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
Is Suzanna’s gloomy neediness all that different from Becky’s gold-digging manipulations?
—
Greg Evans, Deadline, 6 Apr. 2026
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
Greg Evans, Deadline, 6 Apr. 2026
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for neediness
Noun
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Helping Others Obtain Destiny — to reduce violence and poverty on Chicago’s South Side through mentorship, faith, workforce training and economic development initiatives.—
Greg Wehner , Anders Hagstrom,
FOXNews.com,
18 May 2026
-
The Netherlands has reduced old-age poverty to less than 3% through a universal pension paired with strong occupational plans.—
Teresa Ghilarducci,
Boston Herald,
18 May 2026
Noun
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The parallels between Ines’ dilemma and that of a nation being asked to lick its wounds in silence — in the name of moving on from past miseries — are present but elusive.—
Jessica Kiang,
Variety,
14 May 2026
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There are fun bad teams, or teams that at least make a unique bonding experience out of their specific type of misery.—
Hanif Abdurraqib,
New Yorker,
12 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Neediness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/neediness. Accessed 20 May. 2026.
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