need not

verb

Indicating absence of necessity; needn't, do(es) not have to, do(es) not need to.

Similar
not have toneedn't
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Meanings

verbneed not (third-person singular simple present need not, no present participle, simple past needed not, no past participle)

past needed not

  1. UKauxiliaryno past participleno present participleIndicating absence of necessity; needn't, do(es) not have to, do(es) not need to.

    My example illustrates how circularity can arise in arguments that appeal to experiment. But the very same example serves to show that this need not be the case.

    2013, Alan Chalmers, What is this thing called Science?, University of Queensland Press, page 36

    Synonyms: not have to, needn't

  2. auxiliarydatedno past participleno present participleIndicating inadvisability; ought not to.

    Want ads for what little manual labor there was frequently had the stipulation INNA, an acronym for Italians and Irish Need Not Apply.

    2018 June 1, Gerard Letterie, “Education is the beacon that lights our path forward in America”, in The Seattle Times

Synonyms & antonyms

verbIndicating absence of necessity; needn't, do(es) not have to, do(es) not need to.

Similar
not have toneedn't

Translations

Chinese Mandarin 不用
  • 不用absence of necessity to do
Esperanto ne devi, devi ne
  • ne deviabsence of necessity to do
  • devi nepresence of necessity to not do
Cite this entry
APA

need not. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/need%20not

MLA

“need not.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/need%20not. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “need not,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/need%20not.

Source: need not on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.