Thirsty Definition & Meaning - Adjective

American

British

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Examples

Related Words

Synonyms thirsty American [thur-stee] / ˈθɜr sti /

adjective

thirstier, thirstiest

1. feeling or having thirst; craving liquid.

2. needing moisture, as land; parched; dry or arid.

   the thirsty soil.

3. eagerly desirous; eager.

   thirsty for news.

4. causing thirst.

   Digging is thirsty work.

5. Slang.

   1. eager for attention or approval.

      thirsty celebrities.

   2. desperate for affection, sex, or sexual attention.

thirsty British / ˈθɜːstɪ /

adjective

1. feeling a desire to drink

2. dry; arid

   the thirsty soil

3. (foll by for) feeling an eager desire

   thirsty for information

4. causing thirst

   thirsty work

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

• nonthirsty adjective
• thirstily adverb
• thirstiness noun
• unthirsty adjective

Etymology

Origin of thirsty

First recorded before 950; Middle English thirsti, Old English thyrstig; akin to Dutch dorstig, German durstig, Sanskrit tṛṣita “thirsty,” from the Proto-Indo-European root ters-, tṛs- “dry,” from which Latin terra (from unattested tersa ) “(dry) land” derives

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Meanwhile, the automaker’s biggest, thirstiest trucks are also its top sellers.

From The Wall Street Journal

"You can see the soldiers standing behind us for the past seven, eight days. They are hungry and thirsty but defending the country strongly," the 70-year-old added.

From Barron's

"If these things get larger and larger and more thirsty, then something has to give," Ghi said.

From Barron's

First I got hungry, then I got thirsty.

From Literature

I was so thirsty I drank water from a horse’s trough.

From Literature

Related Words

• anxious
• dehydrated
• eager
• greedy
• hungry
• impatient
• inclined
• keen
• parched

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.