craving

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈkɹeɪ.vɪŋ/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -eɪvɪŋ

Etymology 1

From Middle English cravinge, from Old English crafing (“claim, demand”); equivalent to crave +‎ -ing.

Noun

craving (plural cravings)

1. A strong desire; yearning.
   • 1838, [Edgar Allan Poe], chapter XIII, in The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket. […], New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, […], →OCLC, pages 122–123:

     [W]e contrived to satisfy the cravings of thirst by suffering the shirts to become saturated, and then wringing them so as to let the grateful fluid trickle into our mouths.

   • 2007, Christine Locher, The Cult of Cuteness in Japanese Youth Culture, page 13:

     The craving for cuteness is a psychological phenomenon that originally had the purpose of increasing the chances of a baby to survive […]

   • 2016, Melissa Hartwig, Food Freedom Forever:

     The list of potential victories you could achieve with your reset is long, and it includes a fafillion wins that have nothing to do with the scale: Fewer blemishes. Thicker hair. Less join pain. Reduced cravings. No midday energy slump.

Descendants

• Jamaican Creole: craven

Translations

strong desire; yearning

• Arabic: تَوْق m (tawq), تَشَوُّق m (tašawwuq), شَبَق m (šabaq) [sexual craving], غُلْمَة m (ḡulma) [sexual craving]
• Belarusian: цяга f (cjaha), прага f (praha), імкненне n (imknjennje)
• Bulgarian: копнеж (bg) m (kopnež), жажда (bg) f (žažda)
• Catalan: ànsia (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 渴望 (zh) (kěwàng), 癖好 (zh) (pǐhào)

• Czech: choutky f pl
• Finnish: jano (fi), halu (fi), tarve (fi), hinku (fi)
• French: désir ardent m
• German: Gelüst (de) n, Begierde (de) f, Sehnsucht (de) f, Heißhunger (de) m (referring to food)
• Greek: λαχτάρα (el) f (lachtára), πόθος (el) m (póthos), δίψα (el) f (dípsa)

  Ancient: ὄρεξις f (órexis)

• Hungarian: sóvárgás (hu), epekedés (hu), vágyakozás (hu), vágyódás (hu), mohó​/​gyötrő​/​kínzó​/​heves vágy, (by a pregnant woman, for specific food) kívánósság, kívánás (hu)
• Ingrian: kaiho
• Irish: áilíos m, aimirne f (for food), andúil f, anrachán m, dúil f, gabhair f, mearadh m, miangas m, ocras (ga) m, tart (ga) m, tothlaíocht f, tothlú m
• Italian: brama (it) f
• Japanese: 渇望 (ja) (かつぼう, katsubō), 切望 (ja) (せつぼう, setsubō), 熱望 (ja) (ねつぼう, netsubō)
• Ladin: gola f
• Latgalian: tveiksme, tveikys, olka, steigsme
• Latvian: alkas f pl, kāre f
• Malayalam: വ്യാക്ക് (ml) (vyākkŭ)
• Polish: zachcianka (pl) f, żądza (pl) f
• Portuguese: ânsia (pt) f, anelo (pt) m, sofreguidão (pt) f
• Romanian: poftă (ro) f, sete (ro) f, râvnă (ro) f, ardoare (ro) f
• Russian: влече́ние (ru) n (vlečénije), жа́жда (ru) f (žážda), тя́га (ru) f (tjága), стремле́ние (ru) n (stremlénije), пристра́стие (ru) n (pristrástije)
• Sicilian: disìu (scn) m
• Spanish: ansia (es) f, anhelo (es) m, prurito (es) m
• Swedish: begär (sv) n, längtan (sv) c
• Tocharian B: kāwalyñe
• Welsh: chwant m

Etymology 2

From crave.

Verb

craving

1. present participle and gerund of crave

Further reading

• “craving”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “craving”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.

Anagrams

• carving