Meaning & use
privation def
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Meanings
phrasefixed phrase
A request for the meaning of the word 'privation'; 'def' is short for 'definition'.
Grammar: Used as a search phrase, not in ordinary sentences; the actual word being asked about is 'privation'.
Patterns
- privation def
She typed 'privation def' into the search bar to check the meaning.
The worksheet asked for a 'privation def' in the student's own words.
noununcountableformal
The state of lacking the basic things needed for a comfortable life, such as food, warmth, or care.
Grammar: Uncountable in this general sense: people live in privation, not 'in a privation'.
Patterns
- live in privation
- suffer privation
- years of privation
The report described families living in serious privation after the war.
Years of privation had left the children weak and ill.
Aid workers were shocked by the privation they saw in the camps.
nouncountableformal
A particular hardship or thing that someone is forced to do without.
Grammar: Countable when naming specific hardships: the privations of winter.
Patterns
- the privations of something
- endure privations
The diary records the privations of a long sea voyage.
They endured the privations of cold and hunger without complaint.
Word forms
| plural | privations |
|---|
Common combinations
- live in privation
- Many elderly people still live in privation in that region.
- suffer privation
- Whole communities suffered privation during the blockade.
- economic privation
- Economic privation drove many young people to leave the country.
- the privations of war
- His letters describe the privations of war in painful detail.
Synonyms and how they differ
- hardship
- Hardship is the more everyday word for difficult conditions, while privation stresses the lack of basic necessities.
- deprivation
- Deprivation is close in meaning but is often used in official or academic writing about poverty.
- poverty
- Poverty usually means having very little money; privation is broader and can include cold, hunger, and neglect.
Opposites
Word family
- privation noun
- The base noun meaning a lack of basic necessities.
- deprivation noun
- A related noun for the state of being kept from something needed.
- privative adjective
- A rare adjective meaning causing loss or lack.
Commonly confused: privation def or deprivation? privation def or privacy?
privation def vs deprivation
Deprivation means being kept from something you need; privation often means going without basic comforts. The two overlap, but deprivation is far more common in modern writing.
privation def vs privacy
Privacy means being free from public attention; privation means lacking basic necessities, so the meanings are completely different.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'privation' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Privation' means lacking basic necessities, so enduring years of it in a camp fits. Option 2 confuses it with 'privacy' settings, option 3 confuses it with 'permission', and option 4 confuses it with 'pronunciation'.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “privation def”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.