beg

beg [beg]

vt.

begged, begging [ME beggen < Anglo-Fr begger < begart < OFr begard, religious mendicant < MDu beggaert]

1. to ask for as charity or as a gift [he begged a dime]

2. to ask for earnestly as a kindness or favor

vi.

1. to ask for alms; be a beggar

2. to ask humbly; entreat

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beg off

to ask to be released from some obligation

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beg the question

1. to use an argument that assumes as proved the very thing one is trying to prove

2. loosely to evade the issue

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go begging

to be available but unwanted

SYN.- BEG implies humbleness or earnestness in asking for something and is now often used in polite formulas [I beg to differ, I beg to report ]; SOLICIT stresses courtesy and formality in requesting something [we solicit your aid, he solicits our trade ]; ENTREAT implies the use of all the persuasive power at one's command; BESEECH suggests fervor or passion in the asking and connotes anxiety over the outcome; IMPLORE is stronger still, suggesting desperation or great distress; IMPORTUNE suggests persistence in entreating, often to the point of becoming offensive