What does “умираю” mean when a Russian says they’re hungry?

In the clip, someone says they’re very hungry, then just “Умираю.” (Умираю — “I’m dying.”) Used alone right after naming the hunger, that’s not literal — it’s the ordinary Russian way to say “I’m starving.” Full form: умираю с голоду / умираю от голода, “I’m dying of hunger.” Russians reach for this exaggeration more freely than English speakers reach for “starving,” so it fits casual, even mild hunger.

The construction works for more than hunger: умираю от скуки (“dying of boredom”), умираю от смеха (“dying laughing”), умираю, спать хочу (“dying, I want to sleep” — exhausted). The verb умирать (“to die”) plus от + genitive names the cause; drop the от-phrase, as the clip does, and context carries the meaning.