Dictionary.com
definitions
  • synonyms

desire

[dih-zahyuh r]
See more synonyms for desire on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object), de·sired, de·sir·ing.
  1. to wish or long for; crave; want.
  2. to express a wish to obtain; ask for; request: The mayor desires your presence at the next meeting.
Show More
noun
  1. a longing or craving, as for something that brings satisfaction or enjoyment: a desire for fame.
  2. an expressed wish; request.
  3. something desired.
  4. sexual appetite or a sexual urge.
Show More

Origin of desire

1200–50; Middle English desiren < Old French desirer < Latin dēsīderāre; see desiderate
Related formsde·sired·ly [dih-zahyuh rd-lee, -zahy-rid-] /dɪˈzaɪərd li, -ˈzaɪ rɪd-/, adverbde·sired·ness, nounde·sire·less, adjectivede·sir·er, nounde·sir·ing·ly, adverbo·ver·de·sire, nounself-de·sire, nounun·de·sir·ing, adjective

Synonyms

See more synonyms for desire on Thesaurus.com
1. covet, fancy. 2. solicit. 3. aspiration, hunger, appetite, thirst.

Synonym study

1. See wish. 3. Desire, craving, longing, yearning suggest feelings that impel one to the attainment or possession of something. Desire is a strong feeling, worthy or unworthy, that impels to the attainment or possession of something that is (in reality or imagination) within reach: a desire for success. Craving implies a deep and imperative wish for something, based on a sense of need and hunger: a craving for food, companionship. A longing is an intense wish, generally repeated or enduring, for something that is at the moment beyond reach but may be attainable at some future time: a longing to visit Europe. Yearning suggests persistent, uneasy, and sometimes wistful or tender longing: a yearning for one's native land.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for self-desire

Historical Examples

  • The Love may offer itself; but it cannot abide where the Self-Desire attracteth or imagineth.

    Dialogues on the Supersensual Life

    Jacob Behmen

  • They seek it in their Self-Desire, and they meet not with it.

British Dictionary definitions for self-desire

desire

verb (tr)
  1. to wish or long for; crave; want
  2. to express a wish or make a request for; ask for
Show More
noun
  1. a wish or longing; craving
  2. an expressed wish; request
  3. sexual appetite; lust
  4. a person or thing that is desired
Show More
Related formsRelated adjective: orectic
Derived Formsdesirer, noun

Word Origin

C13: from Old French desirer, from Latin dēsīderāre to desire earnestly; see desiderate
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

Word Origin and History for self-desire

desire

n.

c.1300, from Old French desir, from desirer (see desire (v.)); sense of "lust" is first recorded mid-14c.

Show More

desire

v.

early 13c., from Old French desirrer (12c.) "wish, desire, long for," from Latin desiderare "long for, wish for; demand, expect," original sense perhaps "await what the stars will bring," from the phrase de sidere "from the stars," from sidus (genitive sideris) "heavenly body, star, constellation" (but see consider). Related: Desired; desiring.

Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper

Idioms and Phrases with self-desire

desire

see leave a lot to be desired.

Show More
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.