solicitation

noun

so·​lic·​i·​ta·​tion sə-ˌli-sə-ˈtā-shən 

plural solicitations

1

formal : the practice or act or an instance of soliciting

email/telephone solicitations

Unauthorized solicitation is prohibited.

sometimes : an urgent or persistent request : entreaty, importunity

I laid the matter before him, but he was disinclined to attempt the unfamiliar task. The editors, however, renewed their solicitations.

—Adam Badeau †1895

2

formal : a quality or force that moves or draws : incitement, allurement

… a vigilance against the solicitations of dejection and despair.

—newyorker.com

Synonyms

• adjuration
• appeal
• conjuration
• cry
• desire
• entreaty
• petition
• plea
• pleading
• prayer
• suit
• suppliance
• supplication

Examples of solicitation in a Sentence

the mail is always full of solicitations from worthy causes

Recent Examples on the Web

Burck also represented New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft during the businessman's high-profile solicitation of prostitution case in 2019. —Joey Garrison, USA Today, 25 Apr. 2025

But in the last few months, those solicitations have dried up. —Lydia Depillis, New York Times, 6 Apr. 2025

Goodwin was arrested on March 6 and charged with solicitation to commit murder and conspiracy to commit murder. —Vivian Kwarm, New York Daily News, 18 Mar. 2025

But The New York Times was not able to find that number in databases of previous government solicitations. —David A. Fahrenthold, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1520, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for solicitation

• abbreviation
• abomination
• acceleration
• accentuation
• accommodation
• accreditation
• acculturation
• accumulation
• acetylation
• adjudication
• administration
• adulteration

Legal Definition

solicitation

noun

so·​lic·​i·​ta·​tion sə-ˌli-sə-ˈtā-shən 

: an act or practice or an instance of soliciting

solicitation of a proxy for a shareholder vote

specifically : the crime of soliciting someone to commit a crime (as murder)