What does ravener mean?
A ravener is something that ravenously preys upon or consumes other things. The word is especially used for a fierce predator, a rapacious creature, or metaphorically for a person or force that greedily takes what it desires. Its form combines the familiar word raven with the agent suffix -er, producing an image of a ravenous hunter or plunderer. Although modern dictionaries and literary contexts use ravener sparingly, it remains useful in descriptions of predation, violence, greed, and destructive power. It should not be confused with raven, the black bird, despite the close connection in vocabulary and imagery. In much contemporary English, predator or scavenger will usually be clearer in neutral writing, while ravener can add an archaic, ominous, or fantastical tone to poetry, narrative prose, and games.
nounA person or creature that ravenously preys upon or devours others; a ravenous predator or plunderer.
- A person or creature that ravenously preys upon or devours others.
- A plunderer or rapacious creature.
"The lone hunter had been marked by the blood of a ravener that stalked the northern cliffs."
"The scattered bones revealed that the ravener had returned to the valley."
"In the ancient poem, the hero defeats a winged ravener before entering the forbidden city."
Rare; the plural is encountered chiefly in literary and archaic contexts.
"The forest legends speak of raveners that haunt the high passes."
A ravener is not a raven: it is anything portrayed as ravenously seizing or consuming its prey.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of ravener
Ravener is formed from raven in the sense of preying upon or devouring and the agent-forming suffix -er, literally making it one who or that which ravenously preys. It belongs to the same readily understood word family as ravenous and ravager. The word is now chiefly literary or archaic in ordinary usage.
How ravener is actually used
This is a rare literary word rather than everyday standard English. Its use is often deliberately archaic or dramatic.
Easily confused with ravener
A raven is the large black bird commonly associated with the headword's imagery, whereas a ravener is a ravenous predator or plunderer.