supplicate

verb

sup·​pli·​cate ˈsə-plə-ˌkāt 

supplicated; supplicating

intransitive verb

: to make a humble entreaty

especially : to pray to God

transitive verb

1

: to ask humbly and earnestly of

2

: to ask for earnestly and humbly

supplication

ˌsə-plə-ˈkā-shən 

noun

Synonyms

• appeal (to)
• beg
• beseech
• besiege
• conjure
• entreat
• impetrate
• implore
• importune
• petition
• plead (to)
• pray
• solicit

Choose the Right Synonym for supplicate

beg, entreat, beseech, implore, supplicate, adjure, importune mean to ask urgently.

beg suggests earnestness or insistence in the asking.

they begged for help

entreat implies an effort to persuade or to overcome resistance.

entreated me to join them

beseech and implore imply a deeply felt anxiety.

I beseech you to have mercy

implored her not to leave him

supplicate suggests a posture of humility.

with bowed heads they supplicated their Lord

adjure implies advising as well as pleading.

we were adjured to tell the truth

importune suggests an annoying persistence in trying to break down resistance to a request.

importuning viewers for contributions

Examples of supplicate in a Sentence

the minister reminded his flock that God is a being to be obeyed and worshipped always and not just someone to be supplicated in times of trouble

Recent Examples on the Web

The windows do away with the plaintive or supplicating figures more common to Christian stained glass. —Carolina A. Miranda, Los Angeles Times, 7 Dec. 2023

In short, the PCBE happily rubber-stamped the backwards and anti-science decrees of Bush and Cheney in an effort to supplicate the deranged Christian base of the Republican party. —Kyle Munkittrick, Discover Magazine, 22 Feb. 2011

Now, finally, Farley, as chief of Ford for barely half a year, has come to supplicate before the narrative. —Dale Buss, Forbes, 1 June 2021

Committees should draw power from their accomplishments, not based on which industries need to supplicate before the gavel. —Ben Sasse, WSJ, 8 Sep. 2020

Two rows of little red devils bow at the magician’s feet, as though supplicating a supreme figure of dark and mysterious powers. —Brigit Katz, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 Mar. 2020

But while its competitors were giving grandiose speeches and supplicating at the White House, the company’s content-moderation choices stood out as an example of a social network with a moral compass. —Kevin Roose, New York Times, 30 Dec. 2019

To restore their good standing, executives must supplicate, with minimal guidance from the party-state. —Isaac Stone Fish, Twin Cities, 14 Oct. 2019

Women run many Sufi shrines across Tunisia, prepare and serve food for worshipers and the needy, while women are allowed to pray and supplicate at shrines alongside men – a rarity at Islamic sites. —Taylor Luck, The Christian Science Monitor, 8 Mar. 2018

Word History

Etymology

Middle English supplicaten "to make a request," borrowed from Latin supplicātus, past participle of supplicāre "to seek the goodwill (of a person wronged) with peace offerings, sue for forgiveness, beg humbly," derivative of supplic-, supplex "making humble entreaty, suppliant" — more at supple entry 1

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Kids Definition

supplicate

verb

sup·​pli·​cate ˈsəp-lə-ˌkāt 

supplicated; supplicating

1

: to make a humble appeal

especially : to pray to God

2

: to ask earnestly and humbly

supplication

ˌsəp-lə-ˈkā-shən 

noun