The Kanji: 餓 (Ga / Ue)
The kanji 餓 means "starvation," "famine," or "to starve." It combines 食 (food) with 我 (self), originally depicting the desperate state of being without food. This character represents severe hunger and food deprivation.
Common Words & Example Sentences
1. 餓死 (gashi) - Starvation death
戦争で多くの人が餓死した。
"Many people starved to death during the war."
2. 飢餓 (kiga) - Famine
アフリカで飢餓が問題になっている。
"Famine is a problem in Africa."
3. 餓鬼 (gaki) - Hungry ghost
餓鬼のように食べる。
"Eat like a hungry ghost."
4. 餓える (ueru) - To starve
食べ物がなくて餓える。
"Starve from lack of food."
In summary, 餓 describes extreme hunger - from fatal starvation (餓死) and widespread famine (飢餓) to mythological concepts (餓鬼) and the starving state itself (餓える). It conveys the most severe forms of food deprivation in Japanese.