Word for always being hungry

Throughout our lives, we have all known someone who we consider to be “always hungry” – perhaps, that person is ourselves. However, we may not have known an applicable term that accurately describes this food-loving individual. Therefore, this article will be highlighting appropriate alternatives to saying someone is “always hungry”.

What Do You Call A Person Who Is Always Hungry?

There’s nothing wrong with saying someone is always hungry unless, of course, they don’t like that fact to be pointed out. However, there are always more relevant terms we can choose to use as opposed to saying they are “always hungry”. The particular usable terms that we will be showcasing throughout this article are:

• A Glutton
• An Insatiable Appetite
• A Voracious Appetite
• A Bottomless Pit
• A Hollow Leg
• Ravenous
• A Gourmand
• Polyphagia
• Binge-Eater
• Rapacious

The preferred version that we will be highlighting in this article will be “a glutton”. This is because the term “glutton” accurately describes someone who we would consider an excessive eater. At the same time, this is often someone who doesn’t like to share their food with others.

A Glutton

Cambridge Dictionary defines “a glutton” as a person who regularly eats or drinks more than is needed. Therefore, we will often think of “a glutton” as being someone who is constantly eating, often hogging the food from others in the process.

When we describe someone as “a glutton”, we are often attempting to explain that they are an excessively greedy eater. Not only do they seem to never become full, but they often forget to consider the hunger or appetite of others.

Here are a few examples that show the use of this particular term in a sentence:

• What a glutton – he ate that entire pizza by himself, not even offering anyone else a single slice!
• My brother is a glutton and because of that, my parents often hide the snacks in cupboards where he can’t reach them.
• Her boyfriend considered her a glutton when it came to sweets. She would never allow him a piece or taste of any candy or chocolate.

An Insatiable Appetite

Cambridge Dictionary defines “insatiable” as a desire or needs that are too great to be satisfied. Because of this, we often consider someone with “an insatiable appetite” to be the type of person whose hunger can never truly be satisfied.

In other words, a person with “an insatiable appetite” will never truly feel full or content, even after eating a very large meal. We can also use the term “an insatiable appetite” to describe something other than food, like someone who is hungry for power or authority.

We will now go over a few examples that showcase this term:

• Like many politicians, our Prime Minister is known to have an insatiable appetite for power.
• My sister has an insatiable appetite when it comes to ice cream. If given the option, she would choose to eat ice cream all day, every day.
• He was known for having an insatiable appetite, which caused many all-you-can-eat restaurants in his city to permanently ban him.

A Voracious Appetite

Cambridge Dictionary defines “voracious” as very eager for something, especially for food. Therefore, we generally think of someone with “a voracious appetite” to be constantly eager for or in the mood for food. We will often consider this to be someone with a limitless or enormous appetite.

A person with “a voracious appetite” may be that way towards all types of foods, or their particular favourites – either way, the term is applicable.

Some examples that include this term for informative purposes are:

• He had a voracious appetite when it came to sushi. Most all-you-can-eat sushi restaurants can’t even keep up with his orders.
• I can always tell when my daughter is going through a growth spurt because she starts to have a voracious appetite.
• My uncle is coming to visit and I know my grocery bill is about to double! He has a voracious appetite and can snack all day long.

A Bottomless Pit

Cambridge Dictionary defines “a bottomless pit” as something that seems to have no limits or a situation that will never end. From this definition, the idiom “a bottomless pit” was created, to depict someone who never stops eating or can gorge themselves without limitations.

We will often see the term “a bottomless pit” used in a joking sense when we are poking fun at someone for having a very large appetite in comparison to that of our own.

Here are a few examples that showcase the use of this term:

• I swear, my stomach has been a bottomless pit lately! I never seem to be full and I’m always craving different things.
• My toddler is a bottomless pit – he’s always on the hunt for a snack!
• Our family reunion never ceases to consist of an abundance of food. We have quite a few bottomless pits in this family!

A Hollow Leg

Cambridge Dictionary defines “hollow” as having a hole or empty space inside. From this definition, we get another hilarious idiom of “a hollow leg”. When we say that someone has “a hollow leg” we are expressing that they have the ability to eat large quantities of food, often.

We usually hear the term “a hollow leg” used in a joking manner. It’s often said to children or skinnier people when folks are shocked by the sheer amount that they can eat or the frequency that they eat at. This is essentially a way of saying where does all that food you eat go?

We can now look at the following examples to see how this term is adequately used:

• My brother may only weigh 90lbs, but he can eat! My entire family jokes with him about how he has a hollow leg.
• He has a hollow leg and can eat or drink whatever he pleases without gaining a single pound.
• I swear my cousin must have a hollow leg or something. I’ve never seen a person so small, eat so much.

Ravenous

Cambridge Dictionary defines the word “ravenous” as someone who is extremely hungry. Therefore, we will often hear the term “ravenous” used to describe someone who is seemingly always hungry, despite the time of day or frequency between their last meal.

We also consider a “ravenous” person to be someone who eats tremendous quantities of food.

Some examples that highlight the use of this term are:

• I was so ravenous; I ate an entire pizza by myself and then polished off a tub of ice cream.
• Growing boys have ravenous appetites, especially in their teenage years!
• My dogs have ravenous appetites when they get home from daycare. I’m sure it’s from playing non-stop all day long.

A Gourmand

Cambridge Dictionary defines “a gourmand” as a person who enjoys eating large amounts of food. Because of this, we often refer to someone as “a gourmand” when they have a much larger appetite than we can even comprehend. This is someone who enjoys eating, but can often eat too much.

We can often associate “a gourmand” with being somewhat of a foodie, although they enjoy larger portions. This is someone who genuinely loves food and enjoys gorging themselves, regardless of what others may think.

Here are a few examples that we can go over that feature this term:

• My cousin is a gourmand, she loves eating all types of foods, but will often eat way too much and cause herself to feel very ill.
• Known as a gourmand, he, unfortunately, gained massive amounts of weight until he was bedridden.
• For years, I considered myself to be a gourmand. I would eat and eat, without knowing my own limitations.

Polyphagia

Another excellent alternative term we can choose to use to describe someone who is always eating is “polyphagia”. “Polyphagia” is defined as an abnormally strong or overwhelming sensation of hunger or desire to eat, often leading to or accompanied by overeating.

“Polyphagia” is often thought of as a disorder, however, it is not. Rather, it is often considered to be a symptom of an underlying health condition – most commonly diabetes. “Polyphagia” is one of the “3 P’s” of diabetes, along with polydipsia and polyuria.

We will now go over some examples that utilize this term:

• Polyphagia is one of the “3 P’s” of diabetes, along with polydipsia and polyuria.
• A person with polyphagia will commonly be seen eating excessive amounts of food.
• The main symptom of polyphagia is a hunger that never seems to go away.

Binge-Eater

Cambridge Dictionary defines “binge-eating” as eating a lot of food, especially without being able to control yourself. Therefore, we will generally consider a “binge-eater” to be someone who consumes massive amounts of food, most often in a very short period of time.

We should be careful with the use of the term “binge-eater”, as it is often associated with eating disorders, in particular, bulimia. Used in the wrong context, even jokingly, may come across as an incentive and a large insult.

Because of this, we will go over some appropriate examples of the use of this term:

• My sister was having ongoing issues with bulimia, causing her to become a binge-eater. Thankfully, my parents noticed that something was wrong and she’s now receiving the appropriate help!
• For years, I was a binge-eater and it did a number on my digestive system.
• I’m not ashamed to admit that I used to be a binge-eater and very bulimic. I’m now a very healthy individual and I’m determined to help others who are in a similar position.

A Rapacious Appetite

Cambridge Dictionary defines “rapacious” as having or showing a strong wish to take things for yourself, usually using unfair methods or by force. Therefore, we generally consider someone with “a rapacious appetite” to devour or crave food in abnormally large quantities.

Consistently, we will often consider a person with “a rapacious appetite” to be rather greedy, often gorging themselves without ensuring that everyone else has had enough to eat.

Lastly, we will go over the final examples for this article:

• He has a rapacious appetite, which causes his friends to greatly dislike inviting him to potluck dinners.
• My brother has a rapacious appetite and often forgets that other people at the dinner table need to eat.
• I have a rapacious appetite, but I do my best to be mindful of other’s needs and appetites.