At a feast, there is lots of food. In a famine, there is no food. This is the contrasting idea behind the idiom, feast or famine.
Meaning of Idiom ‘Feast or Famine’
Feast or famine means either too much or too little of something, too many or too few. It describes extremes of wealth or poverty; great availability or complete lack.
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Examples Of Use
“Being a roofer is difficult. During the summer there is too little work and during the winter too much. It’s always feast or famine.”
“Yesterday we had a packed house and today we’ve only had a handful of customers. As usual, it’s feast or famine.
“As a studio musician, he lives a feast or famine life.”
“Operating a business in a tourist town is feast or famine. It’s hard to keep going with such a short season.”
“Last year we had a bumper crop but this year another drought. But we farmers are used to feast or famine.”
Origin
This idiom may have come from the Bible, Genesis Chapter 41, where Egypt experienced seven years of prosperity followed by seven years of famine.
The modern idiom appeared in print in 1732 as feast or fast, however, which is much different than famine, and the word famine was not substituted until the 1900s.
More Idioms Starting with F
- Fight Like Cats and Dogs
- From Your Lips to God’s Ears
- Fox Guarding the Henhouse
- Friends in High Places
- Flat Broke
More Food Related Idioms
- I Could Murder (A Food/Drink)
- Go Pear-shaped
- Chopped Liver
- Low-Hanging Fruit
- Know Which Side Your Bread is Buttered On