needs

American

[needz] / nidz /

adverb

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

It must needs be so.
It needs must be.

needs British

/ niːdz /

adverb

(preceded or foll by must) of necessity

we must needs go
we will go, if needs must

"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

plural noun

what is required; necessities

the needs of the third world
his needs are modest

"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

Etymology

Origin of needs

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

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.

It won’t get large swaths of the city on your side, and it can’t spark the true change City Hall so desperately needs.

From Los Angeles Times • May 19, 2026

It’s a place where Gallrein needs to not only win but win by real margins.

From Slate • May 19, 2026

These are the hearts and minds Musk needs when SpaceX, which now has an AI business, goes public, likely next month.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 19, 2026

It said it recommended students uses the existing 12 and 13 route public buses by Stagecoach, and that children with special educational needs and disabilities may be eligible for additional support.

From BBC • May 19, 2026

And right now, a little girl needs me.

From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023