Asking

Part of speech: verb, noun

Pronunciation: /ˈæskɪŋ/

Definitions

1. Seeking to obtain information by posing a question ; making a demand or plea for something one wants or needs
2. Trying to learn or find out something by questioning ; expressing a desire or requirement for an object or favor
3. Inquiring or posing queries to gain knowledge ; appealing or petitioning to receive something from someone

Etymology: "Asking" is a plain inherited word rather than a borrowing, and its story is mostly one of grammatical formation. It comes from Old English "āsciende" and "āscung," meaning respectively the present-participle form of the verb "to ask" and a noun meaning "asking, question, inquiry." Both trace back to a Proto-West Germanic base, "*aiskōn," the ancestor of the modern verb, with the ending "-ing" added to it. The noun and the verb-based forms both come down through Middle English, where "askinge" and "askande" appeared in the same period as the verb itself. In practical terms, the word's two senses in modern English follow the two grammatical roles: the act of putting a question, and the act of petitioning for something. Both meanings were present from the earliest recorded forms, so the word has not shifted meaning dramatically over its long history.

Synonyms: inquiry, questioning, request, interrogation, query

Antonyms: answer, response