|
Search over 100 encyclopedias and dictionaries: |
Research categories | Follow us on Twitter |
Research categories
View all topics in the newsView all reference sources at Encyclopedia.com |
|||
ask
ask / ask/ • v. 1. [tr.] say something in order to obtain an answer or some information: he asked if she wanted coffee people are always asking questions [intr.] the old man asked about her job. ∎ [intr.] (ask around) talk to various people in order to find something out: there are fine meals to be had if you ask around. ∎ [intr.] (ask after) inquire about the health or well-being of: Mrs. Savage asked after Iris's mother. 2. [tr.] request (someone) to do or give something: Mary asked her father for money [intr.] don't be afraid to ask for advice. ∎ request permission to do something: she asked if she could move in. ∎ [intr.] (ask for) request to speak to: when I arrived, I asked for Catherine. ∎ request (a specified amount) as a price for selling something: he was asking $250 for the guitar. ∎ expect or demand (something) of someone: it's asking a lot, but could you look through Billy's things? 3. [tr.] invite (someone) to one's home or a function: it's about time we asked Pam to dinner. ∎ (ask someone along) invite someone to join one on an outing. ∎ (ask someone out) invite someone out socially, typically on a date. • n. [in sing.] 1. a request, especially for a donation: an ask for more funding.2. the price at which an item, esp. a financial security, is offered for sale: [as adj.] ask prices for bonds. PHRASES: be asking for it (or trouble) inf. behave in a way that is likely to result in difficulty for oneself: they accused me of asking for it. don't ask me! inf. used to indicate that one does not know the answer to a question and that one is surprised or irritated to be questioned: “Is he her boyfriend then?” “Don't ask me!” for the asking used to indicate that something can be easily obtained: the job was his for the asking. if you ask me inf. used to emphasize that a statement is one's personal opinion: if you ask me, it's just an excuse for laziness.DERIVATIVES: ask·er n. |
|
|
Cite this article
"ask." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "ask." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-ask.html "ask." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-ask.html |
|
ask
ask ask a silly question and you get a silly answer saying recorded from Middle English, and often used dismissively to indicate that a question is irrelevant or foolish, undeserving of a considered reply. The original allusion was to Proverbs 26:5, ‘Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own conceit.’
ask no questions and hear no lies saying, recorded from the late 18th century, used as a warning against curiosity. |
|
|
Cite this article
ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "ask." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "ask." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-ask.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "ask." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-ask.html |
|
ask
ask OE. āscian, āxian = OS. ēscōn, OHG. eiscōn (G. heischen) :- WGmc. *aiskōjan. Rel. Skr. icchāti, OSl. iskati, Lith. ieškóti seek.
|
|
|
Cite this article
T. F. HOAD. "ask." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "ask." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-ask.html T. F. HOAD. "ask." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-ask.html |
|
ask
ask Synonymous with ‘question’ when used as a noun. For example, ‘What's the ask?’ means ‘What's the question?’.
|
|
|
Cite this article
DARREL INCE. "ask." A Dictionary of the Internet. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. DARREL INCE. "ask." A Dictionary of the Internet. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O12-ask.html DARREL INCE. "ask." A Dictionary of the Internet. 2001. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O12-ask.html |
|
ask
ask
•Basque, Monégasque
•ask, bask, cask, flask, Krasnoyarsk, mask, masque, task
•facemask
•arabesque, burlesque, Dantesque, desk, grotesque, humoresque, Junoesque, Kafkaesque, Moresque, picaresque, picturesque, plateresque, Pythonesque, Romanesque, sculpturesque, statuesque
•bisque, brisk, disc, disk, fisc, frisk, risk, whisk
•laserdisc • obelisk • basilisk
•odalisque • tamarisk • asterisk
•mosque, Tosk
•kiosk • Nynorsk • brusque
•busk, dusk, husk, musk, rusk, tusk
•subfusc • Novosibirsk
•mollusc (US mollusk) • damask
•Vitebsk
•Aleksandrovsk, Sverdlovsk
•Khabarovsk • Komsomolsk
•Omsk, Tomsk
•Gdansk, Murmansk, Saransk
•Smolensk
•Chelyabinsk, Minsk
•Donetsk, Novokuznetsk
•Irkutsk, Yakutsk
|
|
|
Cite this article
"ask." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "ask." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-ask.html "ask." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-ask.html |
|
Search over 100 encyclopedias and dictionaries:
HighBeam™ Research, Inc. © Copyright 2012. All rights reserved.
The Encyclopedia.com advertising network includes:
