the state of not having; the condition of being without anything; absence or scarcity of what is needed or desired; deficiency; lack; as, a want of power or knowledge for any purpose; want of food and clothing.-specifically, absence or lack of necessaries; destitution; poverty; penury; indigence; need.-that which is needed or desired; a thing of which the loss is felt; what is not possessed, and is necessary for use or pleasure.-a depression in coal strata, hollowed out before the subsequent deposition took place.-to be without; to be destitute of, or deficient in; not to have; to lack; as, to want knowledge; to want judgment; to want learning; to want food and clothing.-to have occasion for, as useful, proper, or requisite; to require; to need; as, in winter we want a fire; in summer we want cooling breezes.-to feel need of; to wish or long for; to desire; to crave.-to be absent; to be deficient or lacking; to fail; not to be sufficient; to fall or come short; to lack; -- often used impersonally with of; as, it wants ten minutes of four.-to be in a state of destitution; to be needy; to lack.