Synonyms of beg

beg

verb

ˈbeg 

as in to petition

to make a request to (someone) in an earnest or urgent manner

she begged her husband to give up extreme skiing

Synonyms & Similar Words

• petition
• ask
• pray
• implore
• beseech
• entreat
• appeal (to)
• require
• plead (to)
• conjure
• supplicate
• importune
• solicit
• request
• call on
• besiege
• invoke
• impetrate
• compel
• desire
• insist
• coerce
• demand
• cadge
• force
• bludge
• sponge
• claim
• mooch
• command

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• suggest
• imply
• please
• hint
• satisfy
• oblige
• appease
• intimate
• gratify
• placate
• pacify
• conciliate
• comfort
• content
• console
• quiet
• mollify

Synonym Chooser

How is the word beg distinct from other similar verbs?

Some common synonyms of beg are adjure, beseech, entreat, implore, importune, and supplicate. While all these words mean "to ask urgently," beg suggests earnestness or insistence in the asking.

they begged for help

Where would adjure be a reasonable alternative to beg?

Although the words adjure and beg have much in common, adjure implies advising as well as pleading.

we were adjured to tell the truth

How are the words beseech and implore related as synonyms of beg?

Both beseech and implore imply a deeply felt anxiety.

I beseech you to have mercy

implored her not to leave him

In what contexts can entreat take the place of beg?

The synonyms entreat and beg are sometimes interchangeable, but entreat implies an effort to persuade or to overcome resistance.

entreated me to join them

When is it sensible to use importune instead of beg?

In some situations, the words importune and beg are roughly equivalent. However, importune suggests an annoying persistence in trying to break down resistance to a request.

importuning viewers for contributions

When might supplicate be a better fit than beg?

While the synonyms supplicate and beg are close in meaning, supplicate suggests a posture of humility.

with bowed heads they supplicated their Lord

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of beg

Nearly two decades into her career, Courtney Marie Andrews remains a troubadour of singular sincerity, more interested in listening to the world than begging the world to listen. —Lily Goldberg, Pitchfork, 20 Jan. 2026

This is the exact course that many fans had been begging the Bulls to take for years — tank a little, focus on the young guys, build from the bottom up. —Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 18 Jan. 2026

That group did just that Saturday against Allen, one of the game’s great players and great late-game magicians, and did it in a style that Payton had been begging for for weeks. —Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 18 Jan. 2026

This begs the question as to whether Wrexham might actually be better served bowing out in the fourth round, even if defeat at home to Ipswich on February 14 wouldn’t exactly be ideal preparation for the following weekend when the two teams meet again in the league. —Richard Sutcliffe, New York Times, 16 Jan. 2026