famine vs want

famine and want both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
famine	Yes	No	No	No
want	Yes	No	Yes	No

As nouns, want is a hypernym of famine; that is, want is a word with a broader meaning than famine:

Other hypernyms of famine include deficiency, lack.

famine (noun)	want (noun)
a severe shortage of food (as through crop failure) resulting in violent hunger and starvation and death	a specific feeling of desire
an acute insufficiency	anything that is necessary but lacking
	a state of extreme poverty
	the state of needing something that is absent or unavailable

famine (verb)	want (verb)
	wish or demand the presence of
	have need of
	hunt or look for; want for a particular reason
	feel or have a desire for; want strongly
	be without, lack; be deficient in