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# necessity

noun (a necessity, necessities)

«necessity» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. Something that you need and cannot do without: water is a necessity. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/necessity/#m1)
2. The fact of being needed: the necessity of sleep. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/necessity/#m2)
3. (formal) A situation that forces you to do something: out of necessity. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/necessity/#m3)
4. necessities (plural): the basic things needed to live, such as food and shelter. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/necessity/#m4)

### In the lessons

In geography and life lessons, pupils learn the difference between needs (necessities) and wants (luxuries). In stories, characters act «out of necessity». Saying: «Necessity is the mother of invention» means people invent things when they really need them. Phrases: a basic necessity, out of necessity, of necessity (formal).

### Examples

- Food, water and shelter are basic necessities. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/necessity/#x1)
- A coat is a necessity in a Canadian winter. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/necessity/#x2)
- Is a phone a necessity or a luxury? [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/necessity/#x3)
- They walked to school out of necessity because the bus broke down. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/necessity/#x4)
- Necessity is the mother of invention. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/necessity/#x5)
- Sleep is a necessity, not a choice. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/necessity/#x6)
- We packed only the necessities for camping. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/necessity/#x7)
- I only made up my mind to do it out of necessity. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/necessity/#x8)

### Note

Countable: necessities (y to ies). Spelling trap: one c, double s: neCeSSity. Adjective: necessary (also one c, double s). Opposite: luxury.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «necessity» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/N/necessity/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«necessity» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/necessity.html) on Mova free.