thirst

1 of 2

noun

ˈthərst 

1

a

: a sensation of dryness in the mouth and throat associated with a desire for liquids

also : the bodily condition (as of dehydration) that induces this sensation

b

: a desire or need to drink

2

: an ardent desire : craving, longing

a thirst for success

thirst

2 of 2

verb

thirsted; thirsting; thirsts

intransitive verb

1

: to feel thirsty : suffer thirst

2

: to crave vehemently and urgently

thirsted for revenge

thirsting

after justice

thirster noun

Synonyms

Noun

• appetency
• appetite
• craving
• desire
• drive
• hankering
• hunger
• itch
• jones [slang]
• letch
• longing
• lust
• passion
• pining
• thirstiness
• urge
• yearning
• yen

Verb

• ache (for)
• covet
• crave
• desiderate
• desire
• die (for)
• hanker (for or after)
• hunger (for)
• itch (for)
• jones (for) [slang]
• long (for)
• lust (for or after)
• pant (after)
• pine (for)
• repine (for)
• salivate (for)
• sigh (for)
• want
• wish (for)
• yearn (for)
• yen (for)

Choose the Right Synonym for thirst

long, yearn, hanker, pine, hunger, thirst mean to have a strong desire for something.

long implies a wishing with one's whole heart and often a striving to attain.

longed for some rest

yearn suggests an eager, restless, or painful longing.

yearned for a stage career

hanker suggests the uneasy promptings of unsatisfied appetite or desire.

always hankering for money

pine implies a languishing or a fruitless longing for what is impossible.

pined for a lost love

hunger and thirst imply an insistent or impatient craving or a compelling need.

hungered for a business of his own

thirsted for power

Examples of thirst in a Sentence

Noun

his thirst for knowledge is evident in his book-filled house

an unquenchable thirst for travel that has led her to the far corners of the globe

Verb

they have always thirsted for a more affluent lifestyle than their salaries would allow

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Still, prosecutors have not outlined his potential motive, and a sweeping gag order has kept the parties from speaking publicly, making each pretrial hearing an opportunity to quench the public’s thirst to learn more details. —Eric Levenson, CNN Money, 15 May 2025

One of the main culprits is the extraction of groundwater to quench the thirst of growing populations and commerce. —Andrea Thompson, Scientific American, 8 May 2025

Verb

In Major New Sale While the roster is absolutely thirsting for a young star, the Jazz as a team hasn't had as depressing a past as our next two candidates. —Morten Stig Jensen, Forbes.com, 11 May 2025

Joe Burrow doesn't mind being thirsted over on social media. —Natasha Dye, People.com, 17 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English þurst, þrust, þirst, þrist, going back to Old English þurst, going back to Germanic *þurstu- (whence also West Frisian toarst "thirst," Old Saxon thurst, Old High German thurst, durst, beside an n-stem in Old Norse þorsti "thirst," Gothic þaurstei), going back to Indo-European *tr̥s-t- (whence also Old Irish tart "dryness, drought, thirst"), nominal derivative from a verbal base *ters- "dry up, become thirsty," whence Gothic gaþaursana "withered" (accusative plural participle, from a strong verb *gaþairsan "to wither," if not from gaþaursnan "to dry up, wither"), Greek térsomai, térsesthai "to become dry, dry up"; also from a present-tense formation *tr̥s-i̯e-, Old English þyrred "dried out," Gothic þaursjan "to be thirsty," Sanskrit tṛṣyati "(s/he) is thirsty"; from a causative *tors-éi̯e- Old High German derren "to make dry," Old Norse þerra, Latin torreō, torrēre "to heat so as to dry, scorch, parch, (of food) roast, bake," Sanskrit tarṣáyati "(s/he) makes thirsty," Hittite taršant- "drying"

Note: The noun thirst has lost etymological -u- in favor of the -i- spelling of the verb. Variation between -u- and -i- is already evident in Middle English, at a time when the vowels would still generally have been distinguished, along with metathetic variants with the vowel following r. The spelling thurst is not infrequent in the seventeenth century, though Samuel Johnson's dictionary (1755) only acknowledges thirst.

Verb

Middle English þirsten, þristen, thrusten "to suffer from thirst, be thirsty (in impersonal me thirsteth "I am thirsty"), going back to Old English þyrstan, going back to Germanic *þurstjan- (whence also Old Saxon thurstian "to be thirsty," Old High German thursten, dursten, Old Norse þyrsta), verbal derivative of *þurstu- "thirst" — more at thirst entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing thirst

• die of/from thirst
• quench one's/someone's thirst
• slake one's/someone's thirst
• thirst trap

Rhymes for thirst

• burst
• cursed
• curst
• durst
• first
• hirst
• nursed
• pursed
• versed
• worst
• amerced
• cloudburst

Kids Definition

thirst

1 of 2 noun

ˈthərst 

1

a

: a feeling of dryness in the mouth and throat that accompanies a desire for liquids

also : the bodily condition (as of dehydration) that causes thirst

b

: a strong desire to drink

2

: a strong desire : craving

a thirst for fame

thirst

2 of 2 verb

1

: to feel thirsty

2

: to have a strong desire : crave

Medical Definition

thirst

noun

ˈthərst 

: a sensation of dryness in the mouth and throat associated with a desire for liquids

also : the bodily condition (as of dehydration) that induces this sensation