NEEDFUL

needed, needful, required, requisite

(adjective) necessary for relief or supply; “provided them with all things needful”

Source: WordNet® 3.1

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Etymology

Adjective

needful (comparative more needful, superlative most needful)

Needed; necessary; mandatory; requisite; indispensible.

Antonym: needless

(archaic) Needy; in need.

Noun

needful (plural needfuls)

(slang) Ready money; wherewithal.

(India, chiefly archaic in other dialects) Anything necessary or requisite.

Usage notes

Commonly found in phrases such as "kindly do the needful", which occurs commonly in Indian English but is held as archaic in other dialects. Global interactions between English speakers have to some extent led to these phrases being seen as stereotypical of Indian English and parodied by speakers of other dialects.

Anagrams

• Neufeld

Source: Wiktionary

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Need"ful, a.

1. Full of need; in need or want; needy; distressing. [Archaic] Chaucer. The needful time of trouble. Bk. of Com. Prayer.

2. Necessary for supply or relief; requisite. All things needful for defense abound. Dryden.

– Need"ful*ly, adv.

– Need"ful*ness, n.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition

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