begs; begged; begging
1
: to ask people for money or food
A homeless man begs on that corner every day.
children begging for food
children begging strangers for food
children begging food from strangers
2
a
: to ask (someone) in a very serious and emotional way for something needed or wanted very much
He begged the doctor for medicine.
He begged her for forgiveness. = He begged her to forgive him.
She begged him to read the story again.
I beg you to help them! = Help them, I beg you!
"Help them!" I begged.
—+ of(formal) I beg of you to help them!
b
: to ask for (something needed or wanted very much) in a very serious and emotional way
He got down on his knees and begged forgiveness. = He got down on his knees and begged to be forgiven.
He begged that she would forgive him.
begging a favor of someone
He's too proud to beg.
He begged for forgiveness.
3
of a dog
: to sit up on the back legs with the front legs raised
"Does your dog know any tricks?" "She knows how to beg."
4
of a thing
: to seem perfect for some purpose : to be very well suited for something
—followed by to + verb
I couldn't resist cutting some of the flowers. They were just begging to be made into a bouquet.
a scene begging to be photographed [=a scene that should be photographed]
Cite this Entry
“Beg.” Merriam-Webster.com Simple Definition, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/simple/beg. Accessed 5 Apr. 2026.
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