solicit

solicit
solicit (v.) early 15c., "to disturb, trouble," from M.Fr. soliciter, from L. solicitare "to disturb, rouse," from sollicitus "agitated," from sollus "whole, entire" + citus "aroused," pp. of ciere "shake, excite, set in motion" (see CITE (Cf. cite)). Related: Solicited; soliciting.
Meaning "to further (business affairs)" evolved mid-15c. from Middle French sense of "manage affairs." The sexual sense (often in reference to prostitutes) is attested from 1701, probably from a merger of the business sense and an earlier sense of "to court or beg the favor of" (a woman), attested from 1590s.

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

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  • solicit — so‧li‧cit [səˈlɪst] verb [transitive] 1. formal to ask someone for information or help: • She called meetings to solicit the views of her staff. 2. disapproving to ask someone for money: solicit something from somebody …   Financial and business terms

  • Solicit — So*lic it, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Solicited}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Soliciting}.] [F. sollicier, L. sollicitare, solicitare, atum, fr. sollicitus wholly (i. e., violently) moved; sollus whole + citus, p. p. of ciere to move, excite. See {Solemn}, {Cite} …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • solicit — so·lic·it /sə li sət/ vt 1: to make petition to solicit the court 2: to ask, induce, advise, or command (a person) to do something and esp. to commit a crime compare coerce, importune …   Law dictionary

  • solicit — [sə lis′it] vt. [ME soliciten < MFr solliciter < L sollicitare < sollicitus: see SOLICITOUS] 1. to ask or seek earnestly or pleadingly; appeal to or for [to solicit aid, to solicit members for donations] 2. to tempt or entice (someone)… …   English World dictionary

  • solicit — 1 *ask, request Analogous words: *resort, refer, apply, go, turn: *beg, entreat, beseech, implore, supplicate 2 *invite, bid, court, woo Analogous words: importune, adjure (see BEG): * …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • solicit — [v] plead for; try to sell accost, apply, approach, ask, beg, beseech, bespeak, bum, cadge, call, canvass, challenge, claim, come on to*, crave, demand, desire, drum*, drum up*, entreat, exact, go, hawk, hit on*, hit up*, hustle, implore,… …   New thesaurus

  • solicit — ► VERB (solicited, soliciting) 1) ask for or try to obtain (something) from someone. 2) ask for something from. 3) accost someone and offer one s or someone else s services as a prostitute. DERIVATIVES solicitation noun. ORI …   English terms dictionary

  • solicit — [[t]səlɪ̱sɪt[/t]] solicits, soliciting, solicited 1) VERB If you solicit money, help, support, or an opinion from someone, you ask them for it. [FORMAL] [V n] He s already solicited their support on health care reform... [V n from n] No tuition… …   English dictionary

  • solicit — UK [səˈlɪsɪt] / US verb Word forms solicit : present tense I/you/we/they solicit he/she/it solicits present participle soliciting past tense solicited past participle solicited 1) [transitive] formal to ask someone for something such as money or… …   English dictionary

  • solicit — so•lic•it [[t]səˈlɪs ɪt[/t]] v. t. 1) to try to obtain by earnest plea or application: to solicit aid[/ex] 2) to entreat; petition: to solicit the committee for funds[/ex] 3) to seek to influence or incite to action, esp. unlawful or wrong action …   From formal English to slang

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