What Causes a ‘Drought’ and How Is It Different from a ‘Famine’?

A drought is when there’s not enough water for plants and people to be happy, while a famine is when people don’t have enough food because of that or other problems.

Imagine your garden needs water every day. If it doesn’t rain for weeks or months, the soil gets dry, and the plants can't grow well. That’s like a drought, nature is being extra thirsty!

Sometimes droughts happen when the weather changes or something blocks the clouds from bringing rain.

A famine happens when people don’t have enough food. It often starts with a drought, because crops can't grow, and animals might not get enough to eat either. But famine can also happen for other reasons, like if there’s no way to bring food from another place or if people fight over what little food there is.

So, a drought is like a dry spell that makes it hard for plants to grow, and a famine is when people don’t have enough food, often because of a drought, but not always.