Need

/niːd/

Synonyms for "need" (248 found)

Ranked by relevance and common usage.

Closest matches (50)

Noun(5 words)

Verb(4 words)

require askbe in need ofcall for

absence ardor arrearage askbare cupboardbare necessitiesbare subsistencebasicbe forcedbe hurting forbe in forbe in wantbe indicatedbe necessarybe obligedbe pinchedbe poorbeggarliness beggary break

Show 21 more words

callcall forcannot do otherwisecannot help butcharge claimclamor forcome what maycommitment committal compulsion concupiscence consequence constraint covet cravecry forcry out forcuriosity dearth defalcation

Strong matches (74)

defect defectiveness deficiency deficit demanddemand fordeprivation desideration desideratum desire destitution devoir difficulty discontinuity distress drive drought due duty eagerness

Show 40 more words

emergencyempty purseessential essentials exact exaction exigency expect extremity famine fancy fantasy fundamental gap gogo on welfaregrinding povertygripehand-to-mouth existencehanker havehave got tohave need tohave occasion forhave tohiatus homelessness hope horme hunger impecuniousness imperfection impoverishment incompleteness indicate indigence indispensable insufficiencyintellectual curiosityinterval

Noun(10 words)

deficitdepend ondependance dependence dependency desiredevelopment needsentail hungering indigence

Verb(4 words)

demand depend gotta involve

Related words (124)

Noun(30 words)

irrigation needlack of rulesmay notmotivation motive necessitate necessities necessity needingneedn'tnot have toobligate pauperism pauperization penury prerequisite privations provisions request require

Show 10 more words

require parental consentrequired textrequirement requirements scarcity shortagestrictly necessarythirsts wants wish

lack lacuna libido longlust for learningmendicancy mind missmissing linkmoneylessness mustmust itemnecessaries necessarily necessary necessities necessitousness necessityneed forneed to

Show 62 more words

needfulness needinessneeds mustobligation occasion omission ought outage passion paucity pauperism pauperization penury pinch pine pleasurepleasure principlepoorness poverty prerequire prerequirement prerequisite privation require requirement requisite requisition rightrun short ofscarcitysexual desireshortage shortcoming shortfall shouldsine qua nonstarvation starve stomach stresstake doingthe necessarythe needfulthirstthirst for knowledgetrouble ullage urge urgency use wantwant doingwantage wanting warrant way willwill and pleasurewilly nillywishwish fulfillmentyearn

Verb(9 words)

lacked necessitate needed obligates postulate requires take thirsted want

Adjective(3 words)

mental needpoor staterequired

How these synonyms differ

demand - 'Demand' implies need expressed with force, something demands your attention, a job demands long hours. There's no room for negotiation.
depend on - 'Depend on' emphasizes reliance, you need it because removing it would cause your situation to collapse or degrade.
lack - 'Lack' frames need as absence, you lack the resources, the skills, the time. It diagnoses the gap rather than expressing the urgency.
require - 'Require' is formal and objective, systems require inputs, applications require documents. It strips away the emotional urgency that 'need' can carry.

Related word relations

OpenGloss and ConceptNet supply richer edges like generalizations, collocations, and derivations.

6 relation types

More general

38 entries

auxiliary verbbebear oncome toconcept concern condition deficiency demand desireeconomic conceptemotional stateessential existhave to do withimpoverishment

Showing 16 of 38 words.

More specific

22 entries

craveeducational neededucational needsentailfood shortagehealthcare needshousing needshousing shortagelong formedical needsmedicine shortagenecessitateneedn'tnot have tonutritional needobligate

Showing 16 of 22 words.

Collocations

12 entries

basic needbasic needsessential needfunding needsgreat needhumanitarian needsneed forneed toneeds assessmentpopulation needsunmet needsurgent need

Inflections

3 entries

needed needing needs

Derivations

7 entries

needed needful needfulness neediness needing needless needy

similar

3 entries

claim exact take

Translations

7 translations across 4 languages.

Bulgarian

1 entries

необходимо е verb (to be required or necessary)

Dutch

1 entries

nodig zijn verb (to be required or necessary)

Finnish

3 entries

olla välttämätöntä verb (to be required or necessary)
pitää verb (to be required or necessary)
täytyä verb (to be required or necessary)

Spanish

2 entries

deber verb (to be required or necessary)
tener que verb (to be required or necessary)

Sample sentences

29 total sentences available.

Tatoeba + Wiktionary

I need to ask you a silly question.

Source: tatoeba (1417)

It's too bad that I don't need to lose weight.

Source: tatoeba (1428)

Do you really need to ask the question to know the answer?

Source: tatoeba (1489)

Let me know if I need to make any changes.

Source: tatoeba (1610)

Showing 4 of 29 available sentences.

More for "need"

Meaning

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