Meanings
nounbasic needs (uncountable)
- uncountableThe absolute minimum resources necessary for long-term physical well-being, usually in terms of consumption goods.
Who then should determine basic needs? The answer seems to be the following: “The unequivocal answer is that the people themselves should decide on the scope, content and priority of their own basic needs”.
2013, Sam Cole, Henry Lucas, Models, Planning and Basic Needs, Elsevier, →ISBN, page 43
Translations
Dutch basisbehoeften
- basisbehoeftenthe absolute minimum resources necessary for long-term physical well-being
Finnish perustarpeet
- perustarpeetthe absolute minimum resources necessary for long-term physical well-being
French besoin primaire, besoin fondamental
- besoin primairethe absolute minimum resources necessary for long-term physical well-being
- besoin fondamentalthe absolute minimum resources necessary for long-term physical well-being
- besoin physiologiquethe absolute minimum resources necessary for long-term physical well-being
Norwegian Bokmål grunnleggende behov
- grunnleggende behovthe absolute minimum resources necessary for long-term physical well-being
Polish podstawowe potrzeby
- podstawowe potrzebythe absolute minimum resources necessary for long-term physical well-being
Cite this entry
APA
basic needs. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/basic%20needs
MLA
“basic needs.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/basic%20needs. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “basic needs,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/basic%20needs.
Source: basic needs on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.