Pray vs Ask - What's the difference?
pray | ask |
To petition or solicit help from a supernatural or higher being.
To humbly beg a person for aid or their time.
(religion) to communicate with God for any reason.
(obsolete) To ask earnestly for; to seek to obtain by supplication; to entreat for.
* Shakespeare
please; used to make a polite request.
* 1816 , (Jane Austen), , Volume 1 Chapter 8
* Charles Dickens, , 1841:
* Frederick Marryat, , 1845:
* 1892 , (Arthur Conan Doyle),
* 2013 , Martina Hyde, Is the pope Catholic?'' (in ''The Guardian , 20 September 2013)[http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/sep/20/is-pope-catholic-atheists-gay-people-abortion]
To request (information, or an answer to a question).
To put forward (a question) to be answered.
To interrogate or enquire of (a person).
* Bible, John ix. 21
To request or petition; usually with for .
* Bible, Matthew vii. 7
To require, demand, claim, or expect, whether by way of remuneration or return, or as a matter of necessity.
* Addison
To invite.
To publish in church for marriage; said of both the banns and the persons.
(figuratively) To take (a person's situation) as an example.
*
An act or instance of asking.
* 2005 , Laura Fredricks, The ask :
Something asked or asked for; a request.
* 2008 , Doug Fields, Duffy Robbins, Speaking to Teenagers :
An asking price.
An eft; newt.
* 1876 , S. Smiles, Scottish Naturalist :
A lizard.
As a verb pray
is to petition or solicit help from a supernatural or higher being.As an adverb pray
is please; used to make a polite request.As a noun ask is
amplitude shift keying.pray
English
Verb
(en verb)- Muslims pray in the direction of Mecca.
- I know not how to pray your patience.
Derived terms
* prayer * pray in aidAdverb
(-)- pray silence for…
- "Pray , Mr. Knightley," said Emma, who had been smiling to herself through a great part of this speech, "how do you know that Mr. Martin did not speak yesterday?"
- Pray''' don’t ask me why, '''pray''' don’t be sorry, '''pray don’t be vexed with me!
- Well, Major, pray tell us your adventures, for you have frightened us dreadfully.
- Thank you. I am sorry to have interrupted you. Pray continue your most interesting statement.
- He is a South American, so perhaps revolutionary spirit courses through Francis's veins. But what, pray , does the Catholic church want with doubt?
ask
English
Etymology 1
From (etyl) asken, from (etyl) .Verb
(en verb)- I asked her age.
- to ask a question
- I'm going to ask this lady for directions.
- He is of age; ask him: he shall speak for himself.
- to ask for a second helping at dinner
- to ask for help with homework
- Ask , and it shall be given you.
- What price are you asking for the house?
- An exigence of state asks a much longer time to conduct a design to maturity.
- Don't ask them to the wedding.
- (Fuller)
Usage notes
* This is a catenative verb that takes the to infinitive . See * Pronouncing ask as /æks/ is a common example of metathesis and a feature of some varieties of English, notably African American Vernacular English (AAVE). * The action expressed by the verb ask'' can also be expressed by the noun-verb combination ''pose a question'' (confer the parallel in German between ''fragen'' and ''eine Frage stellen ).Derived terms
* ask after * ask around * ask for * ask in * ask out * ask over * ask round * for the asking * no questions asked * outaskNoun
(en noun)- To ask for a gift is a privilege, a wonderful expression of commitment to and ownership of the organization. Getting a yes to an ask can be a rush, but asking for the gift can and should be just as rewarding.
- Communication researchers call this the foot-in-the-door syndrome. Essentially it's based on the observation that people who respond positively to a small “ask'” are more likely to respond to a bigger “' ask ” later on.
Etymology 2
From (etyl) aske, arske, from (etyl) .Alternative forms
*Noun
(en noun)- He looked at the beast. It was not an eel. It was very like an ask .
