the Great Starvation
- proper noun
:
la Gran Hambruna
- During the Great Starvation, countless families were forced to leave their homeland in search of food and opportunity.
Examples
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Many memorials commemorate the victims of the Great Starvation throughout Ireland and the Irish diaspora.
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Historians often refer to the Great Starvation as a turning point in Irish history.
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Many families suffered during the Great Starvation.
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How did the Great Starvation affect Irish society?
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During the Great Starvation, countless families were forced to leave their homeland in search of food and opportunity.
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Historians often refer to the Great Starvation as a turning point in Irish history.
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Many memorials commemorate the victims of the Great Starvation throughout Ireland and the Irish diaspora.
Synonyms
83
4.7
A very strong hunger that happens when someone has no food for a long time
8
4.2
A great lack of something needed, like food or medicine
1
6.1
A time in Ireland from 1845 to 1852 when a potato disease made many people starve and leave the country
A famine in Ireland from 1846 to 1851 caused by a potato disease that forced many people to leave
A severe famine in Ireland from 1846 to 1851 that killed about one million people
Surface Forms
Morphology
the + great + starvation
The phrase combines 'great' (major/significant) with 'starvation' (severe lack of food), so an intermediate learner who knows both words can infer it denotes a large or severe famine. Although it's a proper name for a specific historical event (the Irish famine) whose dates/location they might not know, the core meaning is directly compositional and cross-linguistically transparent.
Etymology
The Great Starvation is the name people use for the terrible years in Ireland when the potato crop failed and many people had no food and had to leave their homes. That's why the name refers to that time of mass hunger and people moving to other countries.