Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Want \Want\ (277), n. [Originally an adj., from Icel. vant,
   neuter of vanr lacking, deficient. [root]139. See {Wane}, v.
   i.]
   1. 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.

            And me, his parent, would full soon devour For want
            of other prey.                        --Milton.

            From having wishes in consequence of our wants, we
            often feel wants in consequence of our wishes.
                                                  --Rambler.

            Pride is as loud a beggar as want, and more saucy.
                                                  --Franklin.

   2. Specifically, absence or lack of necessaries; destitution;
      poverty; penury; indigence; need.

            Nothing is so hard for those who abound in riches,
            as to conceive how others can be in want. --Swift.

   3. 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.

            Habitual superfluities become actual wants. --Paley.

   4. (Mining) A depression in coal strata, hollowed out before
      the subsequent deposition took place. [Eng.]

   Syn: Indigence; deficiency; defect; destitution; lack;
        failure; dearth; scarceness.

Want \Want\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Wanted}; p. pr. & vb. n.
   {Wanting}.]
   1. 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.

            They that want honesty, want anything. --Beau. & Fl.

            Nor think, though men were none, That heaven would
            want spectators, God want praise.     --Milton.

            The unhappy never want enemies.       --Richardson.

   2. 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.

   3. To feel need of; to wish or long for; to desire; to crave.
      `` What wants my son?'' --Addison.

            I want to speak to you about something. --A.
                                                  Trollope.

Want \Want\, v. i. [Icel. vanta to be wanting. See {Want} to
   lack.]
   1. 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.

            The disposition, the manners, and the thoughts are
            all before it; where any of those are wanting or
            imperfect, so much wants or is imperfect in the
            imitation of human life.              --Dryden.

   2. To be in a state of destitution; to be needy; to lack.

            You have a gift, sir (thank your education), Will
            never let you want.                   --B. Jonson.

            For as in bodies, thus in souls, we find What wants
            in blood and spirits, swelled with wind. --Pope.

   Note: Want was formerly used impersonally with an indirect
         object. ``Him wanted audience.'' --Chaucer.

Source : WordNet®

want
     n 1: a state of extreme poverty [syn: {privation}, {deprivation}]
     2: the state of needing something that is absent or
        unavailable; "there is a serious lack of insight into the
        problem"; "water is the critical deficiency in desert
        regions"; "for want of a nail the shoe was lost" [syn: {lack},
         {deficiency}]
     3: anything that is necessary but lacking; "he had sufficient
        means to meet his simple needs"; "I tried to supply his
        wants" [syn: {need}]
     4: a specific feeling of desire; "he got his wish"; "he was
        above all wishing and desire" [syn: {wish}, {wishing}]

want
     v 1: feel or have a desire for; want strongly; "I want to go home
          now"; "I want my own room" [syn: {desire}]
     2: have need of; "This piano wants the attention of a competent
        tuner" [syn: {need}, {require}]
     3: wish or demand the presence of; "I want you here at noon!"
     4: hunt or look for; want for a particular reason; "Your former
        neighbor is wanted by the FBI"; "Uncle Sam wants you"
     5: be without, lack; be deficient in; "want courtesy"; "want
        the strength to go on living"; "flood victims wanting food
        and shelter"