underfed
Intermediate (B1)
IPA: /ˈʌndərˌfɛd/
KK: /ʌndərˈfɛd/
adjective
Definition
Not getting enough food to be healthy or grow properly.
Example
The underfed children in the village need more nutritious meals.
Conversation
Have you seen how skinny that stray cat is?
Yeah, it looks really underfed and sad.
I can't believe people just ignore it.
We should try to help it; maybe it just needs some food.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms
malnourished
starved
deprived
Antonyms
nourished
satiated
fed
verb
Definition
To not provide enough food for someone or something, leading to insufficient nutrition.
Example
The stray dog looked underfed and needed a proper meal.
Tense Forms
Past: underfed
Past Participle: underfed
Conversation
Did you hear about the animal shelter that underfed the dogs last month?
I read something about that; it sounded really sad.
Yeah, they said many of the dogs were really malnourished.
Root Explanation
Underfed → It is formed from "under-" (meaning below or insufficient) and "fed" (from Old English "fēdan", meaning to provide food). The word "underfed" describes a state of not receiving enough food or nourishment.
Memory Tip
Think of being 'below' ('under-') what is needed to be 'fed' — that's why underfed means not getting enough food.
Visually Confused Words
unridered
unordered
undwarfed
undrafted
undowered