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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

NEED, n. [to be in want. The primary sense is to press.]
1. Want; occasion for something; necessity; a state that requires supply or relief. It sometimes expresses urgent want; pressing exigency.
What further need have we of witnesses? Matthew 26.
2. Want of the means of subsistence; poverty; indigence.
I know how to abound and to suffer need. Philippians 4.
NEED, v.t. [ to compel] To want; to lack; to require, as supply or relief.
They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick. Matthew 9.
NEED,v.i. To be wanted; to be necessary.
When we have done it, we have done all that is in our power, and all that needs. [Not used.]
Need is often used as an auxiliary, or at least without the personal termination.
And the lender need not fear he shall be injured.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a condition requiring relief; "she satisfied his need for affection"; "God has no need of men to accomplish His work"; "there is a demand for jobs" [syn: need, demand]
2: anything that is necessary but lacking; "he had sufficient means to meet his simple needs"; "I tried to supply his wants" [syn: need, want]
3: the psychological feature that arouses an organism to action toward a desired goal; the reason for the action; that which gives purpose and direction to behavior; "we did not understand his motivation"; "he acted with the best of motives" [syn: motivation, motive, need]
4: a state of extreme poverty or destitution; "their indigence appalled him"; "a general state of need exists among the homeless" [syn: indigence, need, penury, pauperism, pauperization] v
1: require as useful, just, or proper; "It takes nerve to do what she did"; "success usually requires hard work"; "This job asks a lot of patience and skill"; "This position demands a lot of personal sacrifice"; "This dinner calls for a spectacular dessert"; "This intervention does not postulate a patient's consent" [syn: necessitate, ask, postulate, need, require, take, involve, call for, demand] [ant: eliminate, obviate, rid of]
2: have need of; "This piano wants the attention of a competent tuner" [syn: want, need, require]
3: have or feel a need for; "always needing friends and money"

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English ned, from Old English n?ed, n?d; akin to Old High German n?t distress, need, Old Prussian nautin need Date: before 12th century 1. necessary duty ; obligation 2. a. a lack of something requisite, desirable, or useful b. a physiological or psychological requirement for the well-being of an organism 3. a condition requiring supply or relief 4. lack of the means of subsistence ; poverty II. verb (needed; needing; needs or (auxiliary) need) Date: before 12th century intransitive verb 1. to be needful or necessary 2. to be in want transitive verb to be in need of ; require verbal auxiliary be under necessity or obligation to <you need not answer> <she need only wait>

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. & n. --v. 1 tr. stand in want of; require (needs a new coat). 2 tr. (foll. by to + infin.; 3rd sing. present neg. or interrog. need without to) be under the necessity or obligation (it needs to be done carefully; he need not come; need you ask?). 3 intr. archaic be necessary. --n. 1 a a want or requirement (my needs are few; the need for greater freedom). b a thing wanted (my greatest need is a car). 2 circumstances requiring some course of action; necessity (there is no need to worry; if need arise). 3 destitution; poverty. 4 a crisis; an emergency (failed them in their need). Phrases and idioms: at need in time of need. had need archaic ought to (had need remember). have need of require; want. have need to require to (has need to be warned). in need requiring help. in need of requiring. need not have did not need to (but did). Etymology: OE neodian, ned f. Gmc

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Need Need, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Needed; p. pr. & vb. n. Needing.] [See Need, n. Cf. AS. n?dan to force, Goth. nau?jan.] To be in want of; to have cause or occasion for; to lack; to require, as supply or relief. Other creatures all day long Rove idle, unemployed, and less need rest. --Milton. Note: With another verb, need is used like an auxiliary, generally in a negative sentence expressing requirement or obligation, and in this use it undergoes no change of termination in the third person singular of the present tense. ``And the lender need not fear he shall be injured.'' --Anacharsis (Trans. ).

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Need Need, n. [OE. need, neod, nede, AS. ne['a]d, n[=y]d; akin to D. nood, G. not, noth, Icel. nau[eth]r, Sw. & Dan. n["o]d, Goth. naups.] 1. A state that requires supply or relief; pressing occasion for something; necessity; urgent want. And the city had no need of the sun. --Rev. xxi. 23. I have no need to beg. --Shak. Be governed by your needs, not by your fancy. --Jer. Taylor. 2. Want of the means of subsistence; poverty; indigence; destitution. --Chaucer. Famine is in thy cheeks; Need and oppression starveth in thine eyes. --Shak. 3. That which is needful; anything necessary to be done; (pl.) necessary things; business. [Obs.] --Chaucer. 4. Situation of need; peril; danger. [Obs.] --Chaucer. Syn: Exigency; emergency; strait; extremity; necessity; distress; destitution; poverty; indigence; want; penury. Usage: Need, Necessity. Necessity is stronger than need; it places us under positive compulsion. We are frequently under the necessity of going without that of which we stand very greatly in need. It is also with the corresponding adjectives; necessitous circumstances imply the direct pressure of suffering; needy circumstances, the want of aid or relief.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Need Need, v. i. To be wanted; to be necessary. --Chaucer. When we have done it, we have done all that is in our power, and all that needs. --Locke.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Need Need, adv. Of necessity. See Needs. [Obs.] --Chaucer.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(needs, needing, needed) Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English. Note: 'Need' sometimes behaves like an ordinary verb, for example 'She needs to know' and 'She doesn't need to know' and sometimes like a modal, for example 'She need know', 'She needn't know', or, in more formal English, 'She need not know.' 1. If you need something, or need to do something, you cannot successfully achieve what you want or live properly without it. He desperately needed money... I need to make a phone call... I need you to do something for me... I need you here, Wally... I need you sane and sober. VERB: no cont, V n, V to-inf, V n to-inf, V n adv/prep, V n adj • Need is also a noun. Charles has never felt the need to compete with anyone. ...the child who never had his need for attention and importance satisfied. ...the special nutritional needs of the elderly. N-COUNT: usu with supp, oft N to-inf, N for n 2. If an object or place needs something doing to it, that action should be done to improve the object or place. If a task needs doing, it should be done to improve a particular situation. The building needs quite a few repairs. ...a garden that needs tidying... The taste of vitamins is not too nice so the flavour sometimes needs to be disguised. VERB: no cont, V n/-ing, V n/-ing, V to-inf 3. If there is a need for something, that thing would improve a situation or something cannot happen without it. Mr Forrest believes there is a need for other similar schools throughout Britain... 'I think we should see a specialist.'—'I don't think there's any need for that.'... There's no need for you to stay. N-SING: usu with supp, oft N for n, N to-inf 4. If you say that someone needn't do something, you are telling them not to do it, or advising or suggesting that they should not do it. Look, you needn't shout... She need not know I'm here. MODAL: with neg • Need is also a verb. Come along, Mother, we don't need to take up any more of Mr Kemp's time. VERB: no cont, with neg, V to-inf 5. If you tell someone that they needn't do something, or that something needn't happen, you are telling them that that thing is not necessary, in order to make them feel better. You needn't worry... Buying budget-priced furniture needn't mean compromising on quality or style... Loneliness can be horrible, but it need not remain that way... MODAL: with brd-neg • Need is also a verb. He replied, with a reassuring smile, 'Oh, you don't need to worry about them.'... You don't need to be a millionaire to consider having a bank account in Switzerland. VERB: no cont, with neg, V to-inf, V to-inf 6. You use needn't when you are giving someone permission not to do something. You needn't come again, if you don't want to... MODAL: with neg • Need is also a verb. You don't need to wait for me... VERB: no cont, V to-inf 7. If something need not be true, it is not necessarily true or not always true. (FORMAL) What is right for us need not be right for others... Freedom need not mean independence. MODAL: with neg 8. If someone needn't have done something, it was not necessary or useful for them to do it, although they did it. I was a little nervous when I announced my engagement to Grace, but I needn't have worried... We spent a hell of a lot of money that we needn't have spent. MODAL: with neg • If someone didn't need to do something, they needn't have done it. You didn't need to give me any more money you know, but thank you. VERB: no cont, with neg, V to-inf 9. You use need in expressions such as I need hardly say and I needn't add to emphasize that the person you are talking to already knows what you are going to say. I needn't add that if you fail to do as I ask, you will suffer the consequences. MODAL: oft with brd-neg [emphasis] • Need is also a verb. I hardly need to say that I have never lost contact with him. VERB: no cont, V to-inf 10. You can use need in expressions such as 'Need I say more' and 'Need I go on' when you want to avoid stating an obvious consequence of something you have just said. Mid-fifties, short black hair, grey moustache, distinctive Russian accent. Need I go on? MODAL 11. People in need do not have enough of essential things such as money, food, or good health. The education authorities have to provide for children in need... Remember that when both of you were in need, I was the one who loaned you money. PHRASE: usu v-link PHR 12. If you are in need of something, you need it or ought to have it. I was all right but in need of rest... He was badly in need of a shave... The house was in need of modernisation when they bought it. PHRASE: PHR n 13. If you say that you will do something, especially an extreme action, if need be, you mean that you will do if it is necessary. In British English, you can also say if needs be. They will now seek permission to take their case to the House of Lords, and, if need be, to the European Court of Human Rights. PHRASE: PHR with cl 14. You can tell someone that there's no need for them to do something as a way of telling them not to do it or of telling them to stop doing it, for example because it is unnecessary. (SPOKEN) There's no need to call a doctor... 'I'm going to come with you.'—'Now look, Sue, there's no need.' PHRASE: oft PHR to-inf, PHR for n 15. You can say 'Who needs something?' as a way of emphasizing that you think that this thing is unnecessary or not useful. (INFORMAL) With apologies to my old history teacher, who needs history lessons?... Cigarettes, who needs them? PHRASE: PHR n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. n. 1. Necessity, want, exigency, urgency, emergency, strait, extremity. 2. Indigence, poverty, penury, destitution, distress, neediness, privation. II. v. a. Want, require, lack, be in want of, stand in want of.

Moby Thesaurus

absence, ardor, arrearage, ask, bare cupboard, bare necessities, bare subsistence, basic, be forced, be hurting for, be in for, be in want, be indicated, be necessary, be obliged, be pinched, be poor, beggarliness, beggary, break, call, call for, cannot do otherwise, cannot help but, charge, claim, clamor for, commitment, committal, concupiscence, constraint, covet, crave, cry for, cry out for, curiosity, dearth, defalcation, defect, defectiveness, deficiency, deficit, demand, demand for, deprivation, desideration, desideratum, desire, destitution, devoir, difficulty, discontinuity, distress, drive, drought, duty, eagerness, emergency, empty purse, essential, essentials, exact, exaction, exigency, extremity, famine, fancy, fantasy, fundamental, gap, go on welfare, grinding poverty, gripe, hand-to-mouth existence, hanker, have, have got to, have need to, have occasion for, have to, hiatus, homelessness, hope, horme, hunger, impecuniousness, imperfection, impoverishment, incompleteness, indigence, indispensable, insufficiency, intellectual curiosity, interval, lack, lacuna, libido, long, lust for learning, mendicancy, mind, miss, missing link, moneylessness, must, must item, necessaries, necessary, necessities, necessitousness, necessity, need for, need to, needfulness, neediness, needs must, occasion, omission, ought, outage, passion, paucity, pauperism, pauperization, penury, pinch, pine, pleasure, pleasure principle, poorness, poverty, prerequire, prerequirement, prerequisite, privation, require, requirement, requisite, requisition, right, run short of, scarcity, sexual desire, shortage, shortcoming, shortfall, should, sine qua non, starvation, starve, stress, take doing, the necessary, the needful, thirst, thirst for knowledge, trouble, ullage, urge, use, want, want doing, wantage, wanting, will, will and pleasure, wish, wish fulfillment, yearn