need

[ need ]

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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR need ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a requirement, necessary duty, or obligation: There is no need for you to go there.

a lack of something wanted or deemed necessary: to fulfill the needs of the assignment.

urgent want, as of something requisite: He has no need of your charity.

necessity arising from the circumstances of a situation or case: There is no need to worry.

a situation or time of difficulty; exigency: to help a friend in need; to be a friend in need.

a condition marked by the lack of something requisite: the need for leadership.

destitution; extreme poverty: The family's need is acute.

verb (used with object)

to have need of; require: to need money.

verb (used without object)

to be under an obligation (used as an auxiliary, typically in an interrogative or in a negative statement, and followed by infinitive, in certain cases without to; in the 3d person singular the form is need, not needs): He need not go.

to be in need or want.

to be necessary: There needs no apology.

Nearby words

nedda, neddy, nederland, nedette, nee, need, need like a hole in the head, needed, needfire, needful, needham

Idioms

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

SYNONYMS FOR need

3 requirement.

5 emergency.

7 neediness, indigence, penury, privation.

8 want, lack.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR need ON THESAURUS.COM

ANTONYMS FOR need

7 wealth.

SEE MORE ANTONYMS FOR need ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

need·er, nounun·need·ed, adjectivewell-need·ed, adjective

Synonym study

2, 3. See lack. 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. 7. See poverty.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for needing

Satirists occupy a perilous position—to skewer dogma and cant, and to antagonize the establishment while needing its protection.
Harry Shearer on The Dangerous Business of Satire|Lloyd Grove|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Those wishing—or needing—to give it up will be forced to do so on their own, without the support of formal medical care.
Iran’s Drinking Problem|IranWire|August 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Many of the reasons these women claim for not needing feminism are embarrassingly bad.
You Don’t Hate Feminism. You Just Don’t Understand It.|Emily Shire|July 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“If it had happened an hour earlier…” Patterson began to say then stopped, not needing to voice the implication.
My Building Exploded. I Survived: Harlem Miracle Man Tells His Story|Michael Daly|March 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST

He did mention the possibility of needing a kidney one day, which I guess is something.
Should You Divorce Your Family After the Holidays?|Keli Goff|January 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He came to be one not needing anything to be that one but complete remembering that he had arranged that thing.
Matisse Picasso and Gertrude Stein|Gertrude Stein
During the week he spent in the region, needing the services of a likely boy, he came to know and like Silas.
The Strength of Gideon and Other Stories|Paul Laurence Dunbar
I haven't been able to save any money, and my mother is an invalid, needing much care.
Joe Strong, the Boy Fish|Vance Barnum
And was it not possible, yea, even likely that his aunt might be needing a bonnet right away.
Flood Tide|Sara Ware Bassett
She was still in her room, however, needing rest, and sent down word that she would rather be alone until the evening.
The Tremendous Event|Maurice Leblanc

British Dictionary definitions for needing

need

/ (niːd) /

verb

(tr) to be in want ofto need money

(tr) to require or be required of necessity (to be or do something); be obligedto need to do more work

(takes an infinitive without to) used as an auxiliary in negative and interrogative sentences to express necessity or obligation, and does not add -s when used with he, she, it, and singular nounsneed he go?

(intr) archaic to be essential or necessary tothere needs no reason for this

noun

the fact or an instance of feeling the lack of somethinghe has need of a new coat

a requirementthe need for vengeance

necessity or obligation resulting from some situationno need to be frightened

distress or extremitya friend in need

extreme poverty or destitution; penury

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

Idioms and Phrases with needing

need

In addition to the idiom beginning with need

needle in a haystack
needless to say
need like a hole in the head

also see:

cry for (crying need for).

need

noun

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

RELATED CONTENT

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Idioms

Origin of need

SYNONYMS FOR need

ANTONYMS FOR need

Related forms

Synonym study

Examples from the Web for needing

British Dictionary definitions for needing

need

verb

noun

Word Origin for need

Idioms and Phrases with needing

need