beseech
Americanverb
Other Word Forms
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.
See gauze-wear, Monaco swimwear, and weird glowing blue: Beseech the other shucker!
From Slate • Jan. 5, 2019
Nick Blaemire leads the trampoline-a-thon on “We Beseech Thee” with goofball charm.
From New York Times • Nov. 8, 2011
The rest of the ensemble has a more spontaneous energy, and one player, Neil Foster, almost explodes in the up-tempo We Beseech Thee.
From Time Magazine Archive
Beseech God to give His Spirit as a spirit of judgment and a spirit of burning—to discover and burn out sin in His people.
From The Ministry of Intercession A Plea for More Prayer by Murray, Andrew
Beseech you, Of your own state take care.
From An Introduction to Shakespeare by MacCracken, H. N.
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.
