Synonyms of pray

pray

verb

ˈprā 

as in to beg

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

I pray you: tell me where they went

Synonyms & Similar Words

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

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of pray

Friends and family are praying for the safe return of a 63-year-old Long Beach woman who is still missing after going on a dirt bike ride in San Bernardino County last week. — Rina Nakano, CBS News, 13 July 2026

With various starters exhausted and praying for breaks in play to stretch muscles, Spence offered forward running, dribbling and seemed to have won a penalty that was eventually overturned through another use of VAR. — Michael Cox, New York Times, 12 July 2026

The men had prayed over Wilber the night before, asking God for a good result. — Itzel Luna, Los Angeles Times, 10 July 2026

As the rabbi prayed, the executioner secured the five leather straps. — Amy Weiss-Meyer, The Atlantic, 10 July 2026