crave

crave (kreɪv)

—vb (when intr, foll by for or after)
1.	to desire intensely; long (for)
2.	(tr) to need greatly or urgently
3.	(tr) to beg or plead for

[Old English crafian; related to Old Norse krefja to demand, krǣfr strong; see craft]

'craver

—n

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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

crave

O.E. crafian "demand by right," from N.Gmc. *krabojan, perhaps related to craft. Current sense "to long for" is c.1400, probably through intermediate meaning "to ask very earnestly" (c.1300).

Example sentences

If you crave luxury and fine-tuning, you might have once thought that desktop

speakers weren't for you.

In fact our brains naturally crave such stimuli and the sort of high that

ensues.

First, learn the difference between nutritious food and the foods you crave.

Giant pandas possess the charisma that politicians and movie stars dream of-and

people crave a glimpse.

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Related Words

want avid craveable craving gasp

implore lust still supplicate wish

Matching Quote

"In matters of usage there are two extremes. At the extreme right are the purists, the standpatters, the rigid traditionalists who brook little or no change and who go by the rules—as many rules as they can recall or invent. They may not speak or write brilliantly, but they are grammatically unassailable—except when they forget some rule or misinterpret one.... At the extreme left are the permissivists, the heretics who argue that there is no such thing as "correct" usage. They maintain that usage is what people say, but they neglect to disclose what people they are talking about—most people in general or most intelligent people or most educated people or most writing people or what. Oddly enough, despite the loose approach of the permissivists, who have made some headway in the schools, there is evidence that people do crave authority in matters of language, they do ask for rules and rulings. They do not seem to appreciate the freedom that the permissivists are so eager to bestow upon them."

-Theodore M. Bernstein