Synonyms of desire

desire 1 of 2

noun

1

as in urge

a strong wish for something

a desire for adventure and excitement prompted him to travel to Africa

Synonyms & Similar Words

• urge
• longing
• craving
• thirst
• hunger
• passion
• appetite
• yearning
• lust
• wish
• taste
• compulsion
• drive
• itch
• need
• love
• zeal
• hankering
• yen
• thirstiness
• appetency
• impulse
• pining
• eagerness
• jones
• requirement
• will
• liking
• impatience
• necessity
• impulsion
• letch
• want
• weakness
• obsession
• greed
• avarice
• greediness
• cupidity
• acquisitiveness
• rapacity
• covetousness
• avidity
• mania
• avariciousness
• rapaciousness
• cacoëthes

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• hatred
• disgust
• dislike
• distaste
• nausea
• revulsion
• repulsion
• loathing
• aversion
• repugnance
• disinclination
• abhorrence
• allergy
• abomination
• indifference
• disfavor
• apathy
• averseness
• disliking
• unconcern
• nonchalance
• insouciance

2

as in passion

sexual appetite

ads for drugs that increase desire

Synonyms & Similar Words

• passion
• lust
• lustfulness
• eroticism
• itch
• concupiscence
• horniness
• salaciousness
• hots
• letch
• libido
• lech
• lustihood
• libidinousness
• heat
• ardor
• rut
• hypersexuality
• erotomania
• nymphomania
• lechery
• satyriasis
• lecherousness
• venery

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• abstinence
• chastity
• celibacy
• frigidity
• frigidness

3

as in appeal

an earnest request

at the delegate's desire, the voice vote on the controversial measure was followed by an actual roll call

Synonyms & Similar Words

• appeal
• plea
• prayer
• petition
• cry
• demand
• pleading
• suit
• solicitation
• application
• entreaty
• supplication
• call
• insistence
• suppliance
• adjuration
• conjuration
• requisition
• claim

desire

2 of 2

verb

di-ˈzī(-ə)r 

1

as in to crave

to have an earnest wish to own or enjoy

he greatly desired a new mountain bike for his next birthday

Synonyms & Similar Words

• crave
• want
• enjoy
• covet
• love
• wish (for)
• long (for)
• itch (for)
• pine (for)
• like
• die (for)
• lust (for or after)
• thirst (for)
• salivate (for)
• prefer
• hunger (for)
• sigh (for)
• yearn (for)
• pant (after)
• repine (for)
• yen (for)
• desiderate
• jones (for)
• hanker (for or after)
• ache (for)
• relish
• admire
• set one's heart on
• spoil (for)
• delight (in)
• fancy
• groove (on)
• adore
• revel (in)
• appreciate
• value
• favor
• treasure
• dig
• cherish
• prize

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• hate
• despise
• loathe
• detest
• abhor
• refuse
• reject
• decline
• abominate
• spurn
• execrate

2

as in to seek

to make a request for

the host desires a response to the dinner invitation by tomorrow

Synonyms & Similar Words

• seek
• request
• quest
• call (for)
• urge
• require
• sue (for)
• demand
• speak (for)
• plead (for)
• ask (for)
• wish (for)
• apply (for)
• solicit
• bespeak
• invite
• claim
• beg (for)
• invoke
• insist (on)
• importune
• exact
• press (for)
• clamor (for)
• enjoin
• petition (for)
• requisition

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb desire differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of desire are covet, crave, want, and wish. While all these words mean "to have a longing for," desire stresses the strength of feeling and often implies strong intention or aim.

desires to start a new life

Where would covet be a reasonable alternative to desire?

While the synonyms covet and desire are close in meaning, covet implies strong envious desire.

covets his rise to fame

When might crave be a better fit than desire?

In some situations, the words crave and desire are roughly equivalent. However, crave stresses the force of physical appetite or emotional need.

craves sweets

When could want be used to replace desire?

The synonyms want and desire are sometimes interchangeable, but want specifically suggests a felt need or lack.

wants to have a family

When is it sensible to use wish instead of desire?

The meanings of wish and desire largely overlap; however, wish sometimes implies a general or transient longing especially for the unattainable.

wishes for permanent world peace

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of desire

Noun

Canetti saw the impulse to join a crowd as part of a deeply human desire to dissolve individual boundaries, to both lose yourself and experience a kind of emotional release, a sense of power, that comes with feeling many times larger than just your isolated self. —Boris Kachka, The Atlantic, 19 June 2026

So is their desire and ability to use those songs as launching pads to new aural vistas, not as final destinations. —George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 June 2026

Verb

Just pick three or four different solid hues and intersperse as desired. —Kara Jillian Brown, InStyle, 19 June 2026

The 2026 election is expected to reflect this enduring centrist electorate, with successful leaders appealing to the largest possible number of voters who desire change, but only to a certain extent. —Will Johnson, Forbes.com, 18 June 2026