applies to food and non-food
- gluttonous
always negative, implies moral disapproval of overindulgence
- indifferent
shows no interest in food
- picky
eats very selectively, often rejecting most food offered
文法句型
voracious appetite
voracious eater
be voracious
用法筆記
Typically describes people or animals eating a surprisingly large amount. Frequently paired with 'appetite' or 'eater.'
常見錯誤
2. consuming books, knowledge, or information with intense eagerness, as if satisfy
consuming books, knowledge, or information with intense eagerness, as if satisfying a physical hunger
Dewi is a voracious reader who finishes at least three novels every single week.
voracious reader — common collocation
Ryan had a voracious appetite for knowledge and spent every evening in the library.
voracious appetite for — metaphorical extension
Andrés was voracious for updates about the missing flight and checked the news every ten minutes.
Gabriel's voracious curiosity led him to learn five languages before turning thirty.
As a collector, Bilal was voracious — he bought rare stamps from every continent.
- insatiable
very close in meaning; emphasises that the desire can never be satisfied
- avid
milder and more positive — keen enthusiasm rather than overwhelming drive
- greedy
more negative, implies selfishness or taking more than one's share
- indifferent
shows no interest or curiosity
- apathetic
lacks any enthusiasm or eagerness to engage
文法句型
voracious reader
voracious for + noun
voracious appetite for + noun
用法筆記
Object is usually something abstract (books, knowledge, information, news). The pattern 'a voracious reader' is the most frequent collocation in this sense. Distinguish from sense 1 (HUGE APPETITE), which is about literal eating.