thirst
Americannoun
-
thirsts
plural
-
a sensation of dryness in the mouth and throat caused by need of liquid.
-
the physical condition resulting from this need, in any of various degrees.
They almost died of thirst.
-
strong or eager desire; craving.
a thirst for knowledge.
verb (used without object)
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thirsts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
thirsted,
past participle, past
-
thirsting
present participle
-
to feel thirst; be thirsty.
-
to have a strong desire.
noun
-
a craving to drink, accompanied by a feeling of dryness in the mouth and throat
-
an eager longing, craving, or yearning
a thirst for knowledge
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
thirstsimple
-
thirstssimple
-
have thirstedperfect
-
has thirstedperfect
-
am thirstingprogressive
-
are thirstingprogressive
-
is thirstingprogressive
-
have been thirstingperfect progressive
-
has been thirstingperfect progressive
Past
-
thirstedsimple
-
had thirstedperfect
-
was thirstingprogressive
-
were thirstingprogressive
-
had been thirstingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of thirst
before 900; Middle English thirsten (v.), Old English thyrstan, derivative of thurst (noun); cognate with Dutch dorst, German Durst, Old Norse thorsti, Gothic thaurstei; noun has -i- from the v. or from thirsty; see toast 1
Explanation
Thirst is the sensation of needing or wanting to drink something. Use the same word whether you're talking about your thirst for lemonade on a hot day or the dire thirst of someone lost in a desert without water. At its most serious, thirst can be compared to starvation: "The water shortage is leading to extreme thirst in the poorest parts of the country." You can also use this word for a much milder need, like your cousin's seemingly endless thirst for root beer. Figuratively, to thirst for something is to desire it strongly: "Her thirst for knowledge means she stays up late reading the encyclopedia."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Yet scientists are discovering that this everyday drink may be doing far more in the body than quenching thirst.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 13, 2026
“There’s a big thirst for that,” Franklin said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
It also said that “mild to moderate dehydration can build gradually across the day for most people, often without realizing it, and thirst is not always a reliable signal.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 11, 2026
They are very different forwards but what is identical about both of them is their thirst for goals.
From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026
There Booth and Herold quenched their thirst and sought a ride south, across the Rappahannock River to Port Royal, then on to a nearby railroad station.
From "Chasing Lincoln's Killer" by James L. Swanson
And one which has a big job ahead: Taking the food orders and quenching the thirsts of millions of visitors who will flock to the Paris Olympics this July.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 24, 2024
The half-inch-long insects are destructive agricultural pests because of their unquenchable thirsts and splashy bathroom habits: when nature calls, these bugs launch droplets of their watery pee and create puddles of disease-causing waste.
From Scientific American ● Feb. 28, 2023
“It is a big, bold change, the kind of change America thirsts for.”
From Washington Times ● Aug. 9, 2021
Jason Sudeikis is all charm in a bottle and Jason Mantzoukas has his wild-man persona, and yet both satisfy our varied thirsts.
From Slate ● Nov. 7, 2019
They all rested like that, absolutely quiet, drinking more slowly now that their thirsts had been quenched, eyes vaguely fixed on shadow-casting objects downhill.
From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols
And yet we found shelter within it, we pondered our lives and the lives of others, thirsted, slept.
From Scientific American ● Nov. 19, 2022
Chinese officials have openly thirsted for him to be punished.
From New York Times ● Dec. 11, 2020
England’s expanding colonies always thirsted for more Indian lands, but the French claimed vast territories without fully occupying them.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 18, 2018
America, it seems, has always thirsted for fake news.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 28, 2017
The taste was no less foul, but water was water, and all of them thirsted.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
I saw thousands of Saudi men and women, young and old, thirsting for the sort of recreation that until very recently they had to travel abroad to enjoy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2025
"That two undocumented migrants were the only ones who physically risked themselves to help the victim of a pack thirsting for horror leaves much food for thought and a series of lessons," Mayor Rey said.
From BBC ● Feb. 25, 2025
“I wasn’t campaigning for it, but I was thirsting for something different, completely removed from the work I had been doing up to that point,” Jenkins said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 19, 2024
And sometimes the changes come like a whirlwind, dividing parishes between those thirsting for a more reverent Catholicism and those who feel their spiritual home has been taken from them.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 30, 2024
We slipped in and out of wakefulness, wincing at the soreness in our muscles, and thirsting for more of that tart lemonade.
From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
