as in poverty
the state of lacking sufficient money or material possessions
a family's general level of neediness is the determining factor in the allocation of charitable donations
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Recent Examples of neediness
Fontana is wearing a little thin on me with the constant neediness for approval.
—
Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 7 Mar. 2026
But wanting emotional consistency is not neediness.
—Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026
She was sandwiched between their needinesses.
—Literary Hub, 5 Jan. 2026
On the second take, Russell’s bossy tone rubbed up nicely against the neediness of the moment.
—Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 6 Oct. 2025
As Koestler observes, crying is a signal not just of surrender but of neediness, designed to elicit succor and comfort from sympathizers.
—Big Think, 23 Sep. 2025
Still, Shannon is down in the dumps and annoyed by Tamra’s neediness to be forgiven for past sins.
—Peter Larsen, Oc Register, 19 Sep. 2025
Yet there’s always a childlike sense to both his anger and his neediness, having been denied the milk of human kindness by his maker.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 9 Sep. 2025
Abdul-Mateen and Kingsley are adorable in their bromance, the former’s combination of confidence and neediness playing against the latter’s oddball sense of humor.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 7 Mar. 2026
But wanting emotional consistency is not neediness.
—Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026
She was sandwiched between their needinesses.
—Literary Hub, 5 Jan. 2026
On the second take, Russell’s bossy tone rubbed up nicely against the neediness of the moment.
—Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 6 Oct. 2025
As Koestler observes, crying is a signal not just of surrender but of neediness, designed to elicit succor and comfort from sympathizers.
—Big Think, 23 Sep. 2025
Still, Shannon is down in the dumps and annoyed by Tamra’s neediness to be forgiven for past sins.
—Peter Larsen, Oc Register, 19 Sep. 2025
Yet there’s always a childlike sense to both his anger and his neediness, having been denied the milk of human kindness by his maker.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 9 Sep. 2025
Abdul-Mateen and Kingsley are adorable in their bromance, the former’s combination of confidence and neediness playing against the latter’s oddball sense of humor.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for neediness
Noun
-
Why is there the perpetual erosion of our environment, and things like poverty, famine, homelessness and hatred and division?—
Kevin Powell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Mar. 2026
-
Most of the health center's patients live at or below the federal poverty level — currently $33,000 for a family of four.—
Samantha Liss,
CBS News,
30 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The transition from agricultural employment to factory employment involved wrenching mass migration, the utter misery of the Great Depression (as well as other brutal recessions, now faded from collective memory), and the painful dealmaking of the New Deal.—
Annie Lowrey,
The Atlantic,
25 Mar. 2026
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In contrast, his wife, Chandravati, is selfish as a daughter-in-law and disrespects Swasthani, leading to enormous misery for her.—
Jessica Vantine Birkenholtz,
The Conversation,
24 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Neediness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/neediness. Accessed 2 Apr. 2026.
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