starving
starving — 形容詞
1. without enough food for such a long time that death is near or could happen.
飢餓瀕死的
因長期沒食物而瀕臨死亡
without enough food for such a long time that death is near or could happen.
The aid convoy finally reached the starving families in the mountain village.
救援車隊終於抵達山村的飢餓瀕死家庭。
collocation: starving families / starving people
Photographs of starving children moved people around the world to donate money.
飢餓瀕死的兒童照片感動了世界各地的人們捐款。
collocation: starving children
Veterinarians found a starving dog wandering near the abandoned farmhouse.
獸醫在廢棄農舍附近發現了一隻餓得奄奄一息的狗。
After three months with almost no food, the prisoners were starving when soldiers freed them.
在將近三個月沒有食物的情況下，那些囚犯獲救時已經餓得瀕臨死亡。
用法筆記
This sense describes a life-threatening condition, not ordinary hunger. Distinguish from sense 2 (VERY HUNGRY), which is a mild exaggeration in everyday speech.
常見錯誤
2. feeling a strong need to eat; very hungry. Used in everyday conversation as an e
餓壞了的
非常餓；想吃東西
feeling a strong need to eat; very hungry. Used in everyday conversation as an exaggeration — the speaker is not in real danger of starving.
I did not eat any lunch today, so I am absolutely starving right now.
我今天完全沒吃午餐，所以現在餓壞了。
intensifier pattern: absolutely starving / completely starving
After a long hike through the forest, everyone in the group was starving and ready for dinner.
在森林裡長途健行後，團裡的每個人都餓壞了，準備好好吃頓晚餐。
The kids came home from school starving and grabbed apples from the fruit bowl.
孩子們放學回家餓壞了，從水果籃裡抓起蘋果就吃。
Mei-Lin skipped breakfast and by eleven o'clock she was starving.
Mei-Lin 沒吃早餐，到了十一點她就餓壞了。
Is dinner ready yet? I'm starving — that workout really emptied my stomach.
晚餐準備好了嗎？我餓壞了——那場運動把我的胃都清空了。
用法筆記
By far the most common use of starving in everyday speech. The exaggeration is mild and socially acceptable — similar to saying 'I'm dying of thirst' for being very thirsty.
常見錯誤
3. feeling uncomfortably cold, often because the weather is cold or because a place
冷得要命的
因寒冷而感到非常不舒服
feeling uncomfortably cold, often because the weather is cold or because a place is not heated. Used as an exaggeration.
Put on a thicker coat — you will be starving out there in this wind.
穿件厚外套——你在這種風裡會冷得要命。
future prediction: will be starving in [cold place]
The old house had no heating, and by midnight everyone was absolutely starving.
那棟老房子沒有暖氣，到了午夜大家都冷得要命。
Jack rushed inside after shovelling snow, complaining that he was absolutely starving in the cold.
Jack 剷完雪後衝進屋裡，抱怨說他在外面冷得要命。
The camping trip turned miserable when the temperature dropped and everyone was starving in their sleeping bags.
那次露營之旅變得苦不堪言，氣溫下降，大家在睡袋裡都冷死了。
用法筆記
This sense is primarily British and less common than sense 2. It typically appears in informal contexts about weather or poorly heated spaces.
starving — 動詞
1. to die because there has been no food available for a very long time. Refers to
餓死
因長期缺乏食物而死亡
to die because there has been no food available for a very long time. Refers to the final outcome of extreme hunger, not the intermediate suffering.
During the long drought, thousands of cattle starved on the dry plains.
在那場持續的乾旱中，數千頭牛在乾燥的平原上餓死了。
subject = animal; natural disaster context
Historians estimate that over a million people starved during the famine of that decade.
歷史學家估計在那十年的饑荒中，超過一百萬人餓死了。
historical context; 'over a million people starved'
The abandoned kittens would have starved if the neighbour had not found them in time.
那些被遺棄的小貓要不是鄰居及時發現，早就餓死了。
No one in the village starved because the relief agency delivered rice and beans every week.
村裡沒有人餓死，因為救援機構每週都運送米和豆子。
- perish from hunger
more formal and literary
- die of starvation
more explicit about the cause of death
文法句型
starve (no object)
用法筆記
Frequently used in historical or news contexts about famines. Distinguish from sense 2 (SUFFER EXTREME HUNGER) — this sense describes the fatal result, while sense 2 describes the painful experience.
常見錯誤
2. to experience very strong hunger for a long time, without enough food to stay he
挨餓
長期缺乏食物而受苦
to experience very strong hunger for a long time, without enough food to stay healthy or comfortable. The person is suffering but may not be close to death.
The prisoners of war were forced to starve for weeks with only a cup of rice each day.
那些戰俘被迫挨餓好幾個星期，每天只有一杯米。
passive construction: were forced to starve
Many refugees starved on the long journey across the mountains to the border.
許多難民在翻山越嶺前往邊境的漫長路途上挨餓。
Emma took in three stray cats that had been starving in the alley behind her shop.
Emma 收留了三隻在她店鋪後巷裡挨餓的流浪貓。
The documentary showed how families in the drought region were starving and desperate for clean water.
那部紀錄片展示了乾旱地區的家庭如何挨餓且急需乾淨的水。
- go hungry
less severe; can refer to missing a single meal
- suffer from hunger
more formal and clinical
文法句型
starve (no object)
用法筆記
Often appears in progressive aspect (be starving / were starving) to describe an ongoing state. This is the most common intransitive use of the verb starve.
3. to suffer or die because the weather or environment is too cold, especially when
凍死；凍壞
因寒冷而受苦或死亡
to suffer or die because the weather or environment is too cold, especially when there is no shelter or warm clothing available.
The old wanderer looked as if he might starve with cold on that frozen bench.
那位老流浪漢坐在結冰的長椅上，看起來好像會凍死。
collocation: starve with cold
Without firewood, the mountain climbers feared they would starve in the icy wind before morning.
沒有柴火，登山者擔心在刺骨的寒風中撐不到天亮就會凍死。
In the harsh winter of 1947, many poor families starved because they had no coal for their stoves.
在一九四七年的嚴冬，許多貧困家庭因為沒有煤炭生爐子而凍死了。
- freeze
the standard modern verb for suffering from cold
- perish from cold
more formal and literary
- keep warm
to maintain a comfortable body temperature
文法句型
starve with cold
用法筆記
This sense is regional (British) and historical. In modern usage, 'freeze to death' or 'die of cold' are far more common. The cold sense of 'starve' survives mainly in older texts and dialect.
4. to suffer badly or fail because something necessary — such as money, attention,
極度缺乏
因缺乏必要之物而受苦
to suffer badly or fail because something necessary — such as money, attention, education, or love — is not available. Used figuratively about emotional or intellectual needs.
The school library was starving for new books, with only old volumes from the 1980s.
這所學校圖書館極度缺乏新書，只有一些一九八○年代的舊書。
pattern: starving for [resource]
Children who starve for affection often struggle to form close relationships as adults.
極度缺乏關愛的孩子長大後往往難以建立親密關係。
After years of budget cuts, the public hospital system was starving for trained nurses and basic supplies.
經過多年預算刪減，這所公立醫院極度缺乏受過訓練的護士和基本物資。
The artist felt she was starving for creative inspiration in that dull office job.
那位藝術家覺得在那份沉悶的辦公室工作中極度缺乏創作靈感。
- lack
neutral; does not carry the same sense of suffering
- be deprived of
more formal; emphasises that someone or something is being withheld
- crave
emphasises strong desire rather than sustained lack
- have an abundance of
to have more than enough
- be rich in
to have plenty of something desirable
文法句型
starve for + something necessary
用法筆記
This sense is always figurative. It follows the pattern 'starve for + [abstract noun]'. The preposition 'for' is essential — without it, readers understand the literal hunger sense.
常見錯誤
5. to prevent a person, animal, or group from getting enough food, causing them to
使挨餓
刻意不讓某人或動物獲得食物
to prevent a person, animal, or group from getting enough food, causing them to suffer or become weak. Used actively — someone is doing this on purpose or through neglect.
The cruel owner starved his horses by giving them only a handful of hay each day.
殘忍的主人每天只給他的馬一把乾草，使馬挨餓。
active transitive: [person] starved [animal] by...
The invading army starved the city by blocking all roads that brought in food supplies.
入侵軍隊封鎖所有運送食物的道路，使城裡的人挨餓。
method pattern: starved [someone] by [method]
Reports revealed that the orphanage had been starving the children for years.
報告揭露那家孤兒院多年來一直讓孩子們挨餓。
The landlord locked the cats inside the empty apartment and starved them for two weeks.
房東把貓鎖在空公寓裡，讓牠們足足餓了兩個星期。
- deprive of food
more formal; less emotional impact
- withhold food from
explicitly states the withholding action
文法句型
starve + someone/something
starve + someone/something + of + noun
用法筆記
This is the transitive counterpart of sense 2. The subject actively withholds food. Can also appear as 'starve someone of something' in extended use (e.g., 'starve the project of funding').
常見錯誤
6. to use a lack of food or other essential supplies as a weapon, forcing people to
以飢餓逼迫
用斷糧手段迫使屈服
to use a lack of food or other essential supplies as a weapon, forcing people to give up or do what you want because they cannot survive otherwise.
The army surrounded the fort and tried to starve the soldiers into giving up their weapons.
軍隊包圍了堡壘，試圖以飢餓逼迫士兵繳械投降。
pattern: starve [someone] into [action/gerund]
The rebel group hoped to starve the government into accepting their demands for reform.
叛軍希望以飢餓逼迫政府接受他們提出的改革要求。
Protesters outside the embassy said they would starve the diplomats into negotiating a peace deal.
大使館外的抗議者聲稱要以飢餓逼迫外交官進行和平談判。
- besiege
to surround a place to cut off supplies; broader than just food
- blockade
to prevent goods or people from entering or leaving
- starve out
phrasal verb meaning to force someone to leave by starvation
文法句型
starve + someone + into + gerund/noun
用法筆記
Almost always appears in military or political contexts. The construction 'starve someone into + [action]' is the hallmark — if this pattern is absent, the sense is likely sense 5 instead.
7. to damage or destroy something — such as a business, project, relationship, or e
剝奪；扼殺
不給資源而導致衰退或毀滅
to damage or destroy something — such as a business, project, relationship, or ecosystem — by not giving it the money, resources, or support it needs to survive.
The board starved the research department of funding until it could no longer operate.
董事會剝奪研究部門的經費，使其無法繼續運作。
pattern: starve [entity] of [resource]
Years of neglect starved the park of maintenance, leaving benches broken and paths overgrown.
多年來的忽視使公園缺乏維護，長椅破損、小徑雜草叢生。
The toxic culture at work starved employees of any sense of appreciation or progress.
職場中的有毒文化剝奪了員工任何被賞識或進步的感受。
By cutting the electricity supply, the corporation effectively starved the small factory of the power it needed.
透過切斷電力供應，該公司實際上剝奪了小工廠所需的運轉能源。
文法句型
starve + something + of + noun
用法筆記
Fully metaphorical — the subject is not literally withholding food. The pattern 'starve X of Y' where Y is an abstract resource (funding, attention, maintenance) identifies this sense. Common in business and political writing.
8. to cause death or severe suffering in a person, animal, or plant by exposing the
凍死
使人或植物因寒冷而死亡
to cause death or severe suffering in a person, animal, or plant by exposing them to extreme cold without protection.
The unexpected frost starved the young tomato plants before the farmer could cover them.
突如其來的霜凍在農夫來得及覆蓋之前就凍死了幼小的番茄苗。
subject = weather event; object = plants
In past centuries, landlords sometimes starved poor tenants with cold by refusing to provide firewood.
在過去的幾個世紀裡，房東有時會拒絕提供柴火，讓窮苦佃農凍死。
The blizzard starved the lost hikers with cold, and only a helicopter rescue saved their lives.
暴風雪讓迷路的登山者快要凍死，只有直升機救援才能救他們一命。
- freeze to death
the standard modern expression
- kill with cold
more literal and transparent in meaning
- warm
to make warm
- shelter from cold
to protect from low temperatures
文法句型
starve + someone/something + with cold
用法筆記
This transitive cold sense is very rare in modern English. It is largely restricted to British dialect and historical texts. In contemporary language, 'freeze to death' or 'kill by freezing' are the standard expressions.