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necessity
necessity definition
ne·ces·sity (-tē)
noun pl. necessities -·ties
- the power of natural law that cannot be other than it is; natural causation; physical compulsion placed on man by nature; fate
- anything that is inevitable, unavoidable, etc. as a result of natural law; that which is necessary in natural sequence
- the compulsion or constraint of man-made circumstances, habit, custom, law, etc.; logical or moral conditions making certain actions inevitable or obligatory faced by the necessity to earn a living
- what is required by this social or legal compulsion
- great or imperative need
- something that cannot be done without; necessary thing: often used in pl.
- the state or quality of being necessary
- want; poverty
Etymology: ME necessite < OFr nécessité < L necessitas < necesse: see necessary
necessity Idioms
of necessity
necessarily; inevitably
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