need
n. C / Un. something that you must have or do because it is necessary. It is more important than a want because you cannot live or succeed without it.
n. a requirement or necessity for survival, success, or well-being. Often used to distinguish essential requirements from mere desires.
There is a great need for clean water in the village.
The charity focuses on the basic needs of the community, such as food, shelter, and medical care.
Psychologists often argue that the need for social belonging is as fundamental to human health as physical safety or nutrition.
From Middle English need, nede, a merger of two terms: Old English nīed (West Saxon), nēd (Mercian), nēad (“necessity, compulsion, want”), from Proto-West Germanic naudi, from Proto-Germanic naudiz, from Proto-Indo-European neh₂w- (“death”). Old English nēod (“desire, longing”), from Proto-West Germanic niudi (“desire, eagerness”), from Proto-Indo-European *new- (“to incline, tend, move, push, nod, wave”).
From Middle English neden, from Old English nēodian.
Commonly used in the singular with 'for' or followed by an infinitive ('a need to'). When used in the plural ('needs'), it typically refers to the collective requirements of a person or group.