undernourishment

noun

Insufficient nourishment

Similar
malnourishment
OriginEnglish nourishment ← Middle English under- ← Old English under- →
RareScrabble 22
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Meanings

nounundernourishment (uncountable)
  1. uncountableInsufficient nourishment
  2. uncountableThe condition of being undernourished

Synonyms & antonyms

nounnot having enough food to develop or function normally

Similar
malnourishment
Broader
hungerhungriness
Also see
malnourishment

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₁én
  2. Proto-Indo-European*h₁entér
  3. Proto-Indo-European*h₂én
  4. Proto-Indo-European*dʰeh₁-?
  5. Proto-Indo-European*(H)n̥dʰí
  6. Proto-Indo-European*(H)n̥dʰér
  7. Proto-Germanic*under
  8. Proto-West Germanic*undar
  9. Old Englishunder-
  10. Middle Englishunder-
  11. Englishunder-
  12. Englishnourishment
  13. Englishundernourishment

From under- + nourishment.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Czech podvýživa
  • podvýživainsufficient nourishment
Danish underernæring
  • underernæringinsufficient nourishment
German Unterernährung
  • Unterernährunginsufficient nourishment
Indonesian kurang gizi
  • kurang giziinsufficient nourishment
Norwegian Bokmål underernæring
  • underernæringinsufficient nourishment
Polish niedożywienie
  • niedożywienieinsufficient nourishment
Swedish undernäring
  • undernäringinsufficient nourishment
Cite this entry
APA

undernourishment. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/undernourishment

MLA

“undernourishment.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/undernourishment. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “undernourishment,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/undernourishment.

Source: undernourishment on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.