- demand
-
I. noun
Date: 13th century
1.
a. an act of demanding or asking especially with authority <a demand for obedience> b. something claimed as due <a list of demands> 2. archaic question 3. a. willingness and ability to purchase a commodity or service <the demand for quality day care> b. the quantity of a commodity or service wanted at a specified price and time <supply and demand> 4. a. a seeking or state of being sought after <in great demand as an entertainer> b. urgent need 5. the requirement of work or of the expenditure of a resource <equal to the demands of the office> <demands on one's time> <oxygen demand for waste oxidation> II. verb Etymology: Middle English demaunden, from Anglo-French demander, from Medieval Latin demandare, from Latin, to entrust, charge, from de- + mandare to enjoin — more at mandate Date: 14th century intransitive verb to make a demand ; ask transitive verb 1. to ask or call for with authority ; claim as due or just <demanded to see a lawyer> 2. to call for urgently, peremptorily, or insistently <demanded that the rioters disperse> 3. a. to ask authoritatively or earnestly to be informed of <demand the reason for the dismissal> b. to require to come ; summon 4. to call for as useful or necessary <etiquette demands a handwritten thank-you> • demandable adjective • demander noun Synonyms: demand, claim, require, exact mean to ask or call for something as due or as necessary. demand implies peremptoriness and insistence and often the right to make requests that are to be regarded as commands <demanded payment of the debt>. claim implies a demand for the delivery or concession of something due as one's own or one's right <claimed the right to manage his own affairs>. require suggests the imperativeness that arises from inner necessity, compulsion of law or regulation, or the exigencies of the situation <the patient requires constant attention>. exact implies not only demanding but getting what one demands <exacts absolute loyalty>.
New Collegiate Dictionary. 2001.
