necessity
something necessary or indispensable: food, shelter, and other necessities of life.
the fact of being necessary or indispensable; indispensability: the necessity of adequate housing.
an imperative requirement or need for something: the necessity for a quick decision.
the state or fact of being necessary or inevitable: to face the necessity of testifying in court.
an unavoidable need or compulsion to do something: not by choice but by necessity.
a state of being in financial need; poverty: a family in dire necessity.
Philosophy. the quality of following inevitably from logical, physical, or moral laws.
Idioms about necessity
of necessity, as an inevitable result; unavoidably; necessarily: Our trip to China must of necessity be postponed for a while.
Origin of necessity
1synonym study For necessity
Other words for necessity
Other words from necessity
- non·ne·ces·si·ty, noun, plural non·ne·ces·si·ties.
- su·per·ne·ces·si·ty, noun, plural su·per·ne·ces·si·ties.
Words Nearby necessity
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use necessity in a sentence
When I talked to lawyers about how to delay filing a Form D, all gave the standard perfunctory response about the necessity of filing — until we went off-the-record.
The best Valentine’s Day gifts to give and receive are those given based upon both feeling and necessity.
The best, most practical Valentine’s Day gifts for any kind of partner | PopSci Commerce Team | February 8, 2021 | Popular-ScienceEconomists see such savings as a sign the family did not need the money for basic necessities.
Here’s the new Democratic plan for $1,400 stimulus checks | Heather Long, Jeff Stein | February 5, 2021 | Washington PostWe believe a far greater number of people can’t afford internet, but are sacrificing other necessities.
Getting vaccinated is hard. It’s even harder without the internet. | Eileen Guo | February 3, 2021 | MIT Technology ReviewEvery play during a pandemic is, by necessity, experimental.
A careful return to live theater is coming down to costume design | Anne Quito | February 2, 2021 | Quartz
I had to create plays out of necessity, because African women deserved a voice and a place on the stage.
Walking Dead’s Danai Gurira Vs. Boko Haram | Kristi York Wooten | November 30, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAll of these changes to college financing occurred at exactly the time when college education became a necessity.
The Student Loan Crisis That Isn’t About Kids at Harvard | Monica Potts | November 30, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTNazi texts proclaimed that the annihilation or expulsion of the Armenians was a “compelling necessity.”
The 20th-Century Dictator Most Idolized by Hitler | William O’Connor | November 24, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe heartbreaking death of MTV reality TV personality Diem Brown proves the emotional necessity and value of the reality TV genre.
MTV’s Diem Brown Dies: When Reality TV Starts Getting Real | Kevin Fallon | November 14, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAfter all, the Prince of necessity had to focus on defeating his external enemies.
Valerie Jarrett, Obama Consigliere—and Democracy Killer | James Poulos | November 12, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTSometimes necessity makes an honest man a knave: and a rich man a honest man, because he has no occasion to be a knave.
There was a tremendous necessity for an example of the resurrection of an ordinary man.
Solomon and Solomonic Literature | Moncure Daniel ConwayHa—assure you we quite understand; no necessity to say another word about it.
The proudest man in Christendom has found no friend in his extremest necessity, but you his bitterest enemy!
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4 | Jane PorterQuiet and good natured, when necessity arose he never failed to assert his authority.
Fifty Years of Railway Life in England, Scotland and Ireland | Joseph Tatlow
British Dictionary definitions for necessity
/ (nɪˈsɛsɪtɪ) /
(sometimes plural) something needed for a desired result; prerequisite: necessities of life
a condition or set of circumstances, such as physical laws or social rules, that inevitably requires a certain result: it is a matter of necessity to wear formal clothes when meeting the Queen
the state or quality of being obligatory or unavoidable
urgent requirement, as in an emergency or misfortune: in time of necessity we must all work together
poverty or want
rare compulsion through laws of nature; fate
philosophy
a condition, principle, or conclusion that cannot be otherwise
the constraining force of physical determinants on all aspects of life: Compare freedom (def. 8)
logic
the property of being necessary
a statement asserting that some property is essential or statement is necessarily true
the operator that indicates that the expression it modifies is true in all possible worlds: Usual symbol: □, ∟
of necessity inevitably; necessarily
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Other Idioms and Phrases with necessity
In addition to the idiom beginning with necessity
- necessity is the mother of invention
also see:
- make a virtue of necessity
- of necessity
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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