beseech
Americanverb
Other Word Forms
- beseecher noun
- beseeching adjective
- beseechingly adverb
- beseechingness noun
- unbeseeching adjective
- unbeseechingly adverb
Etymology
Origin of beseech
before 1100; Middle English bisechen, Old English besēcan. See be-, seek
Explanation
If you're begging for something but you want to sound formal and a little old-fashioned, say "I beseech you!" It really captures how urgent and desperate you are, yet perhaps saves a shred of your dignity. Beseech sounds a little like seek, which is appropriate. To beseech is to seek for something, or for permission. It is commonly used when people have an urgent request of clergy, or of a formal elder. It definitely adds dramatic undertones to whatever you're talking about. When your very life is on the line, it's your last hope, and you have nowhere else to turn, it's time to start beseeching.
Vocabulary lists containing beseech
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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Instead of "Said": Words for Asking and Offering
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"Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare, Act III
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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.
Its inscription "I beseech thee, holy sun of righteousness, be the way" has not been found on any other object, according to historian Helen Geake.
From BBC • Nov. 19, 2023
“I beseech you to control him, if you can.”
From Slate • Nov. 6, 2023
"I beseech you to control him if you can. If you can't, I will."
From Reuters • Nov. 6, 2023
"I beseech you to control him, if you can," the judge said again shortly after, warning Kise that he would control the former president if the attorney did not.
From Salon • Nov. 6, 2023
“If I should die, I beseech my lord to see that my letters are delivered.”
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
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.
