noun
privation
pry-VAY-shun/praɪˈveɪʃn/
A lack of basic necessities or comforts.
Many families endure severe privation when the winter food supply runs low.
Etymology
From privare, “to deprive,” the noun first expressed a taking away or being without something. The modern sense focuses on the resulting condition: lacking necessities or the comforts of life.
In context
An illness of nearly seven weeks and a long course of privation can make a terrible difference in the looks of a very young person
More examples
- The war leaves thousands facing hunger and privation.
- She accepts the privations of mountain life, including unreliable heat.
- Years of privation taught him never to waste food.
Forms
privation · privations
Similar words
- deprivation
- Emphasizes being denied something needed, including sleep or social contact.
- poverty
- Specifically concerns insufficient money or resources to meet basic needs.
- hardship
- Covers difficult circumstances generally, not just a lack of necessities.