ask
OTHER WORDS FOR ask
Idioms about ask
Origin of ask
synonym study for ask
OTHER WORDS FROM ask
asker, nounun·ask·ing, adjectiveun·ask·ing·ly, adverbWords nearby ask
Other definitions for ask (2 of 2)
Origin of Ask
MORE ABOUT ASK
What is a basic definition of ask?
Ask is a verb that means to present a question to someone, to request something, or to invite someone. Ask has several other senses as a verb and a noun.
If you are asking someone something, you usually want answers from them. When asking about something, you might pose several questions or politely request information about something.
- Real-life examples: Students ask teachers questions about things that confuse them. If you forget your watch, you might ask someone what time it is. You might need to ask a store employee where the bathroom is.
- Used in a sentence: We asked the teacher which chapters would be on the test.
Ask can also mean to make a request for something. In this sense, it is often used in the phase “to ask for.”
- Real-life examples: Children ask Santa Claus for presents at Christmas. Your mom asks you to clean your room. When you love someone, you might ask them to marry you.
- Used in a sentence: I asked Bill if I could borrow his shovel.
Ask also means to invite someone to do something or go somewhere.
- Real-life examples: You can ask your friends over for a party. Your grandparents might ask you to come and visit.
- Used in a sentence: Jin asked Maria out for a date on Saturday.
Where does ask come from?
The first records of ask come from before the 900s. It ultimately comes from the Old English verb āscian or āxian. It is related to older words, such as the Old Frisian āskia and the Sanskrit icchati (“to seek”).
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What are some other forms related to ask?
- asker (noun)
- unasking (adjective)
- unaskingly (adverb)
What are some synonyms for ask?
What are some words that share a root or word element with ask?
What are some words that often get used in discussing ask?
How is ask used in real life?
Ask is an extremely common word that most often means to pose a question to someone.
Welp, my wife knows what I got her for Christmas. I asked her which of our three children told her. All three.
— Kevin Cate (@KevinCate) December 22, 2020
Dear Santa,
You didn’t get me the thesaurus I asked for and now I’m mad. You made me really mad. I’m mad at you.— jon drake (@DrakeGatsby) December 26, 2020
my roommates have politely asked me to stop firing a starting gun every time I get to a new chapter of a book
— Jeremy Elder (@jeremyelderr) December 28, 2020
Try using ask!
Is ask used correctly in the following sentence?
She didn’t want to answer me when I asked her who ate the last slice of pizza.