asking

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English

Pronunciation

(General American) IPA^(key): /ˈæskɪŋ/
(Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈɑːskɪŋ/
(Northern England, Scotland) IPA^(key): /ˈaskɪŋ/
(NYC, Philadelphia) IPA^(key): /ˈeəskɪŋ/
(AAVE) IPA^(key): /ˈæksɪŋ/
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Etymology 1

From Middle English askinge, askande, from Old English āsciende, from Proto-West Germanic *aiskōndī, present participle of Proto-West Germanic *aiskōn (“to ask”), equivalent to ask +‎ -ing.

Verb

asking

present participle of ask

Adjective

asking (comparative more asking, superlative most asking)

That asks; that expresses a question or request.
- 1924, Edna Ferber, So Big‎, New York: Grosset & Dunlap, page 109:
  It was as when some great gentle dog brings in a limp and bedraggled prize dug from the yard and, laying it at one’s feet, looks up at one with soft asking eyes.
- 1942, Zora Neale Hurston, chapter 12, in Dust Tracks on a Road‎, New York: Arno Press and The New York Times, published 1969, page 235:
  […] all of them looked at each other in an asking way.

Derived terms

Etymology 2

From Middle English asking, askyng, askynge, from Old English āscung (“asking; question; inquiry”), from Proto-West Germanic *aiskungu, equivalent to ask +‎ -ing.

Noun

asking (countable and uncountable, plural askings)

The act or process of posing a question or making a request.
His asking was greeted with silence.
- 1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “An Evening Alone”, in Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. , volume I, London: Henry Colburn, , →OCLC, page 303:
  The large eyes sought his own, as if asking for help, and yet unable to do more than look their mute asking.
(rare in the singular) A request, or petition.
- 2005, Beth Miller, The Woman's Book of Resilience: 12 Qualities to Cultivate, page 125:
  After many askings, pleadings, and episodes, all leading to nothing, she finally slumped down at the side of a well in a village where she was unknown.
(in the plural) The marriage banns.

Usage notes

Normally found in plural, or in set phrases such as for the asking or time of asking.

Anagrams

Gaskin, Sikang, aksing, gaskin, kiangs

Middle English

Noun

asking

Alternative form of askynge

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