ask - What does it mean?
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Definition of 'ask'English
Etymology 1
From (etyl) asken, from (etyl) .
Verb
( en-verb)
To request (information, or an answer to a question).
- I asked her age.
To put forward (a question) to be answered.
- to ask a question
To interrogate or enquire of (a person).
- I'm going to ask this lady for directions.
* Bible, John ix. 21
- He is of age; ask him: he shall speak for himself.
To request or petition; usually with for .
- to ask for a second helping at dinner
- to ask for help with homework
* Bible, Matthew vii. 7
- Ask , and it shall be given you.
To require, demand, claim, or expect, whether by way of remuneration or return, or as a matter of necessity.
- What price are you asking for the house?
* Addison
- An exigence of state asks a much longer time to conduct a design to maturity.
To invite.
- Don't ask them to the wedding.
To publish in church for marriage; said of both the banns and the persons.
- (Fuller)
(figuratively) To take (a person's situation) as an example.
*
Usage notes
* This is a catenative verb that takes the to infinitive . See
* Pronouncing ask as /æks/ is a common example of metathesis and a feature of some varieties of English, notably African American Vernacular English (AAVE).
* The action expressed by the verb ask'' can also be expressed by the noun-verb combination ''pose a question'' (confer the parallel in German between ''fragen'' and ''eine Frage stellen ).
Derived terms
* ask after
* ask around
* ask for
( rel-mid3)
* ask in
* ask out
* ask over
( rel-mid3)
* ask round
* for the asking
* no questions asked
* outask
( rel-bottom)
Noun
( en-noun)
An act or instance of asking.
* 2005 , Laura Fredricks, The ask :
- To ask for a gift is a privilege, a wonderful expression of commitment to and ownership of the organization. Getting a yes to an ask can be a rush, but asking for the gift can and should be just as rewarding.
Something asked or asked for; a request.
* 2008 , Doug Fields, Duffy Robbins, Speaking to Teenagers :
- Communication researchers call this the foot-in-the-door syndrome. Essentially it's based on the observation that people who respond positively to a small “ask'” are more likely to respond to a bigger “' ask ” later on.
An asking price.
Etymology 2
From (etyl) aske, arske, from (etyl) .
Alternative forms
*
Noun
( en-noun)
An eft; newt.
* 1876 , S. Smiles, Scottish Naturalist :
- He looked at the beast. It was not an eel. It was very like an ask .
A lizard.
Statistics
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