What does rapacious mean?
Rapacious means greedy, voracious, or excessively eager to take, consume, or exploit. The word is often used for people or organizations that show an indiscriminate appetite for wealth, food, power, or other resources. “A rapacious appetite” is a familiar expression, while descriptions such as “rapacious lenders” or “rapacious landlords” emphasize exploitative behavior and an imbalance of power. Although rapacious can describe intense hunger, it is broader and more strongly disapproving than “hungry” or even “greedy.” Its associations with seizing, plundering, and taking by force make it especially effective in descriptions of predatory business practices, harsh landlords, and destructive exploitation. In literary and formal contexts, the word conveys both physical voracity and moral condemnation, while modern usage commonly highlights greed, excess, and unfairness.
adjectiveGreedy or voracious, especially in taking or consuming food, wealth, or possessions. It can also describe behavior that is predatory, exploitative, or excessively grasping.
- Greedy or excessively eager to consume food, money, or material possessions.
- Predatory or exploitatively greedy, especially in dealings involving power, money, or resources.
"The rapacious landlord raised the rents beyond what the tenants could afford."
"The creature had a rapacious appetite and would devour any small animal it encountered."
"Critics accused the corporation of rapacious pricing practices that exploited vulnerable customers."
Rapacious comes from the Latin for “seizing”: its roots suggest not merely an appetite, but a readiness to grab and plunder.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does rapacious come from?
Rapacious comes from Latin rapax, meaning “grasping,” “ravenous,” or “predatory,” which was derived from rapere, “to seize” or “to plunder.” English borrowed the word in the early 17th century, initially in contexts involving voracious eating or greed. Its relatives include rapine, rapture, rapturous, and raptor, all associated with the same broader root of seizing or taking.
Related word forms
How rapacious is actually used
A strongly negative and usually formal or literary term. It is commonly used to describe excessive greed, consumption, or exploitation, and is often more evaluative than the milder word “greedy.”
Easily confused with rapacious
Ravenous emphasizes intense hunger, while rapacious more broadly suggests greedy, grasping, or exploitative behavior toward food, wealth, or resources.