necessity
ne·ces·si·ty/nɪˈsɛsəti/noun
necessity is spelled N-E-C-E-S-S-I-T-Y: 9 letters and 4 syllables (ne·ces·si·ty). It appears 8.1 times per million words in written English, the 8,146th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, necessity means “The quality or state of being necessary, unavoidable, or absolutely requisite” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of necessity is necessities.
How many letters and syllables are in necessity?
| Letters | 9: N-E-C-E-S-S-I-T-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4: ne·ces·si·ty |
| In writing | 8.1 times per million words; the 8,146th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is necessity?
Necessity appears 8.1 times per million words in written English, the 8,146th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce necessity?
- /nɪˈsɛsəti/
Necessity has 4 syllables, split ne·ces·si·ty in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-necessity.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of necessity
- necessities plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does necessity mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The quality or state of being necessary, unavoidable, or absolutely requisite.
I bought a new table out of necessity. My old one was ruined.
- 2
The condition of being needy; desperate need; lack.
- 3
Something necessary; a requisite; something indispensable.
A tent is a necessity if you plan on camping.
- 4
Something which makes an act or an event unavoidable; an irresistible force; overruling power.
After eating a full meal, the human body's necessity for food will compel the person to eat again in the future.
- 5
The negation of freedom in voluntary action; the subjection of all phenomena, whether material or spiritual, to inevitable causation; necessitarianism.
- 6
Greater utilitarian good; used in justification of a criminal act.
doctrine of necessity
- 7
Indispensable requirements (of life).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Necessity in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | nécessité, besoin |
| German | Notwendigkeit, Nezessität, Not, Bedürfnis, Bedarf , Bedürftigkeit |
| Portuguese | necessidade |
| Spanish | necesidad, menester |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does necessity come from?
From Middle English necessite, from Old French necessite, from Latin necessitās (“unavoidableness, compulsion, exigency, necessity”), from necesse (“unavoidable, inevitable”); see necessary. Doublet of Necessitas.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).