2 entries under this word

Necessary

Nĕc'es-sa-ry, a.

adjective

(44), a. [Lat. necessarius, from necesse, unavoidable, necessary, from ne, not, and cessus, p. p. of cedere, to go away, give up; It. necessario, Sp. necessario, Pr. necessari, Fr. nécessaire.]

Sense 1. Such as must be; impossible to be otherwise; not to be avoided; inevitable.

Death, a necessary end, Will come when it will come. Shak.

Sense 2. Impossible to be otherwise without preventing the purpose intended; indispensable; requisite; essential.

A certain kind of temper is necessary to the pleasure and quiet of our minds. Tillotson.

Sense 3. Acting from necessity or compulsion; involuntary;—opposed to free; as, whether man is a necessary or a free agent is a question much discussed.

Nĕc'es-sa-ry, n.

noun

n. [From the adjective.] 1. A thing indispensable to some purpose; a requisite; an essential;—used chiefly in the plural. 2. A privy; a water-closet.