desire
4 ENTRIES FOUND:
desires;
desired;
desiring
desires;
desired;
desiring
Britannica Dictionary definition of DESIRE
not used in progressive tenses
[+ object]
1
somewhat formal
:
to want or wish for (something)
:
to feel desire for (something)
— sometimes followed by to + verb
-
Many people desire wealth.
-
He desired her approval more than anything.
-
The apartment has modern amenities, a great location—everything you could desire.
-
Those desiring [=looking for] a more relaxed atmosphere will prefer the pub in the restaurant's lower level.
-
I have always desired [=wanted] to go to France.
2
:
to want to have sex with (someone)
-
She knew that men still desired her.
3
formal
:
to express a wish for (something)
-
The committee desires [=requests] an immediate answer.
leave much to be desired
or leave a lot to be desired or leave a great deal to be desired
— used to say that something is not very good at all or is not close to being good enough
-
Your work leaves much to be desired.
-
Although her education left much to be desired, she was an extremely intelligent person.
-
The working conditions here leave a lot to be desired.
— desired
adjective-
an artist mixing paints to get a desired color
-
a desired effect/result
2
desire
/dɪˈzajɚ/
noun
plural
desires
2
desire
/dɪˈzajɚ/
noun
plural
desires
Britannica Dictionary definition of DESIRE
1
a
[noncount]
:
the feeling of wanting something
-
Desire is a common theme in music and literature.
-
an object of desire [=something that people want to have]
b
[count]
:
a strong wish
:
a wish for something or to do something
-
It is our desire that all of you be treated fairly. [=we want all of you to be treated fairly]
-
The magazine tries to attend to the needs and desires of its readers.
-
Both sides feel a real desire for peace.
-
His decisions are guided by his desire for land/money/power/change.
-
They expressed a desire to go with us.
-
They have a desire to have children.
-
a strong/burning/aching desire to travel around the world
2
:
a feeling of wanting to have sex with someone
[count]
-
He had/felt a strong (sexual) desire for her.
[noncount]
-
He was overcome with desire for her.
3
[count]
:
someone or something that you want or wish for
— usually singular
-
He worried that he might never achieve his desire. [=might never do the thing that he wanted to do]
-
A good education had always been her heart's desire. [=something she wanted very much]
-
“You are my heart's desire,” he told her.
