need
part of speech
verb (need, needs, needed, needing); modal (need not, needn't); noun (a need, needs)
meaning for a pupil
1) To need something is to have to have it, because you cannot do well without it. tree →
2) To need to do something is to have to do it. tree →
3) A need is something a person or animal must have, like food, water and a home. tree →
4) «Needn't» means do not have to: «You needn't come». tree →
5) (casual) «Need» is often said for «want»: «I need that game!»; «need a hand?» means can I help. tree →
6) (rude) «Do we need to hear this?», «nobody needs your opinion» are put-downs. tree →
7) (euphemism) «Special needs» or «additional needs» is a polite term for a child who needs extra help; «in need» means poor. tree →
8) (formal) Exams say «require», «requisite», «necessitate», «the quantity required», «the shortfall» (how much is still needed) and «is obliged to». tree →
sense in the lessons
In the Tanakh and Jewish tradition: In the Torah, "need" often means the poverty of a person, and the law commands lending enough to meet it. "Must needs" is old English for "must necessarily". Interpretation: The law of lending teaches that one should give the poor person what he lacks. The rabbis took this to include even what he was used to having. In the primary lessons: a target: how much is needed for a task, compared with what one has; or an amount each one needs; in science, living things need air, water and food; phrases «need to», «in need», «no need», «needs more», «if need be»; in casual talk «need a hand?», «we're 4, need 3 each», «I need a wee»; in rough talk «I don't need your crap», «nobody needs your help»; in the exam voice «the quantity required», «determine the shortfall», «each unit requires 3 eggs»
examples
- but thou shalt surely open thy hand unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need in that which he wanteth. (Torah DEU.15.8, JPS 1917) tree →
- He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised; and My covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. (Torah GEN.17.13, JPS 1917) tree →
- And the servant said unto him: 'Peradventure the woman will not be willing to follow me unto this land; must I needs bring thy son back unto the land from whence thou camest?' (Torah GEN.24.5, JPS 1917) tree →
- They are like a pillar in a garden of cucumbers, and speak not; they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. (Prophets JER.10.5, JPS 1917) tree →
- Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, answered and said to the king: 'O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer thee in this matter. (Writings DAN.3.16, JPS 1917) tree →
- and also the Levites shall no more have need to carry the tabernacle and all the vessels of it for the service thereof.' (Writings 1CH.23.26, JPS 1917) tree →
- She needs 9 cups of flour. tree →
- He needs 20 dollars but has 12. How many more does she need? tree →
- Each cake needs 3 eggs. tree →
- Plants need water and sunlight. tree →
- You need to finish your homework first. tree →
- We collected food for families in need. tree →
- There is no need to shout. tree →
- we're 4, need 3 each, how many sausages then tree →
- Need a hand with them boxes? tree →
- I don't need your help, I can count to 20 myself! tree →
- A recipe requires 3 eggs per cake. Determine the shortfall, given 7 eggs on hand and 4 cakes to be baked. tree →
- You needn't bring anything, we've got heaps. tree →
note
Marks a target. «needs N, has M; how many more» gives N − M. «each needs N» with a count gives a product. «requires» in an exam means needs; «the shortfall» is target − what you have. Trap: «needs» is not what one already has. «Need» and «want» differ: you need food, you may only want sweets. «Knead» (to press dough) sounds the same.
In the corpora
- but thou shalt surely open thy hand unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need in that which he wanteth.
- and also the Levites shall no more have need to carry the tabernacle and all the vessels of it for the service thereof.'
- Shops, hospitals, buses and factories need people at all hours, so their workers follow a rota that can change every week.
- Gardens need regular weeding, mowing and watering or they quickly grow wild.
- A newborn baby needs feeding every two or three hours, day and night, because its stomach is tiny.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «need» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.