lust

Noun · Verb
US[luhst]/lʌst/1 syllable
Synonyms: lecherousnesslustfulnessluxuriacravehungerthirststarve

Open English WordNet

Noun (2)lusts

  1. a strong sexual desireSynonyms: lecherousnesslustfulnessType of sexual desire, eros
  2. self-indulgent sexual desire (personified as one of the deadly sins)Synonyms: luxuriaType of mortal sin, deadly sin

Verb (1)lusts, lusted, lusting

  1. have a craving, appetite, or great desire forSynonyms: cravehungerthirststarveMore general desire, want

Related words concupiscent adjective, thirst verb, thirst noun

Word of the day · Sep 28About this word
onerousadjective

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Webster's Dictionary (1913)

Lust noun

Origin: AS. lust, lust, pleasure, longing; akin to OS., D., G., & Sw. lust, Dan. & Icel. lyst, Goth lustus, and perh. tom Skr. lush to desire, or to E. loose. Cf. List to please, Listless.

1. Pleasure. obsolete “ Lust and jollity.” Geoffrey Chaucer

2. Inclination; desire. obsolete

For little lust had she to talk of aught.— Edmund Spenser
My lust to devotion is little.— Bp. Joseph Hall

3. Longing desire; eagerness to possess or enjoy; — in a had sense; as, the lust of gain.

The lust of reigning.— John Milton

4. Licentious craving; a strong sexual appetite. John Milton

5. Hence: Virility; vigor; active power. obsolete Francis, Baron Verulam Bacon

Lust intransitive verb [past tense & past participle Lusted; present participle & verbal noun Lusting.]

Origin: AS. lystan. See Lust, noun, and cf. List to choose.

1. To list; to like. obsolete Geoffrey Chaucer “ Do so if thou lust. ” Hugh Latimer

☞ In earlier usage lust was impersonal.

In the water vessel he it cast When that him luste.— Geoffrey Chaucer

2. To have an eager, passionate, and especially an inordinate or sinful desire, as for the gratification of the sexual appetite or of covetousness; — often with after.

Whatsoever thy soul lusteth after.— Deut. xii. 15.
Whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her, hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.— Matt. v. 28.
The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy.— James iv. 5.

Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), from GCIDE 0.54

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