What does demand mean?
Demand is one of those words that works equally well at a bargaining table and on an economics exam. At its core, it means an insistent, authoritative call for something — a request pressed so firmly that refusal seems unwelcome. A striker demands fair pay; a customer demands a refund. From this sense comes its most famous application: in economics, demand describes how much of a good or service buyers want and are willing to pay for, forming half of the celebrated law of supply and demand that shapes prices worldwide. The word also extends figuratively to pressures placed on people — the demands of parenthood, the demands of a career. As a verb, it signals confidence and even confrontation: she demanded answers. Whether describing market forces or human stubbornness, demand always conveys forcefulness, making it a precise and powerful choice whenever mere asking is not enough.
An insistent or authoritative request; also, in economics, the quantity of a good or service that consumers are willing and able to purchase.
"There is enormous demand for affordable housing in the city."
Often used in the plural ('demands') for a list of requests or conditions.
To ask for something firmly and authoritatively, as if claiming it as a right.
"He demanded to know why the shipment had been delayed."
Commonly followed by a noun ('demanded proof'), a to-infinitive ('demanded to see'), or a that-clause ('demanded that she apologize').
The plural often refers to multiple specific requests or conditions, or to the pressures and requirements placed on someone.
"The protesters presented their demands to the government."
Every price you've ever paid is just 'supply and demand' shaking hands — and the word behind it traces back to Latin for 'to entrust to someone's hand.'
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of demand
Demand entered Middle English in the late medieval period from Old French demander, meaning 'to ask' or 'to charge,' which itself descends from the Latin phrase demandare — literally 'to commit into someone's hands,' formed from de- ('away, down') and mandare ('to entrust, to order'). Over time the English word shifted from the sense of entrusting toward that of requesting insistently, and by the early modern era it had acquired both its legal-economic meaning and its modern forceful connotation. It shares its Latin root mandare with words like mandate, mandatory, and commend.
Related word forms
How demand is actually used
In everyday use, 'demand' carries connotations of insistence and urgency — demanding something implies you expect it without question. In economic writing, however, it is a neutral technical term paired with supply. The verb takes a direct object or a that-clause ('they demanded that he resign'), typically without 'for' when followed directly by a noun.
Easily confused with demand
A command is an order given by someone in authority, while a demand is an insistent request that may or may not come from an authority.