Part 207

De*sire" (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Desired (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Desiring.] [F. désirer, L. desiderare, origin uncertain, perh. fr. de- + sidus star, constellation, and hence orig., to turn the eyes from the stars. Cf. Consider, and Desiderate, and see Sidereal.] 1. To long for; to wish for earnestly; to covet.

Neither shall any man desire thy land.

Ex. xxxiv. 24.

Ye desire your child to live.

Tennyson.

2. To express a wish for; to entreat; to request.

Then she said, Did I desire a son of my lord?

2 Kings iv. 28.

Desire him to go in; trouble him no more.

Shak.

3. To require; to demand; to claim. [Obs.]

A doleful case desires a doleful song.

Spenser.

4. To miss; to regret. [Obs.]

She shall be pleasant while she lives, and desired when she dies.

Jer. Taylor.

Syn. -- To long for; hanker after; covet; wish; ask; request; solicit; entreat; beg. -- To Desire, Wish. In desire the feeling is usually more eager than in wish. "I wish you to do this" is a milder form of command than "I desire you to do this," though the feeling prompting the injunction may be the same. C. J. Smith.

De*sire", n. [F. désir, fr. désirer. See Desire, v. t.] 1. The natural longing that is excited by the enjoyment or the thought of any good, and impels to action or effort its continuance or possession; an eager wish to obtain or enjoy.

Unspeakable desire to see and know.

Milton.

2. An expressed wish; a request; petition.

And slowly was my mother brought To yield consent to my desire.

Tennyson.

3. Anything which is desired; an object of longing.

The Desire of all nations shall come.

Hag. ii. 7.

4. Excessive or morbid longing; lust; appetite.

5. Grief; regret. [Obs.] Chapman.