Ask | Mean of ask in English Dictionary

/ˈæsk/

• Verb
• to say or write something to someone as a way of gaining information
1. I need to ask a question.
2. I need to ask you a question. = (less commonly) I need to ask a question of you.
3. Are there any questions you would like to ask (me)?
4. Did you ask her yet?
5. “Have you seen the movie yet?” he asked.
6. a list of frequently asked questions
7. We always ask him about his mother.
8. He asked (them) if they had seen the movie.
9. She asked (me) if I was worried.
10. They were asked whether they would like to buy the car.
11. You should ask (him) why he didn't come.
12. He always asks (her) what she thinks.
13. May I ask what time it is?
14. It's not polite to ask how much a person weighs.
15. “If you don't mind me/my asking, how old are you?” “I'm 35 years old. Why do you ask?”
16. Please don't ask again.
17. “Do they have any soda?” “I don't know. I'll go ask.”
18. I asked about her plans for the future.
19. The police were here asking about you.
• to tell someone in the form of a question that you want to be given something or that you want something to happen
1. If you want something to drink, just ask. [=just tell me that you want something to drink]
2. I would have given it to him, but he never asked.
3. Let's stop and ask for directions.
4. I'll have to ask for permission to leave.
5. She asked for their forgiveness/help.
6. She ate all of her food and asked for more.
7. His lawyers are asking for the case to be dismissed.
8. We had to stop and ask directions.
9. May I ask the time?
10. Did you ask permission to leave?
11. She asked their forgiveness.
12. We had to ask someone for directions.
13. I asked her for permission.
14. She asked them for their forgiveness.
15. He asked if he could use my telephone.
16. They asked us whether we might stay an extra day.
17. She asked that I not say anything about it.
18. His lawyers are asking that the case be dismissed.
19. She asked (for permission) to borrow her father's car for the day.
20. I asked (for permission) to leave work early.
21. You should ask your teacher to help you.
22. Unhappy with the service, he asked to see the manager.
23. He asked me to marry him.
24. I'm sorry, but I need to ask you to leave.
25. She asked me not to say anything about it to anyone.
26. I wanted to say something about it, but she asked me not to.
• to invite (someone) to go somewhere or do something
1. He's asking just a few friends to the party.
2. I asked him to lunch.
3. They asked me over for dinner.
4. I asked her out (on a date), but she turned me down.

• to believe that you should receive (something) from someone
1. She doesn't ask [=expect, require] a lot. She asks very little in return for her hard work.
2. The school asks much of its students. [=the school expects its students to do a lot]
3. He says that people ask too little of their politicians.
4. He was ready to go to war, should the government ask it of him. [=should the government ask him to go to war]
• to set (a specific amount of money) as a price
1. The dealer originally asked [=wanted] $20,000 for the car, but he sold it to me for $18,000.
2. They're asking [=charging] $100 or more per concert ticket.
• to ask about (someone or something)
1. He asked after my wife's health.
2. He greeted us warmly and asked after our families. [=he asked how our families were]
• to ask many people to tell you information about someone or something
1. Maybe you should ask around to find out more about this guy.
2. We usually ask around before trying a new restaurant.
• to request to see or talk to (someone)
1. Unhappy with the service, he asked for the store manager.
2. There's someone on the phone asking for you.
• to behave in a way that makes someone want to hurt or punish you
1. You're asking for it, kid! If you keep misbehaving, you're going to get punished.
2. All right. You asked for it!
• to behave in a way that is likely to result in trouble
1. If you invest your money without doing careful research, you're just asking for trouble.
• in my opinion
1. She looks ridiculous in that hat, if you ask me.