Vocate

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To call upon or summon someone to a place or for a particular purpose
2. To formally or urgently request the presence or attention of someone
3. To invoke or call forth, often in a direct or official manner

Etymology: Behind this verb stands the Latin "vocare", "to call". English took the stem and, as a rare learned formation, it has kept the sense of calling something forth. It is one of many English words built on that root, and it stays closest to the original meaning of summoning or calling out. Its relatives show how far the root has spread. "Invoke" comes from "invocare", "to call upon", with the prefix "in-" added, and "evoke" and "provoke" follow the same pattern with "e-" and "pro-". "Vocal" and "vocabulary" also descend from this root, with "vocabulary" originally tied to the idea of a name or a word, and "vocation" once meant a divine summons before it came to mean a trade or a career.

Synonyms: advocate, support, plead