Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Showing results for ask for. Search instead for ask+for.
Synonyms

ask for

British  

verb

  1. to try to obtain by requesting

    he asked for help

  2. informal (intr) to behave in a provocative manner that is regarded as inviting (trouble)

    she's asking for trouble

    you're asking for it

  3. to ask after

    tell your parents I'm asking for them
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
ask for Idioms  

  1. Also, ask for it. To persist in an action despite the likelihood that it will bring trouble on oneself, as in Speeding as much as he does, he has been asking for a ticket and Mary deserved that low grade; in effect, she asked for it by not studying. [c. 1900] Also see ask for the moon.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"I had to go to the doctors to ask for sleeping pills and also anxiety pills," she said.

From BBC • Apr. 18, 2026

“I never asked for your crutch,” Dylan sings, “Now don’t ask for mine.”

From Salon • Apr. 17, 2026

Even when we do our due diligence and ask for samples or references for someone’s work, we can never be 100% sure.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 17, 2026

“Now’s the time to find deals. Use the war for leverage,” Hoult said, urging buyers to ask for concessions from sellers tired of waiting for more buyers to emerge.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 15, 2026

I fight back the urge to ask for the sash.

From "The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams" by Daniel Nayeri

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.