needy
/ˈniːdi/adjective
needy is spelled N-E-E-D-Y: 5 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 3.8 times per million words in written English, the 13,321st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, needy means “In need; poor” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in needy?
| Letters | 5: N-E-E-D-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 3.8 times per million words; the 13,321st most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is needy?
Needy appears 3.8 times per million words in written English, the 13,321st 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 needy?
- /ˈniːdi/
Needy has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-needy.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of needy
- needier comparative
- neediest superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does needy mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
In need; poor.
Needy people want to give too, but have few material goods to offer.
- 2
Desiring constant affirmation; lacking self-confidence.
Near-synonym: clingy
- 3
archaicNeedful; necessary.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Needy in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense needing constant affirmation:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| Portuguese | carente |
| Spanish | necesitante, necesitoso |
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 needy come from?
From Middle English nedy, nedi (“necessitous”), from Old English nēdiġ, *nīediġ ("of need, obligated, compelled"; found in the derivative nīediġnes (“obligation”)), from Proto-Germanic *naudigaz (“of need, forced, compelled”), equivalent to need + -y.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).