Showing results for "needs"

• present tense form of need (3rd person singular).
• plural of need.

needs

American  

[needz] / nidz /

adverb

1. of necessity; necessarily (usually preceded or followed bymust ).

   It must needs be so.

   It needs must be.

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needs British  

/ niːdz /

adverb

1. (preceded or foll by must) of necessity

   we must needs go

   we will go, if needs must

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plural noun

1. what is required; necessities

   the needs of the third world

   his needs are modest

Etymology

Origin of needs

First recorded before 1000; Middle English nedis, Old English nēdes, originally genitive of nēd need; see -s ¹

Example Sentences

That’s in part because “students are finding financing from somewhere,” said Mark Huelsman, director of policy and advocacy at the Hope Center for Student Basic Needs at Temple University.

From MarketWatch • Jul. 1, 2026

Letterman is enjoying his elder statesman status with an interview show on Netflix, “My Next Guest Needs No Introduction,” that he makes on his own schedule.

From Salon • May 21, 2026

Brian Summerson, an Essential Needs customer, described the charity as a "life saver".

From BBC • Apr. 10, 2026

In “Who Needs Friends,” McCarthy offers no full-safe salve for the loneliness of men — after all, who can?

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 25, 2026

At the end of the year I got my best report card ever, including a glorious Needs Improvement in conduct.

From "Bad Boy" by Walter Dean Myers