Dire and Intense

Dire

Dire adjective - Needing immediate attention.
Usage example: a dire need for food and medicine in the famine-stricken country

Intense and dire are semantically related. In some cases you can use "Intense" instead an adjective "Dire".

Intense

Intense adjective - Extreme in degree, power, or effect.

Dire and intense are semantically related. Sometimes you can use "Dire" instead an adjective "Intense".

Both words in one sentence

  • Reveal Shot Michael and Jack appear to be having an intense discussion about a dire problem, but they turn out to be debating a golf shot.
    Source: Reveal Shot
  • The action scenes are so intense, you find yourself going "oh shit" almost as often as the characters, and the occasional shift to Mojo's perspective and the horrible atrocities he's still committing really brings home just how dire the situation is.
Cite this Source
Intense and Dire. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 07, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/dire/intense
Dire & Intense. N.p., 2016. Web. 07 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/dire/intense>.
Intense or Dire. 2016. Accessed August 07, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/dire/intense.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "dire" and "intense" have occurred on timeline