Word.ws English Dictionary

How to use needs in a sentence

40 example sentences · adverb

Needs means either directly or indirectly preceded or followed by an auxiliary verb, often must: of necessity or need; necessarily, indispensably. Example: “Your definition of "elephant" needs to be more precise than "a big animal with large ears".”

More sentences with needs

  • Your definition of "elephant" needs to be more precise than "a big animal with large ears".From the entry definition
  • This old text needs translation into modern English before it is published.From the entry translation
  • Crossing the break smoothly is one of the first lessons the young clarinettist needs to master.From the entry break
  • My airline needs me to get clearance before I can fly again.From the entry fly
  • This business plan of yours looks risky. It needs a rethink.From the entry rethink
  • Tell Johnson he needs to be on a string with the ball.From the entry string
  • I’m sure the bad news will upset him, but he needs to know.From the entry upset
  • This towel is still damp: I think it needs another dry.From the entry dry
  • The key to his proposal is that he thinks this company is dying and needs radical change.From the entry key
  • The design needs to be field-tested before we commit to manufacture.From the entry field
  • He needs some time in the field before his judgment can be trusted.From the entry field
  • The question of the succession to a throne needs to be settled.From the entry settle
  • The third link of the silver chain needs to be resoldered.From the entry link
  • That kid needs a kick in the pants to get his homework done today.From the entry kick in the pants
  • He needs to regain her trust if he is ever going to win her back.From the entry trust
  • Her phone needs a new battery because its present battery no longer holds a charge well.From the entry battery
  • For personal needs, advertise on the internet or in a local newspaper.From the entry advertise
  • From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.From the entry each
  • The principle of least privilege holds that a process should only receive the permissions it needs.From the entry principle
  • The canister is leaking. I think the main seal needs to be replaced.From the entry seal
  • I've always tried to have few needs beyond food, clothing and shelter.From the entry need
  • Get over here you little dogger! That belly needs some scritchin!From the entry dogger
  • She needs to get her priorities straight and stop playing games.From the entry priority
  • Susy has to go to the dentist to see if she needs braces.From the entry braces
  • The curriculum has been carefully refined to meet the needs of foreign students.From the entry refined
  • The government's blithe disregard for the needs of disabled people is outrageous.From the entry disregard
  • Someone really needs to go put the kibosh on that noisy party.From the entry put the kibosh on
  • The infested house needs a thorough cleansing before being inhabitable again.From the entry thorough
  • Uncle Sam needs brave men and women to enlist in the Army.From the entry Uncle Sam
  • This is a problem that needs to be solved mentally, not with brute force.From the entry mentally
  • The city hall needs to round up all the wrongly parked bikes across the city.From the entry round up
  • Before laying sod on that clay, the ground needs two inches of coverage with topsoil.From the entry coverage
  • He is borderline hypoglycemic and needs to monitor his sugar intake.From the entry borderline
  • The frosting just needs a little touch-up to be smooth and even.From the entry touch-up
  • The candidate needs to win the T to take the state.From the entry t
  • If anybody needs to potty, do it now before we go.From the entry potty
  • He's a promising young go-getter, but he needs to learn some things about office politics.From the entry go-getter
  • What philosophy needs is to be revisioned with a more hopeful, engaged inspirational point of view.From the entry revision
  • He needs to get a grip if he's getting that angry over such a little thing.From the entry get a grip
  • He brought a hip flask along, just in case he needs a little pick-me-up later.From the entry pick-me-up

Meaning of needs

  1. adverb Either directly or indirectly preceded or followed by an auxiliary verb, often must: of necessity or need; necessarily, indispensably.

Full definition of needs

Questions about needs in a sentence

How do you use needs in a sentence?
Needs is used as an adverb. For example: “Your definition of "elephant" needs to be more precise than "a big animal with large ears".”
What is a short sentence with needs?
“Get over here you little dogger! That belly needs some scritchin!”
What does needs mean?
Needs means either directly or indirectly preceded or followed by an auxiliary verb, often must: of necessity or need; necessarily, indispensably.

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: needs (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this page: “How to use needs in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/needs. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.