What is the opposite of "hunger level"? [closed]

Question

I am creating a computer game in which the character needs to consume food in order to not starve to death. In the game I can display the level of how much food the character currently needs via "hunger level" - the higher this value, the more desperately the character needs food.

But what I want now is to turn that around, so that this level tells how full the stomach of the character is. In German we have a word for that, "Sättigung", which means how full my stomach is (or better: how full it feels to me), it is basically the opposite of hunger.

Is there a similar word in English, which means exactly that, the opposite of hunger? It might be something like "saturation", but from what I can tell this word is usually used in a technical context, like in "the saturation of a color".

Can I use that "saturation" to describe the opposite of hunger of a human or animal, or is there a better word for that?

Answer 1

I think the apter word is 'satiety' than 'saturation' in the OP's context.

satiety

the state of being completely satisfied, especially with food or pleasure, so that you could not have any more.

Answer 2

"Hunger Level" includes everything from starvation to satiety.

If you imagine a health bar in a video game, a low hunger level indicates that you're good for now (you're not hungry). A high level indicates starvation and the need to focus on refueling.

So there's really no opposite to "Hunger Level". It covers everything from one end to the other.

However, if you want an opposite to "hunger" in this context, then consider:

fullness

I ate already. I'm full.

My stomach is so full. I feel like I'm about to burst.

The health bar indicator for "Fullness" would be the reverse of "Hunger", which may be more intuitive for a video game.

Also, a video game with a "Fullness" meter wouldn't distract the player. A term like "Satiety" may hold their attention, as they ponder the meaning and pronunciation.

Answer 3

I am a German native speaker as well, so I have little feeling for the frequency of use. I did find the words

satiety

the quality or state of being fed or gratified to or beyond capacity, surfeit, fullness

as well as

satiation

the act of completely satisfying yourself or a need, especially with food or pleasure

The former seems to be more fitting in your context, yet both of them are slightly more medical and less common in everyday language, see here for example.

Sources: Satiety, Satiation

Answer 4

One possible option is energy, or energy level. It is not a direct answer for the question of the opposite of hunger, but energy levels are definitely affected by what we eat. In a game it would make fairly intuitive sense that eating foods restores your energy meter.

Answer 5

For a computer game, Satiety is going to sound weird as it's an uncommon and formal word. Food is not a good word because it sounds like you're carrying it around with you uneaten. I think Nutrition would be a good name for your level indicator. Nutrition is not a feeling, but it expresses the meaning that you want.

Answer 6

In the context of the computer role-playing game that I grew up with, Ancient Domains of Mystery, or ADOM, I heard this as being called your "satiation level", and your German word feels like it has the same historic root.

So I would go with that: satiation level, especially considering you are already using the term "level", and hence this mirrors your proposed construction exactly.

Answer 7

Here are some suggestions you could use -

1. fulfillment (-level)

• a feeling of happiness and satisfaction.

^{Source: https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/fulfilment}

2. satisfaction (-level)

• fulfillment of one's wishes, expectations, or needs, or the pleasure derived from this.

^{Source: https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/satisfaction}

3. repletion (-level)

• Repletion is a condition of being completely full of something. Repletion is experienced by people who are full or satisfied by the amount of food they've eaten, but it can also describe other kinds of fullness.

^{Source: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/repletion}

4. surfeit (-level)

• to indulge to satiety in a gratification (such as indulgence of the appetite or senses)

^{Source: https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/surfeit}

5. fullness (-level)

• the quality or state of being full

^{Source: https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/fullness}

Answer 8

I have always had this same question, and feed worked for me.

Definition from dictionary.com

noun

• food, especially for farm animals, as cattle, horses or chickens.

• an allowance, portion, or supply of such food.

• Informal. a meal, especially a lavish one.

• the material, or the amount of it, so fed or supplied.

It might not be a perfect word, but its suitable for games.

Answer 9

The game Nethack has been using "Satiated" to mean that your character is full, to the point of having eaten a little too much. That's the clue given to the player to stop eating things or suffer further ill effects. It's described here with nutrition being the internal variable and hunger shows what the player would see about it (they don't get the exact number).

Instead of using a single word, you might consider several words on the spectrum of hunger and fullness. In the Nethack example they use "Starved" to show your character died of hunger and "Oversatiated" to describe the, rather graphic, situation of consuming so much food that one's airway is blocked, and thus experiences suffocation.

Answer 10

Here is an easy term for you, Matthias. It may not be a perfect one, but I feel it fits: 'Feeding Level" (When babies are 'hungry', we 'feed'them, don't we?) Maybe other members have better terms. Love to learn them, too.

Answer 11

Stomach-Level

Stomach-level suggests the actual level to which the stomach is full. Native English speakers will imagine the stomach as a pot or container which is literally full ‘up to here’ - full to a certain point.

Satiety is a correct term but may not be understood by all users as it’s a rather advanced word. Satisfaction is a bit abstract and not so much to do with literally ‘how full you are’ but rather the pleasing effect that the food had on you.

If you want to use stomach level, it could also be used for hunger level. One term could fulfil both functions. Then if hungry, it might also say ‘hungry’ or if full, it could say ‘full’ or ‘sated’ (sated is also a bit of an advanced word). Or for very full it could say ‘stuffed’, which is humorous.