THIRSTY (thirstier, thirstiest)

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

Irregular inflected forms: thirstier    , thirstiest   

 Dictionary entry overview: What does thirsty mean? 

• THIRSTY (adjective)
  The adjective THIRSTY has 4 senses:

1. needing moisture

2. feeling a need or desire to drink

3. (usually followed by 'for') extremely desirous

4. able to take in large quantities of moisture

  Familiarity information: THIRSTY used as an adjective is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• THIRSTY (adjective)

Comparative: thirstier   
Superlative: thirstiest   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Needing moisture

Context example:

thirsty fields under a rainless sky

Similar:

dry (free from liquid or moisture; lacking natural or normal moisture or depleted of water; or no longer wet)

Derivation:

thirstiness (a deficiency of moisture (especially when resulting from a permanent absence of rainfall))

Sense 2

Meaning:

Feeling a need or desire to drink

Context example:

after playing hard the children were thirsty

Antonym:

hungry (feeling hunger; feeling a need or desire to eat food)

Derivation:

thirst; thirstiness (a physiological need to drink)

Sense 3

Meaning:

(usually followed by 'for') extremely desirous

Synonyms:

athirst; hungry; thirsty

Context example:

thirsty for information

Similar:

desirous; wishful (having or expressing desire for something)

Derivation:

thirst; thirstiness (strong desire for something (not food or drink))

Sense 4

Meaning:

Able to take in large quantities of moisture

Context example:

thirsty towels

Similar:

absorbent; absorptive (having power or capacity or tendency to absorb or soak up something (liquids or energy etc.))

 Context examples 

Signs of dehydration in adults include: • Being thirsty • Urinating less often than usual • Dark-colored urine • Dry skin • Feeling tired • Dizziness and fainting

(Dehydration, NIH)

Then the princess was so thirsty that she got off her horse, and lay down, and held her head over the running stream, and cried and said, “What will become of me?”

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)

A condition in which a person is very thirsty and makes large amounts of urine.

(Diabetes Insipidus, NCI Dictionary)

You become extremely thirsty, so you drink.

(Diabetes Insipidus, NIH: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)

No: I am too thirsty to eat.

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)

“The boys were thirsty, sir, so I brought up some ale and some liptrap,” whispered the landlord; “I thought you would have no objection, sir.”

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Let me fill my jack first, boys, for it is a thirsty tale.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

"Cosmonauts" who ate more salt retained more water, weren't as thirsty, and needed more energy.

(Salty Diet Makes You Hungry, Not Thirsty, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

This test is used to see how well the kidneys work and to help diagnose diabetes insipidus (a condition in which a person is very thirsty and makes large amounts of urine).

(Fluid deprivation test, NCI Dictionary)

Common symptoms may include: • Bone pain, often in the back or ribs • Broken bones • Weakness or fatigue • Weight loss • Repeated infections • Frequent infections and fevers • Feeling very thirsty • Frequent urination

(Multiple Myeloma, NIH: National Cancer Institute)