Meaning & use
desires
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“desires” is a form of “desire”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
nouncountable
Strong feelings of wanting something or wishing for something to happen.
Grammar: Countable; often used in the plural when talking about several different wants. A single want is 'a desire'.
Patterns
- desires for something
- desires to do something
- have desires
Her desires for a quiet life never changed.
He spoke about his desires to travel and see the world.
The company tries to satisfy the desires of its customers.
verbtransitiveformal
To want something very much or wish for it strongly.
Grammar: Takes an object: desire something. It is more formal than 'want' and is not usually used in the progressive.
Patterns
- desire something
- desire to do something
- desire someone to do something
She desires a better future for her children.
Many people desire to be rich and famous.
The king desired peace above all else.
Word forms
| base form | desire |
|---|---|
| third person singular | desires |
| past tense | desired |
| past participle | desired |
| -ing form | desiring |
| plural | desires |
Common combinations
- strong desire
- He had a strong desire to win the race.
- sexual desires
- The novel explores hidden sexual desires.
- desire for something
- Her desire for knowledge drove her to read constantly.
- meet a desire
- The new park meets the desires of local families.
Synonyms and how they differ
- wish
- A wish is often for something unlikely or magical; a desire is a strong, more realistic want.
- longing
- Longing suggests a sad, emotional wanting, while desire can be neutral or physical.
- craving
- A craving is a powerful need for something specific, like food; desire is broader.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: desires or desert?
desires vs desert
Desert is a dry area or to leave someone; desires is about wanting.
Practice
Choose the correct sentence:
Choose one answer.
'Desire' is a transitive verb and takes a direct object without a preposition. 'Desires for' is wrong because 'for' is not used after the verb; it is used after the noun, as in 'a desire for something'.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “desires”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.