/ preɪ; NAmE / verb , adverb
■ verb
1.
pray (to sb) (for sb/sth) to speak to God, especially to give thanks or ask for help :
[ v ]
They knelt down and prayed.
I'll pray for you.
to pray for peace
She prayed to God for an end to her sufferings.
[ v ( that )]
We prayed (that) she would recover from her illness.
[ v to inf ]
He prayed to be forgiven.
[also v speech ]
2.
pray (for sth) to hope very much that sth will happen :
[ v ]
We're praying for good weather on Saturday.
[ v that ]
I prayed that nobody would notice my mistake.
■ adverb
( old use or ironic ) used to mean 'please' when you are asking a question or telling sb to do sth :
What, pray, is the meaning of this?
Pray continue.
••
WORD ORIGIN
Middle English (in the sense ask earnestly ): from Old French preier , from late Latin precare , alteration of Latin precari entreat.