demand

noun

1. (countable, uncountable)The desire to purchase goods and services.

   “Prices usually go up when demand exceeds supply.”

   “Nevertheless, it is clear that the global energy demand for air-conditioning will grow substantially as nations become more affluent, with the consequences of climate change potentially accelerating the demand.”

2. (countable, uncountable)The market force that causes buyers to be both willing and able to buy a good or service, as measured by the amount of that good or service that is currently salable at any given price point; the amount itself.

   “Supply and demand ebb and flow in a complex interplay.”

   “Demand for the kitchenware with the pastel colorway has been running low lately, at an average of only 37 units per week.”

3. (countable, uncountable)A forceful claim for something.

   “Modern society is responding to women's demands for equality.”

   “The humor of my proposition appealed more strongly to Miss Trevor than I had looked for, and from that time forward she became her old self again;[…]. Our table in the dining-room became again the abode of scintillating wit and caustic repartee, Farrar bracing up to his old standard, and the demand for seats in the vicinity rose to an animated competition.”

4. (countable, uncountable)A requirement.

   “His job makes many demands on his time.”

   “There is a demand for voluntary health workers in the poorer parts of Africa and Asia.”

5. (countable, uncountable)An urgent request.

   “She couldn't ignore the newborn baby's demands for attention.”

6. (countable, uncountable)An order.
7. (countable, uncountable)More precisely peak demand or peak load, a measure of the maximum power load of a utility's customer over a short period of time; the power load integrated over a specified time interval.

verb

1. To request forcefully.

   “I demand to see the manager.”

2. To claim a right to something.

   “The bank is demanding the mortgage payment.”

   “According to this saga of intellectual-property misanthropy, these creatures [patent trolls] roam the business world, buying up patents and then using them to demand extravagant payouts from companies they accuse of infringing them. Often, their victims pay up rather than face the costs of a legal battle.”

3. To ask forcefully for information.

   “I demand an immediate explanation.”

   “When Lazarus left his charnel-cave, ⁠And home to Mary’s house return’d, ⁠Was this demanded—if he yearn’d To hear her weeping by his grave?”

4. To require of someone.

   “This job demands a lot of patience.”

5. To issue a summons to court.