necessity

ne|ces|si|ty [nıˈsesıti] n plural necessities

[Date: 1300-1400; : French; Origin: necessité, from Latin necessitas, from necesse; NECESSARY]

1.)

something that you need to have in order to live

≠ ↑luxury

▪ She saw books as a necessity, not a luxury.

▪ A car is an absolute necessity if you live in the country.

the basic/bare necessities

▪ A lot of families cannot even afford to buy the basic necessities of life.

2.) [U]

when something is necessary

necessity for

▪ He emphasized the necessity for good planning and management.

the necessity of (doing) sth

▪ This illustrates the necessity of keeping accurate records of your work.

▪ Many teachers are now questioning the necessity of formal exams.

through/out of necessity

▪ He only remained with the group out of necessity.

economic/practical/political etc necessity

▪ I'm afraid it's become a matter of economic necessity .

3.)

something that must happen, even if it is unpleasant

▪ Taxes are a regrettable necessity.

4.) of necessity

formal used when something happens in a particular way because that is the only possible way it can happen

▪ Many of the jobs are, of necessity, temporary.

5.) necessity is the mother of invention

used to say that if someone really needs to do something, they will find a way of doing it