demand
Americanverb (used with object)
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demands,
present (3rd person singular)
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demanded,
past participle, past
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demanding
present participle
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to ask for with proper authority; claim as a right.
He demanded payment of the debt.
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to ask for peremptorily or urgently.
He demanded sanctuary. She demanded that we let her in.
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to call for or require as just, proper, or necessary.
This task demands patience. Justice demands objectivity.
- Synonyms:
- exact
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Law.
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to lay formal legal claim to.
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to summon, as to court.
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verb (used without object)
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demands,
present (3rd person singular)
-
demanded,
past participle, past
-
demanding
present participle
noun
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demands
plural
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the act of demanding.
-
something that is demanded.
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an urgent or pressing requirement.
demands upon one's time.
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Economics.
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the desire to purchase, coupled with the power to do so.
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the quantity of goods that buyers will take at a particular price.
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a requisition; a legal claim.
The demands of the client could not be met.
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the state of being wanted or sought for purchase or use.
an article in great demand.
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Archaic. inquiry; question.
idioms
verb
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to request peremptorily or urgently
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to require or need as just, urgent, etc
the situation demands attention
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to claim as a right; exact
his parents demanded obedience of him
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law to make a formal legal claim to (property, esp realty)
noun
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an urgent or peremptory requirement or request
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something that requires special effort or sacrifice
a demand on one's time
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the act of demanding something or the thing demanded
the kidnappers' demand was a million pounds
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an insistent question or query
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economics
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willingness and ability to purchase goods and services
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the amount of a commodity that consumers are willing and able to purchase at a specified price Compare supply 1
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law a formal legal claim, esp to real property
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sought after; popular
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as soon as requested
a draft payable on demand
Synonym Usage
Demand, claim, require imply making an authoritative request. To demand is to ask in a bold, authoritative way: to demand an explanation. To claim is to assert a right to something: He claimed it as his due. To require is to ask for something as being necessary; to compel: The Army requires absolute obedience of its soldiers.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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counterdemandnoun
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demandernoun
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superdemandnoun
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overdemandverb
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predemandverb (used with object)
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demandableadjective
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undemandedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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demandsimple
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demandssimple
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have demandedperfect
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has demandedperfect
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am demandingprogressive
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are demandingprogressive
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is demandingprogressive
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have been demandingperfect progressive
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has been demandingperfect progressive
Past
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demandedsimple
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had demandedperfect
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was demandingprogressive
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were demandingprogressive
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had been demandingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of demand
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English demaunden, from Anglo-French demaunder, from Medieval Latin dēmandāre “to demand,” Latin “to entrust,” equivalent to dē- negative prefix + mandāre “to commission, order”; see de-, mandate
Explanation
Demand means "an urgent request," like your demand that teachers give no homework on the weekend, or the act of making the request — teachers who demand that the work get done, even if it's the weekend. Demand comes from the Old French word demander, meaning "ask, make inquiry." A demand is a lot stronger than that, however. When you demand something, you want action now. A demand can also mean "to require" like cold weather that demands warm coats and boots. Demand is also an economic term, meaning "the amount of an item that can be sold," like the demand for those snow boots: high in winter and nonexistent in summer.
Vocabulary lists containing demand
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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The Industrial Revolution - Introductory
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"Principles of Business," Vocabulary from Chapter 1
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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.
See Examples For:
The last time gas was $2 a gallon was during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, when demand for oil was destroyed because many people were staying home to avoid spreading a deadly virus.
From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026
That shift could also broaden the set of AI beneficiaries beyond hardware vendors and hyperscalers to cybersecurity and observability providers, which could see greater demand.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
The rise of households with two working parents combined with frequent work travel and packed kids programming has created a demand for operational support, especially for those without family nearby to help.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
The recent Beijing race faced such fierce demand that the organisers added an extra day, turning it into a four-day event to make space for even more competitors.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
He doesn’t even demand I call him War Lord Tano.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
Researcher Le Hong Hiep of the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute noted the growing demands of Vietnam's manufacturing sector and the country's own issues with energy production -- but said politics also played a part.
From Barron's ● Sep. 13, 2026
When Bum-seok frantically demands a descriptive clarification from a hunkered, terrified colleague who’s seen the thing, the man barks back, “Who cares? That’s not the point!”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
Anmuth said Meta’s spending on AI computing power will reach $243 billion next year and $284 billion in 2028 as the company looks to meet the demands of running increasingly powerful models.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 10, 2026
Kickoff at 10.35am local time on Friday may not be typical for local fans, but meets the demands of prime time US television schedules and their advertisers.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
Sebastian scowls something serious but complies with Britt’s demands.
From "Fast Pitch" by Nic Stone
Many feminists, especially socialist ones, have demanded wages for housework as well as childcare—salaries, in other words, for mothers who stay home.
From Slate ● Sep. 14, 2026
The Perlmans demanded Roberts produce records proving his connection to the Warhol Foundation and the authenticity of the works they bought, according to the complaint.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026
She demanded that ministers vote in favour of the bill, writing that "everything I didn't want to happen I'm having to go through now".
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
The Disney-owned station licenses were not set to expire for several years when the FCC demanded that Disney defend its stewardship of the outlets.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026
"What on earth is the matter with you?" she demanded.
From "Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher" by Bruce Coville
According to the group, 100,000 people have signed a petition demanding this.
From Salon ● Sep. 11, 2026
In the Nice Côte d'Azur metropolitan area, dense development and heavy tourism make the challenge especially demanding.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 10, 2026
The head of the Norwegian Refugee Council aid group, Jan Egeland, criticised on Thursday what he called the "hypocrisy" of countries demanding rights for Afghan women while cutting humanitarian assistance.
From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026
The man became aggressive and kept demanding her to play the song.
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
Count Olaf was neither interesting nor kind; he was demanding, short-tempered, and bad-smelling.
From "The Bad Beginning" by Lemony Snicket
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
