solicit

verb

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so·lic·it | \ sə-ˈli-sət

solicited; soliciting; solicits

Definition of solicit

transitive verb

1a : to make petition to : entreat

b : to approach with a request or plea solicited Congress for funding

2 : to urge (something, such as one's cause) strongly

3a : to entice or lure especially into evil

b : to proposition (someone) especially as or in the character of a prostitute

4 : to try to obtain by usually urgent requests or pleas solicited donations

intransitive verb

1 : to make solicitation : importune

2 of a prostitute : to offer to have sexual relations with someone for money

Synonyms Choose the Right Synonym What object does solicit take? More Example Sentences Learn More About solicit

Choose the Right Synonym for solicit

ask, request, solicit mean to seek to obtain by making one's wants known. ask implies no more than the statement of the desire. ask a favor of a friend request implies greater formality and courtesy. requests the pleasure of your company solicit suggests a calling attention to one's wants or desires by public announcement or advertisement. a letter soliciting information

What object does solicit take?

When used as a transitive verb, solicit can take as an object either the thing being requested or the source from which the thing is requested:

Enterprising capitalists have been soliciting funds on the Internet for years, turning to a passel of sites like Kickstarter to aggregate small commitments from like-minded individuals on behalf of a new idea or worthy cause.
Dave Flessner, The Chattanooga Times Free Press, 5 Nov. 2015

County supervisors and staff spent much of the remainder of the board retreat planning for a series of focus groups that will solicit community input for the strategic plan.
Carmen Forman, The Roanoke Times, 31 Jan. 2016

They could be so nimble because they aggressively solicited a small group of doubters and broadcast their misgivings as if they were based on rigorous and systematic research.
Allan M. Brandt, The Cigarette Century, 2007

They are among the 9,500 volunteers, says the campaign, who have signed up to solicit their friends and families by hosting individual fund-raising Web pages for Obama.
Karen Tumulty, Time, 16 July 2007

Examples of solicit in a Sentence

The center is soliciting donations to help victims of the earthquake. The company is soliciting bids from various firms. The organization is soliciting new memberships. The newspaper's editors want to solicit opinions from readers. The organization is soliciting for donations. Special interest groups are soliciting Congress for funds. The prostitutes were arrested for soliciting customers. See More

Recent Examples on the Web The plan is for Mensah to solicit feedback from NBA teams about his readiness for the league, and that process remains ongoing. — Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 May 2022 Thomas-Farquharson said the selection committee will host community sessions to solicit public feedback, and wants to ensure a diverse pool of candidates. — Seamus Mcavoy, Hartford Courant, 12 Apr. 2022 Hartford Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Leslie Torres-Rodriguez participated in negotiations, and two public forums were held in June 2021 to solicit feedback, according to Stone, the plaintiff’s attorney. — Seamus Mcavoy, courant.com, 16 Mar. 2022 Some of the writers were working on explicit romance novels and didn’t want to solicit feedback from teenagers. — Brianna Dym, The Conversation, 15 Mar. 2022 Direct-to-consumer brands have typically relied on disparate sources to solicit feedback from their most engaged customers: Google Docs, Slack bases, DMs. — New York Times, 10 Mar. 2022 Boston took a step toward finding a new police commissioner Thursday evening, with more than 200 people attending a virtual community forum designed to solicit feedback about the city’s force, and what kind of individual should lead it. — BostonGlobe.com, 21 Jan. 2022 End the conversation with sincere gratitude and solicit their feedback regarding the overall conversation. — Loubna Noureddin, Forbes, 3 Jan. 2022 The school, meanwhile, launched a survey to solicit community input on a new name and scheduled an in-person forum for 4 p.m. Wednesday for parents, guardians, staff and community members who are Black, Indigenous or people of color. — Tracy Swartz, chicagotribune.com, 16 Mar. 2022 See More

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