desiderata

Things most sought

Desiderata are things wanted or needed—items on a wish list, requirements for a project, qualities sought in a candidate.

The word is plural; the singular desideratum appears mainly in academic or formal contexts: A desideratum of any good theory is predictive power.

The term suggests considered wants rather than passing whims.

aspirations

ambitions

Goals one strives toward

dreamsInvoluntary sleep visions
goalsIntended end results
objectivesIntended targets or ends

aims · hopes · wishes · desires · pursuits · endeavors · targets · intentions · visions · purposes

essentials

requirements

Necessary conditions for something

necessitiesWhat you cannot lack
prerequisitesNecessary prior conditions
fundamentalsCore elements of something

basics · needs · must-haves · conditions · specifications · criteria · stipulations · provisions · standards · qualifications

longing

yearning

Intense prolonged craving

cravingPowerful urge to have
piningAching with prolonged desire
wistfulnessTender sadness for absence

hunger · thirst · ache · wanting · coveting · nostalgia · fervor · passion · eagerness · wishfulness

ideals

perfection

Absence of any fault

utopiaImagined perfect society
paragonFlawless model to emulate
epitomePerfect representative of type

quintessence · exemplar · archetype · pinnacle · acme · zenith · standards · excellence · virtues · principles

Categories

pluralsmen, women, feet, mice, geese
book tradebook dealers, bookselling, bookseller, publisher, bookshops
collectiblesbaseball cards, commemorative stamps, rare coins, mementos, rare stamps

Opposites

necessity/essentiality

desideratasuperfluities

Unnecessary surplus items

superfluousness · excesses · nonessentials · inessentials · surplus

desirability

desiderataundesirables

Unwanted or objectionable persons

unwanteds · aversions · anathemas · dealbreakers · disqualifiers

Family

Familiarity: Top 1,000,000
Profile: Used worldwide · Timeless · Abstract · Rated G