as in to beg
to make a request to (someone) in an earnest or urgent manner
parishioners ardently beseeched the local bishop not to close their beloved church
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in prayerful
asking humbly
a beseeching letter from his parents asking him to bring the grandchildren for a long overdue visit
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in pleading
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in begging
to make a request to (someone) in an earnest or urgent manner
parishioners ardently beseeched the local bishop not to close their beloved church
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of beseech
Tessa Solomon, ARTnews.com, 3 Sep. 2019
Travelers took to social media to complain about the disruption and beseech the airlines for help.
—Emma Bubola, New York Times, 21 Mar. 2025
Howard Blum, Washington Post, 26 June 2024
The same beseeching gaze gets complicated by a character like Dre—at once naïve and ruthless, in control yet entirely lost.
—Inkoo Kang, The New Yorker, 17 Mar. 2023
See All Example Sentences for beseech
Verb
Eyes abound, actually, staring out from the stars and stripes as if beseeching its audience to bear witness to this unprecedented union.
—Tessa Solomon, ARTnews.com, 3 Sep. 2019
Travelers took to social media to complain about the disruption and beseech the airlines for help.
—Emma Bubola, New York Times, 21 Mar. 2025
Adjective
This case has seen lot of what amounts to table-pounding by the defense, with a constant rat-a-tat-tat of motions, demands for discovery, followed by more beseeching requests.
—Howard Blum, Washington Post, 26 June 2024
The same beseeching gaze gets complicated by a character like Dre—at once naïve and ruthless, in control yet entirely lost.
—Inkoo Kang, The New Yorker, 17 Mar. 2023
See All Example Sentences for beseech
Recent Examples of Synonyms for beseech
Adjective
-
The cardinals gather in the Vatican for discussions and prayerful deliberation before entering the conclave, where the voting takes place.—
Josh Hammer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 Apr. 2025
-
In the Catholic Church, the faithful celebrated the sacred Triduum, the period from Holy Thursday to Easter Sunday, which marks the end of the 40-day prayerful season of Lent. Multilingual Masses and prayer services were held at churches throughout L.A., Orange County and the Inland Empire.—
Allyson Vergara,
Oc Register,
20 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Despite Abe’s pleadings, Trump pulled out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a key part of Tokyo’s plan to contain China.—
William Pesek,
Forbes.com,
29 Mar. 2025
-
Others combined grand geopolitical theory with narrowly self-interested pleading.—
Henry Farrell,
Foreign Affairs,
3 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Judge Caroline Wall granted Hanson a new trial based on the evidence but the decision was overturned by the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals over questions of jurisdiction in 2006, according to the petition.—
James Powel,
USA Today,
8 May 2025
-
Reasoning for detaining the student kept changing, judge says Shortly after his arrest, attorneys for Hoque filed suit against the Trump administration, and a habeas petition seeking to stop his transfer out of the state.—
Gloria Pazmino,
CNN Money,
8 May 2025
Noun
-
And in cases where contagious people refuse to comply with entreaties to quarantine, health officials will no longer be able to enlist help from law enforcement.—
Matthew Kelly,
Kansas City Star,
11 Apr. 2025
-
This isn’t all an entreaty for Congress and local leaders to do nothing.—
New York Daily News,
Twin Cities,
16 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
With Zero Trust, businesses must verify every access request before granting entry, ensuring that security remains a top priority at every level of digital interaction.—
William Jones,
USA Today,
1 May 2025
-
Philadelphia’s most notable sanctuary policy, an executive order signed by then-Mayor Jim Kenney in January 2016, is its refusal to have its jails honor ICE detainers or requests for release dates.—
Jennifer J. Lee,
The Conversation,
30 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
At this point, the lengthy wait times between games are inherent to their appeal (and frustration).—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
2 May 2025
-
But the appeal of midcentury modernism, complete with clean lines and expansive windows, has transcended time.—
Jackie Valley,
Christian Science Monitor,
2 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Beseech.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/beseech. Accessed 13 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share