2 N‑UNCOUNT Hunger is a severe lack of food which causes suffering or death. □ Three hundred people in this town are dying of hunger every day.
3 N‑SING If you have a hunger for something, you want or need it very much. [WRITTEN ] □ [+ for ] Geffen has a hunger for success that seems bottomless.
4 VERB If you say that someone hungers for something or hungers after it, you are emphasizing that they want it very much. [FORMAL , EMPHASIS ] □ [V + for/after ] But Jules was not eager for classroom learning, he hungered for adventure. [Also V to-inf]
hu n|ger strike (hunger strikes ) N‑VAR If someone goes on hunger strike or goes on a hunger strike , they refuse to eat as a way of protesting about something. □ The protesters have been on hunger strike for 17 days. ● hun|ger strik|er (hunger strikers ) N‑COUNT □ The five hunger strikers called off their strike and celebrated the good news.
hung|over /hʌ ŋoʊ və r / also hung-over , hung over ADJ [usu v-link ADJ ] Someone who is hungover is unwell because they drank too much alcohol on the previous day. □ He was still hungover on the 25-minute bus drive to work the following morning.
hun|gry /hʌ ŋgri/ (hungrier , hungriest )
1 ADJ When you are hungry , you want some food because you have not eaten for some time and have an uncomfortable or painful feeling in your stomach. □ My friend was hungry, so we drove to a shopping mall to get some food. ● hun|gri|ly /hʌ ŋgr I li/ ADV [ADV with v] □ James ate hungrily.
2 PHRASE If people go hungry , they do not have enough food to eat. □ Leonidas' family had been poor, he went hungry for years.
3 ADJ If you say that someone is hungry for something, you are emphasizing that they want it very much. [LITERARY , EMPHASIS ] □ I left Oxford in 1961 hungry to be a critic. ● COMB Hungry is also a combining form. □ …power-hungry politicians. ● hun|gri|ly ADV [ADV with v] □ He looked at her hungrily. What eyes! What skin!
hu ng u p ADJ [v-link ADJ ] If you say that someone is hung up about a particular person or thing, you are criticizing them for thinking or worrying too much about that person or thing. [INFORMAL , DISAPPROVAL ] □ [+ about/on ] It was a time when people weren't so hung-up about health.
hunk /hʌ ŋk/ (hunks )
1 N‑COUNT A hunk of something is a large piece of it. □ [+ of ] …a thick hunk of bread.
2 N‑COUNT If you refer to a man as a hunk , you mean that he is big, strong, and sexually attractive. [INFORMAL , APPROVAL ] □ …a blond, blue-eyed hunk.
hunk|er /hʌ ŋkə r / (hunkers , hunkering , hunkered )
▸ hunker down
1 PHRASAL VERB If you hunker down , you bend your knees so that you are in a low position, balancing on your feet. [AM ] □ [V P + on ] Betty hunkered down on the floor. □ [V P + beside ] He ended up hunkering down beside her.
2 PHRASAL VERB If you say that someone hunkers down , you mean that they are trying to avoid doing things that will make people notice them or put them in danger. [AM ] □ [V P ] Their strategy for the moment is to hunker down and let the fuss die down.
hunt ◆◇◇ /hʌ nt/ (hunts , hunting , hunted )
1 VERB If you hunt for something or someone, you try to find them by searching carefully or thoroughly. □ [V + for ] A forensic team was hunting for clues. [Also V ] ● N‑COUNT Hunt is also a noun. □ [+ for ] The couple had helped in the hunt for the toddlers.
2 VERB If you hunt a criminal or an enemy, you search for them in order to catch or harm them. □ [V n] Detectives have been hunting him for seven months. [Also V + for ] ● N‑COUNT [usu sing] Hunt is also a noun. □ [+ for ] Despite a nationwide hunt for the kidnap gang, not a trace of them was found.
3 VERB When people or animals hunt , they chase and kill wild animals for food or as a sport. □ [V ] As a child I learned to hunt and fish. □ [V n] He got up at four and set out on foot to hunt black grouse. [Also V + for ] ● N‑COUNT [oft n N ] Hunt is also a noun. □ He set off for a nineteen-day moose hunt in Nova Scotia.
4 VERB In Britain, when people hunt , they ride horses over fields with dogs called hounds and try to catch and kill foxes, as a sport. □ [V ] She liked to hunt as often as she could. [Also V n] ● N‑COUNT Hunt is also a noun. □ The hunt was held on land owned by the Duke of Marlborough.
5 N‑COUNT In Britain, a hunt is a group of people who meet regularly to hunt foxes.
6 PHRASE If a team or competitor is in the hunt for something, they still have a chance of winning it. □ We're still in the hunt for the League title and we want to go all the way in the Cup.
7 → see also hunting , witch-hunt
▸ hunt down PHRASAL VERB If you hunt down a criminal or an enemy, you find them after searching for them. □ [V P n] Last December they hunted down and killed one of the gangsters. □ [V n P ] It took her four months to hunt him down.
▸ hunt out PHRASAL VERB If you hunt out something that is hidden or difficult to find, you search for it and eventually find it. □ [V P n] I'll try and hunt out the information you need. □ [V P n] American consumers are accustomed to hunting out bargains. [Also V n P ] COLLOCATIONS hunt NOUN 2