need

Definitions  ·  Examples  ·  Pronunciations  ·  Etymologies  ·  Related  ·  Statistics  ·  Comments (1)  · 
“
"We realized the need was there at PSU," Spalding said.

View all »
Definitions (33)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (10)

  1. noun A condition or situation in which something is required or wanted: crops in need of water; a need for affection.
  2. noun Something required or wanted; a requisite: "Those of us who led the charge for these women's issues ... shared a common vision in the needs of women” (Olympia Snowe).
  3. noun Necessity; obligation: There is no need for you to go.
7 more from this dictionary »

Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (12)

Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (4)

Toggle WordNet definitions WordNet (7)

Toggle elsewhere links Elsewhere on the web

View all »
Examples (31)

  • In anticipation of this growing need, we have worked for more than two decades to be ready with our world class potash assets when the need was the greatest.
  • Shefki Kuqi, starting his third successive game, was to be the hard-working lone man up-front with Anthony Stokes and Victor Moses joining him from their wide right and wide left positions respectively when the need was there.
  • "Where ever the need is around the world, they are distributed," she said. —  The Gazette-Enterprise: News
  • April 19, 2009 the Bears 'first pick in the draft next weekend, their need is as transparent as a cell-phone screen protector. —  chicagotribune.com -
  • At a time when the need is the greatest, please consider printing his articles again.
More examples »
 

Tags

Sign up or sign in to add tags.

Stats

This word has been looked up 156 times.

stop updating
On Twitter

Photos from

flickr images

Add a related word »
Related

Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

Allen's Allen's Synonyms and Antonyms

Suggestions Wordniks Suggest

Used in the same context Used in the Same Context

desire ·  necessity ·  plan ·  condition ·  requirement ·  mean ·  reason

Used in the same contextWord Family

need:   needing ·  needed ·  needs
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (4)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Middle English nede, from Old English nēod, nēd, distress, necessity.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (3)

  1. from Middle English need, nede, sometimes neethe, from Anglo-Saxon ny¯d, nīd, nēd, niéd, by umiaut from neád, neód, necessity, need, compulsion, force, urgent requirement, want, etc., = Old Saxon nōd = OFries. nāth, nēd = Dutch nood = Middle Low German nōt = Old High German Middle High German nōt, German noth, not = Icelandic naudh, naudhr, neydh = Swedish Danish nöd =Gothic (Moesogothic) nauths, compulsion, force; cf. Old Prussian nauti-, need; apparently with formative -d, orig. -di, perhaps from the root *nau, press, press close, appearing (prob.) in D. naauw, close, exact, = Middle High German nou, nouwe, genouwe, German genau, exact, careful, = Old Swedish noga, nöga, Swedish nōga = Norwegian nauv, nau, növ, nauver, nauger, narrow, close, = Old Danish noge, Danish nöje, adverb, exactly.
  2. from Middle English neden, from Anglo-Saxon ny¯dan, nīdan, nēden, also neádian, compel, force, from ny¯d, nīd, nēd, neád, need, compulsion: see need, n.
  3. Middle English nede; adverbial use, like needs, of need, n.
 

Pronunciations
Record your own »
/nid/
by American Heritage

Charts
frequency chart

Bubble size: how much this word was used in a year

Bubble height: used more or less than expected, vs. all uses evenly distributed

You can expect to see this word many times a day.

Recently looked up

perfunctory · tea · kelp · specify · chemist

Recent Favorites

pygopagus · sanglant · Astacus · sweetbread · qualms

Recent Pronunciations

ultimatum · pew · deadpool · sad panda · nom nom nom