desire

(dĭ-zīr')
tr.v., -sired, -sir·ing, -sires.

1. To wish or long for; want.
2. To express a wish for; request.

n.

1. A wish or longing.
2. A request or petition.
3. The object of longing: My greatest desire is to go back home.
4. Sexual appetite; passion.

[Middle English desiren, from Old French desirer, from Latin dēsīderāre : dē-, de- + sīdus, sīder-, star.]

desirer de·sir'er n.

SYNONYMS   desire, covet, crave, want, wish. These verbs mean to have a strong longing for: desire peace; coveted the new convertible; craving fame and fortune; wanted a drink of water; got all she wished.

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verb

1. To have the desire or inclination to: choose, like, please, want, will, wish. Idioms: have a mind, see fit. See desire.
2. To have a strong longing for: ache, covet, hanker, long, pant, pine, want, wish, yearn. Informal hone. See desire.

noun

1. A strong wanting of what promises enjoyment or pleasure: appetence, appetency, appetite, craving, hunger, itch, longing, lust, thirst, wish, yearning, yen. See desire.
2. Sexual hunger: amativeness, concupiscence, eroticism, erotism, itch, libidinousness, lust, lustfulness, passion, prurience, pruriency. See desire, sex/asexual.

n

Definition: request
Antonyms: answer, antagonism, reply

n

Definition: want, longing
Antonyms: aversion, disgust, dislike, distaste, hate, hatred, repulsion

v

Definition: ask, request
Antonyms: answer

v

Definition: want, long for
Antonyms: not want

The standard model of human motivation, sometimes called the ‘Humean’ theory of motivation, is that it takes a desire and a belief. Belief by itself will not suffice, unless the objects of belief interact with the agent's desires. They must be things towards which there is some attraction or aversion. Some say that if desires are thought of as conscious states of mind, this is untrue. On the other hand, if they are thought of as no more than interpretations certified by the agent's behaviour, then perhaps the model is trivial. But functionalism rescues the Humean theory, seeing ‘desire’ as a respectable theoretical category, identified by its role in systematizing the explanation of agents. Salient questions include whether we always do what we desire to do, whether we can control our strongest desires, and how motivation by desire compares with motivation by principle. Major philosophies of life, including Buddhism and Stoicism, have presented the overcoming of desire as an ideal. See apathy, eros, summum bonum.

Broad English term for which there is no single Sanskrit or Pāli equivalent. Instead, Buddhist psychology classifies the affective impulses according to their various objects. Desire for unwholesome things is generally known as tṛṣṇā, closer in meaning to the English ‘craving’. Other forms of desire, which may be good, bad, or neutral, are analysed into the three forms of chanda. From this it can be seen that the often-encountered notion that Buddhism teaches that all desire is wrong is an oversimplification.

IN BRIEF: To wish or long for.

Desire nothing for yourself, which you do not desire for others. — Spinoza.

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For a list of words related to desire, see:

• Sexuality and Libido - desire: intense sexual urge

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See words rhyming with "desire."

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - lyst, behov, ønske, begær
v. tr. - ønske, begære, bede om, bede

Nederlands (Dutch)
wensen, verlangen, begeren, wens, begeerte

Français (French)
n. - désir, envie
v. tr. - désirer, vouloir faire que, avoir envie (de faire), prier (qn de faire)

Deutsch (German)
v. - wünschen, begehren
n. - Verlangen, Wunsch, Begierde

Ελληνική (Greek)
v. - επιθυμώ, ποθώ, λαχταρώ, λιμπίζομαι, ζητώ, εκφράζω την επιθυμία
n. - επιθυμία, πόθος, λαχτάρα, όρεξη

Italiano (Italian)
desiderare, desiderio, brama

idioms:

• heart's desire    brama

Português (Portuguese)
v. - desejar
n. - desejo (m)

idioms:

• heart's desire    desejo (m) profundo

Русский (Russian)
желать, желание, страсть

idioms:

• heart's desire    сокровенное желание

Español (Spanish)
n. - deseo, anhelo, apetito sexual, algo deseado
v. tr. - desear, querer, rogar, pedir, apetecer, codiciar

Svenska (Swedish)
v. - önska sig, åtrå
n. - önskemål, lust, åtrå

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
欲望, 要求, 想要, 请求

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 欲望, 要求
v. tr. - 想要, 請求

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 욕망, 소망
v. tr. - 원하다, 요망하다, ~와 성관계를 맺고 싶어하다

日本語 (Japanese)
v. - 望む, 欲する, 願う, 欲求する, 欲望をもつ
n. - 欲望, 欲求, 情欲

idioms:

• heart's desire    心からの願い

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(فعل) يرغب في شئ, يتوق الى شئ (الاسم) رغبه‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮בקשה, רצון, תשוקה‬
v. tr. - ‮השתוקק, ביקש, חפץ, רצה‬

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