What does underfeed mean?
Underfeed is a transitive verb meaning to give someone or something too little food, with the result that the person, animal, or other recipient is inadequately nourished. Its figurative use extends the idea to insufficient support: a program, project, or system that is underfed has been denied the money, attention, equipment, or other resources it needs. The word can also have a specialized technical meaning connected with supplying material to a machine from below. In ordinary usage, underfeed is less common than starve, undernourish, or underfund, but it expresses the idea directly and compactly. Its irregular past tense and past participle, underfed, follow the pattern of the related verb feed. The word is recognized in both British and American English and is most natural when discussing deprivation, neglect, or inadequate provision.
To feed someone or something with an insufficient amount, especially of food; figuratively, to provide inadequate resources or support.
"The charity was accused of underfeeding animals rescued during the storm."
Usually transitive. The figurative sense is relatively uncommon and is close to underfund.
A device or arrangement that supplies material to a machine from below.
"The press was modified with an underfeed to feed the sheet upward into the rollers."
This is a specialized technical noun and is much less common than the verb.
The plural is used only for the rare technical noun and is not common in published usage.
"The press was fitted with two underfeeds for different paper sizes."
Underfeed hides a blunt truth in plain sight: sometimes the problem is not too much, but too little.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does underfeed come from?
Underfeed was formed in English as a transparent compound of under and feed. Under continues Old English under, while feed comes from Old English fēdan; both elements are Germanic in origin rather than borrowings from Latin or Greek. Its simple past tense and past participle are underfed, with a vowel change parallel to that of feed and its irregular forms.
Related word forms
How underfeed is actually used
Underfeed is chiefly transitive and is relatively uncommon in everyday use. Its figurative sense is close to underfund but can also suggest inadequate attention or nourishment. The noun is a rare technical term associated with supplying material to a machine from below.
Easily confused with underfeed
Underfeed is the present-tense verb, while underfed is its simple past tense and past participle, as well as an adjective describing someone who has received insufficient food.