I. ˈhāst noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English, from Old French, of Germanic origin; akin to Old English hǣst violence, Old High German heisti violent, heiftig impetuous, Old Norse heipt, heifst feud, war, hatred, Gothic haifsts strife, conflict, fight; perhaps akin to Sanskrit śībham quickly
1. : rapidity of motion : speed
out of breath from haste — Jane Austen
2. : rash or headlong action : precipitateness
haste makes waste
the beauty of speed uncontaminated by haste — Harper's
3. : overeagerness to act : hurry
I feel no haste and no reluctance to depart — Edna S. V. Millay
Synonyms:
hurry , speed , expedition , dispatch : haste indicates quickness or swiftness, often careless, on the part of persons impelled by urgency, pressure, eagerness
“Why this mad haste ?” I asked. “Bandits,” he shouted. — W.O.Douglas
hurry may imply haste with confusion, agitation, and hustle
there was a great hurry in the streets, of people speeding away to get shelter before the storm broke — Charles Dickens
for whom all these women worked with such a sense of frantic hurry — Winifred Bambrick
speed may focus attention on the fact of quickness, with very occasional implications of success
such developments are bound to increase the speed of the social and economic revolution — R.W.Steel
accused of slowness and undue deliberation, yet he built an adequate navy from nothing with surprising speed — H.K.Beale
expedition and dispatch both designate efficient speed, the former with a suggestion of smooth efficiency, the latter of brisk promptness
to move with reasonable expedition along the narrow pavements of Rotting Hill is impossible — Wyndham Lewis
proceed with great dispatch and arrest the people involved — Dean Acheson
II. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English hasten, from Old French haster, from haste, n.
transitive verb
archaic : to urge on : hasten
with our fair entreaties haste them on — Shakespeare
haste thee, nymph, and bring with thee jest and youthful jollity — John Milton
intransitive verb
: to move or act swiftly : hurry
haste to correct a seeming impression — O.W.Holmes †1935
these minutes even now hasting into eternity — Winston Churchill