(~s, ~ing, ~ed)
Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English.
1.
If you ~ someone something, you say something to them in the form of a question because you want to know the answer.
‘How is Frank?’ he ~ed...
I ~ed him his name...
I wasn’t the only one ~ing questions...
She ~ed me if I’d enjoyed my dinner...
If Daniel ~s what happened in court we will tell him...
You will have to ~ David about that...
‘I’m afraid to ~ what it cost.’—‘Then don’t ~.’
VERB: V with quote, V n n, V n, V n wh, V wh, V n about n, V
2.
If you ~ someone to do something, you tell them that you want them to do it.
We had to ~ him to leave...
VERB: V n to-inf
3.
If you ~ to do something, you tell someone that you want to do it.
I ~ed to see the Director.
VERB: V to-inf
4.
If you ~ for something, you say that you would like it.
I decided to go to the next house and ~ for food...
VERB: V for n
5.
If you ~ for someone, you say that you would like to speak to them.
There’s a man at the gate ~ing for you.
VERB: V for n
6.
If you ~ someone’s permission, opinion, or forgiveness, you try to obtain it by putting a request to them.
Please ~ permission from whoever pays the phone bill before making your call.
VERB: V n
7.
If you ~ someone to an event or place, you invite them to go there.
Couldn’t you ~ Jon to the party?...
She ~ed me back to her house.
VERB: V n to/for n, V n adv
8.
If someone is ~ing a particular price for something, they are selling it for that price.
Mr Pantelaras was ~ing ?6,000 for his collection.
VERB: V n for n
9.
You reply ‘don’t ~ me’ when you do not know the answer to a question, usually when you are annoyed or surprised that you have been ~ed.
‘She’s got other things on her mind, wouldn’t you think?’ ‘Don’t ~ me,’ murmured Chris. ‘I’ve never met her.’
CONVENTION feelings
10.
You can say ‘may I ~’ as a formal way of ~ing a question, which shows you are annoyed or suspicious about something.
May I ~ where you’re going, sir?
PHRASE feelings
11.
You can say ‘if you ~ me’ to emphasize that you are stating your personal opinion.
He was nuts, if you ~ me.
PHRASE: PHR with cl emphasis
12.
If you say that someone is ~ing for trouble or is ~ing for it, you mean that they are behaving in a way that makes it very likely that they will get into trouble.
To go ahead with the match after such clear advice had been ~ing for trouble.
PHRASE: V inflects