want: Meaning and Definition of
want
Pronunciation: (wont, wônt), [key]
—v.i.
- to feel inclined; wish; like (often fol. by to): We can stay home if you want.
- to be deficient by the absence of some part or thing, or to feel or have a need (sometimes fol. by for): He did not want for abilities.
- to have need (usually fol. by for): If you want for anything, let him know.
- to be in a state of destitution, need, or poverty:her parents to want. She would never allow
- to be lacking or absent, as a part or thing necessary to completeness: All that wants is his signature.
- The cat wants in.
- to desire to enter or leave:The cat wants in.
- Informal.to desire acceptance in or release from something specified:I talked with Louie about our plan, and he wants in.
—n.
- something wanted or needed; necessity: My wants are few.
- something desired, demanded, or required: a person of childish, capricious wants.
- absence or deficiency of something desirable or requisite; lack: plants dying for want of rain.
- the state of being without something desired or needed; need: to be in want of an assistant.
- the state of being without the necessaries of life; destitution; poverty: a country where want is virtually unknown.
- a sense of lack or need of something: to feel a vague want.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.