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Desire   /dɪzˈaɪər/   Listen
noun
Desire  n.  
1.
The natural longing that is excited by the enjoyment or the thought of any good, and impels to action or effort its continuance or possession; an eager wish to obtain or enjoy. "Unspeakable desire to see and know."
2.
An expressed wish; a request; petition. "And slowly was my mother brought To yield consent to my desire."
3.
Anything which is desired; an object of longing. "The Desire of all nations shall come."
4.
Excessive or morbid longing; lust; appetite.
5.
Grief; regret. (Obs.)
Synonyms: Wish; appetency; craving; inclination; eagerness; aspiration; longing.


verb
Desire  v. t.  (past & past part. desired; pres. part. desiring)  
1.
To long for; to wish for earnestly; to covet. "Neither shall any man desire thy land." "Ye desire your child to live."
2.
To express a wish for; to entreat; to request. "Then she said, Did I desire a son of my lord?" "Desire him to go in; trouble him no more."
3.
To require; to demand; to claim. (Obs.) "A doleful case desires a doleful song."
4.
To miss; to regret. (Obs.) "She shall be pleasant while she lives, and desired when she dies."
Synonyms: To long for; hanker after; covet; wish; ask; request; solicit; entreat; beg. To Desire, Wish. In desire the feeling is usually more eager than in wish. "I wish you to do this" is a milder form of command than "I desire you to do this," though the feeling prompting the injunction may be the same.





Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48


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"Desire" Quotes from Famous Books



... she declared, wrapping her fur cloak around her. "You may talk to me to-morrow, Baron. I must think. If you desire really to be my friend, there is, perhaps, one service which I may require of ...
— Peter Ruff and the Double Four • E. Phillips Oppenheim
... of peace, the character of the men who desire to become soldiers differs with the degree of public prosperity. When business is good, most men obtain employment in the more desirable and profitable avocations of civil life. Then a larger proportion of those who are willing to enter the army are unfitted, by their habits ...
— The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 10, Number 60, October 1862 • Various
... do nothing of the kind." He also spoke with a deliberate lowering of the note. His great desire not to wake the Colonel gave an unintentional ...
— The Magnetic North • Elizabeth Robins (C. E. Raimond)
... apologizing for mingling business with a friendly visit. He wanted to buy a house owned by Mr. Wilcox, situated near his—Mr. Bartol's—home. The play of negotiation, of parry and thrust, was courteous, as befitted actors and scene, but Mr. Bartol's intention to buy cheap, and his host's desire to sell dear, were palpable to ...
— Choice Readings for the Home Circle • Anonymous
... stammering, disconnected sentences, besought him to be quiet. No, no, it was not right to wish evils to anyone! And if they invoked destruction, would not they themselves perish in the general ruin? His sole desire was to find a landing place so that he might no longer have that horrid spectacle before his eyes. He considered it best not to attempt to land at the Pont de la Concorde, but, rounding the elbow of ...
— The Downfall • Emile Zola


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