beg

verb \ ˈbeg \

Updated on: 21 Apr 2018

Definition of beg

begged; begging

transitive verb

1 : to ask for as a charity (see charity 1a)

begging food from strangers

begged him for some change

2 a : to ask earnestly for : entreat

beg forgiveness

I beg your pardon.

b : to require as necessary or appropriate

a scene that begged to be photographed

3 : evade, sidestep

begged the real problems

intransitive verb

1 : to ask for alms

children begging on the streets

2 : to ask earnestly

begged for mercy

— beg the question

1 : to elicit a question logically as a reaction or response

the quarterback's injury begs the question of who will start in his place

2 : to pass over or ignore a question by assuming it to be established or settled

See beg defined for English-language learners

See beg defined for kids

Examples of beg in a Sentence

A homeless man begs on that corner every day.
children begging strangers for food
children begging food from strangers
He begged the doctor for medicine.
She begged him to read the story again.
He begged that she would forgive him.
begging a favor of someone
He's too proud to beg.
“Does your dog know any tricks?” “She knows how to beg.”

Recent Examples of beg from the Web

Shatteringly crisp and earthy, these cutlets beg to be paired with cold beer and dilly potato salad.

— sarah karnasiewicz, WSJ, "Why Cutlets Are What Everyone Wants for Dinner," 12 Apr. 2018
So in the sixth, almost everyone in the Giants’ ballpark was begging Bochy to walk the Great Goldschmidt.

— scott ostler, San Francisco Chronicle, "Giants’ decision to pitch to Paul Goldschmidt backfires," 11 Apr. 2018
Tyra begged her agent to get her another chance with the lingerie brand, before taking matters into her own hands.

— helena yeung, Teen Vogue, "Tyra Banks Talks Modeling for Victoria's Secret and Finding Black Hairstylists," 10 Apr. 2018
We were soon treated to his deadpan humor, encyclopedic memory and an accent that begged for subtitles.

— New York Times, "A Beatles Tour in England? You Know That Can’t be Bad," 6 Apr. 2018
The result is a wholly original experience that begs to be binged.

— julie kosin, Harper's BAZAAR, "You Can Watch the First Episode of Killing Eve Right Now," 5 Apr. 2018
On the surrounding streets, migrants begged for money.

— washington post, BostonGlobe.com, "The caravan of migrants that’s alarmed President Trump has now stalled," 3 Apr. 2018
Pakistan officially recognized transgender as a third gender in 2012, but transgender people are largely confined to the margins of society, with most forced to survive by begging, dancing and prostitution.

— NBC News, "Pakistan's first transgender TV anchor hopes to change perceptions," 28 Mar. 2018
Read more: Filmmaker Laura Checkoway examines a topic that begs for more screen time: compassionate care of the elderly.

— john monaghan, Detroit Free Press, "Oscar-nominated short documentaries tackle heavy topics," 15 Feb. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'beg.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of beg

Middle English beggen

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First Known Use: 13th century

See Words from the same year

beg Synonyms

Phrases

call on (or upon);

Synonym Discussion of beg

beg, entreat, beseech, implore, supplicate, adjure, importune mean to ask urgently. beg suggests earnestness or insistence in the asking.

- they begged for help

entreat implies an effort to persuade or to overcome resistance.

- entreated me to join them

beseech and implore imply a deeply felt anxiety.

- I beseech you to have mercy
- implored her not to leave him

supplicate suggests a posture of humility.

- with bowed heads they supplicated their Lord

adjure implies advising as well as pleading.

- we were adjured to tell the truth

importune suggests an annoying persistence in trying to break down resistance to a request.

- importuning viewers for contributions

beg

abbreviation

Definition of beg

begin; beginning

BEG Defined for English Language Learners

beg

verb

Definition of beg for English Language Learners

: to ask people for money or food
: to ask (someone) in a very serious and emotional way for something needed or wanted very much
: to ask for (something needed or wanted very much) in a very serious and emotional way