ask

- 8 dictionary results

ask

[ask, ahsk]

–verb (used with object)

1.	to put a question to; inquire of: I asked him but he didn't answer.

2.	to request information about: to ask the way.

3.	to try to get by using words; request: to ask advice; to ask a favor.

4.	to solicit from; request of: Could I ask you a favor? Ask her for advice.

5.	to demand; expect: What price are they asking? A little silence is all I ask.

6.	to set a price of: to ask $20 for the hat.

7.	to call for; need; require: This experiment asks patience.

8.	to invite: to ask guests to dinner.

9.	Archaic. to publish (banns).

–verb (used without object)

10.	to make inquiry; inquire: to ask about a person.

11.	to request or petition (usually fol. by for): to ask for leniency; to ask for food.

—Idiom

12.	ask for it, to risk or invite trouble, danger, punishment, etc., by persisting in some action or manner: He was asking for it by his abusive remarks.

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Origin:
bef. 900; ME asken, axen, OE āscian, āxian; c. OFris āskia, OS ēscon, OHG eiscōn (G heischen), Skt icchati (he) seeks

Related forms:

asker, noun

Synonyms:
1. question, interrogate. 3, 11. sue, appeal. 4. beseech, beg, entreat. 10. See inquire.

Antonyms:
1, 10. answer.

Ask

[ahsk]

–noun Scandinavian Mythology.

the first man, made by the gods from an ash tree.

Compare Embla.

Origin:
< ON Askr; see ash ²

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
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Link To ask

ask (āsk)

v. asked, ask·ing, asks

v. tr.

To put a question to: When we realized that we didn't know the answer, we asked the teacher.
To seek an answer to: ask a question.
To seek information about: asked directions.
1. To make a request of: asked me for a loan.
2. To make a request for. Often used with an infinitive or clause: ask a favor of a friend; asked to go along on the trip; asked that he be allowed to stay out late.
To require or call for as a price or condition: asked ten dollars for the book.
To expect or demand: ask too much of a child.
To invite: asked them to dinner.
Archaic To publish, as marriage banns.

v. intr.

To make inquiry; seek information.
To make a request: asked for help.

[Middle English asken, from Old English ācsian, āscian; see ais- in Indo-European roots.]
ask'er n.

Synonyms: These verbs mean to seek information. Ask is the most neutral term: The coach asked me what was wrong.
Question implies careful and continuous asking: The prosecutor questioned the witness in great detail.
Inquire refers to a simple request for information: The committee will inquire how it can be of help.
Query usually suggests settling a doubt: The proofreader queried the spelling of the word.
Interrogate applies especially to official questioning: The detectives interrogated the suspects.
Examine refers particularly to close and detailed questioning to ascertain a person's knowledge or qualifications: Only lawyers who have been examined and certified by the bar association are admitted to practice.
Quiz denotes the informal examination of students: The teacher quizzed the pupils on the state capitals.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

ask

O.E. ascian "ask," from earlier ahsian, from P.Gmc. *aiskojan (cf. O.S. escon, O.Fris. askia, M.Du. eiscen, O.H.G. eiscon, Ger. heischen "to ask, demand"), from PIE *ais- "to wish, desire" (cf. Skt. icchati "seeks, desires," Arm. aic "investigation," O.C.S. iskati "to seek," Lith. ieskau "to seek"). Form in Eng. infl. by a Scand. form of the word (cf. Dan. æske; the O.E. would have evolved by normal sound changes into ash, esh, which was a Midlands and s.w. England dialect form). The variant in modern dialect ax is as old as O.E. acsian and was an accepted literary variant until c.1600. O.E. also had fregnan, frignan which carried more directly the sense of "question, inquire," and is from PIE root *prek-, the common source of words for "ask" in most I.E. languages. If you ask me "in my opinion" is attested from 1910.

Financial Dictionary

Ask

The price a seller is willing to accept for a security, also known as the offer price. Along with the price, the ask quote will generally also stipulate the amount of the security willing to be sold at that price.

Sometimes called "the ask".

Investopedia Commentary

This is the opposite of bid, which is the price a buyer is willing to pay for a security, and the ask will always be higher than the bid. The terms "bid" and "ask" are used in nearly every financial market in the world covering stocks, bonds, currency and derivatives. An example of an ask in the stock market would be $5.24 x 1,000 which means that someone is offering to sell 1,000 shares for $5.24.

Also spelled: Asking, offer price, the ask

ask

The price at which a security is offered for sale. See also best ask. Compare bid 1. Also called offer.

Computing Dictionary

ASK
Amplitude Shift Keying

Idioms & Phrases

ask

In addition to the idioms beginning with ask, see don't ask; for the asking.

Search another word or see ask on Thesaurus | Reference

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