entreaty

entreaty

English

Alternative forms

• intreaty (obsolete)

Etymology

entreat +‎ -y

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ɪnˈtɹiːti/, /ənˈtɹiːti/, /ɛnˈtɹiːti/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ɛnˈtɹiːti/, /ɪnˈtɹiːti/, /ənˈtɹiːti/
• Rhymes: -iːti

Noun

entreaty (countable and uncountable, plural entreaties)

1. The act of entreating or beseeching; a strong petition; pressing solicitation; begging.
   • 1779, William Ward, An Essay on Grammar as it may be applied to the English Language, New Edition, page 202,

     In all commands or entreaties, the ſtate commanded, or entreated, muſt be contingent; i. e. capable of being, or not being, as the command or entreaty expreſſes it.

   • 1964 October, P. F. Strawson, Intention and Convention in Speech Acts, The Philosophical Review, Volume 73, Number 4, page 444,

     We can readily imagine circumstances in which an utterance of the words "Don't go" would be correctly described not as a request or an order, but as an entreaty.

   • 2002, N. P. Unni, Makers of Indian Literature: Amaruka, Sahitya Akademi, page 32,

     The entreaties of a lover and the rejection of the heroine lend charm to the stanza.

2. (archaic) A treatment; reception; entertainment.

Related terms

• entreat

Translations

petition, solicitation, prayer

Dutch: smeekbede (nl) f, smeekgebed n Finnish: vetoomus (fi) French: supplication (fr) f German: Flehen n Greek: Ancient: δέησις f (déēsis) Hiligaynon: alumgay Hungarian: könyörgés (hu), esedezés, esdeklés (hu), kérlelés Icelandic: áskorun (is) f Irish: impí f, achainí f Kurdish: Central Kurdish: خواست‎ (ku) (xwast) Latin: obsecratio f Plautdietsch: Jebäd n Portuguese: súplica (pt) Serbo-Croatian: preklinjanje Spanish: petición (es) f, solicitud (es) f, plegaria (es) f Swedish: appell (sv) c, uppmaning (sv) c, vädjan (sv) c