necessitous
necessitous — adjective
- necessitouspositive
- more necessitouscomparative
- most necessitoussuperlative
1. lacking the money and basic things needed for a decent life; extremely poor
lacking the money and basic things needed for a decent life; extremely poor
Imani helped hand out warm blankets to necessitous families after the factory closed.
attributive: necessitous + [group of people]
The fund was set up to support necessitous students who could not afford lunch.
Anna spent her weekends delivering food parcels to necessitous pensioners in the city.
In the novel, the necessitous widow scraped by on little more than bread and tea.
Wei wrote to the council asking for help for the necessitous tenants in the riverside tenements.
- destitute
stronger; implies complete lack of money and shelter
- impoverished
more common modern equivalent; broader in scope
- indigent
equally formal but used more in legal or official contexts
- penniless
more informal and concrete; literally 'without a penny'
用法筆記
Formal and now somewhat old-fashioned. Typically describes people, families, or groups — not situations or abstract things. The everyday equivalent is 'poor' or 'in need.'
常見錯誤
2. so urgent that it must be dealt with straight away; demanding immediate action
so urgent that it must be dealt with straight away; demanding immediate action
Eli called an emergency meeting to address the necessitous repairs on the bridge.
attributive: necessitous + [noun naming a problem]
Sofia received a necessitous plea from the village as floodwaters rose overnight.
The captain sent out a necessitous distress call when the engine failed at sea.
Anya faced a necessitous shortage of clean bandages in the clinic after the storm flooded the stores.
用法筆記
Now rare in everyday English. Describes situations, demands, or needs rather than people. Distinguish from sense 1: a necessitous person lacks money; a necessitous situation demands action.
常見錯誤
3. required by the very nature of things; something that cannot be done without
required by the very nature of things; something that cannot be done without
Ayesha explained that clean water was a necessitous condition for the survival of every patient there.
Felipe considered honesty a necessitous part of any working relationship in the team.
The judge ruled that proper evidence was a necessitous element of a fair trial.
Quan believed that daily practice was a necessitous part of mastering the craft of the violin.
The contract stated that written consent was a necessitous requirement before any changes could be made.
- necessary
the universal modern equivalent; no connotation of formality
- essential
stresses that something is part of the core nature of a thing
- indispensable
stronger; impossible to manage without
- requisite
equally formal; often used for conditions or qualifications
用法筆記
Now the rarest of the three senses; 'necessary' has almost entirely replaced it. In modern usage, this sense appears only in the attributive position (necessitous + noun); predicative constructions ('was necessitous to') are archaic. Most often found in older philosophical or legal writing. Distinguish from sense 2: sense 3 describes logical requirement; sense 2 describes time pressure.