need
[ need ]
/ nid /
Save This Word!
noun
verb (used with object)
to have need of; require: to need money.
verb (used without object)
OTHER WORDS FOR need
QUIZ
CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?
There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?
Question 1 of 7
Which sentence is correct?
Idioms about need
if need be, should the necessity arise: If need be, I can type the letters myself.
Origin of need
before 900; (noun) Middle English nede,Old English nēd (WSaxon nīed), cognate with German Not,Old Norse nauth,Gothic nauths; (v.) Middle English neden,Old English nēodian, derivative of the noun
synonym study for need
4. Need, necessity imply a want, a lack, or a demand, which must be filled. Need, a word of Old English origin, has connotations that make it strong in emotional appeal: the need to be appreciated. Necessity, a word of Latin origin, is more formal and impersonal or objective; though much stronger than need in expressing urgency or imperative demand, it is less effective in appealing to the emotions: Water is a necessity for living things.
OTHER WORDS FROM need
needer, nounun·need·ed, adjectivewell-needed, adjectiveDictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use need in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for need
need
/ (niːd) /
verb
noun
See also needs
Word Origin for need
Old English nēad, nied; related to Old Frisian nēd, Old Saxon nōd, Old High German nōt
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 need
need
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.