Adjacent Words

Importune definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

IMPORTU'NE, v.t. [L. importunus; in and porto, to bear on.]
To request with urgency; to press with solicitation; to urge with frequent or unceasing application.
Their ministers and residents here have perpetually importuned the court with unreasonable demands.
IMPORTU'NE, a. [L. importunus. Formerly accented on the second syllable.]
1. Pressing in request; urgent; troublesome by frequent demands; vexatious; unreasonable.
2. Unseasonable.
[This word is obsolete; being superseded by importunate, unless perhaps in poetry.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

v
1: beg persistently and urgently; "I importune you to help them" [syn: importune, insist]

Merriam Webster's

I. adjective Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French importun, from Latin importunus, from in- + -portunus (as in opportunus fit) — more at opportune Date: 15th century importunate • importunely adverb II. verb (-tuned; -tuning) Date: 1530 transitive verb 1. a. to press or urge with troublesome persistence b. archaic to request or beg for urgently 2. annoy, trouble intransitive verb to beg, urge, or solicit persistently or troublesomely Synonyms: see beg • importuner noun

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v.tr. 1 solicit (a person) pressingly. 2 solicit for an immoral purpose. Etymology: F importuner or med.L importunari (as IMPORTUNATE)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Importune Im`por*tune", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Importuned; p. pr. & vb. n. Importuning.] [From Importune, a.: cf. F. importuner.] 1. To request or solicit, with urgency; to press with frequent, unreasonable, or troublesome application or pertinacity; hence, to tease; to irritate; to worry. Their ministers and residents here have perpetually importuned the court with unreasonable demands. --Swift. 2. To import; to signify. [Obs.] ``It importunes death.'' --Spenser.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Importune Im`por*tune", v. i. To require; to demand. [Obs.] We shall write to you, As time and our concernings shall importune. --Shak.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(importunes, importuning, importuned) If someone importunes another person, they ask them for something or ask them to do something, in an annoying way. (FORMAL) One can no longer walk the streets without seeing beggars importuning passers by. = pester VERB: V n, also V n to-inf, V n for n [disapproval]

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

v. a. Press (by entreaty), urge (by repeated requests), beset, entreat, dun, solicit earnestly.

Moby Thesaurus

advocate, aggravating, annoying, appeal, apply pressure, approach, beg, beseech, beset, besiege, blandish, bothering, bothersome, bug, buttonhole, cajole, call on, call upon, coax, crave, disturbing, dun, entreat, exasperating, exert pressure, exhort, galling, harassing, high-pressure, implore, importunate, insist, insist upon, invoke, irking, irksome, irritating, jawbone, lobby, make a pass, make advances, make an overture, nag, nag at, overture, pesky, pester, pestering, pestiferous, pestilent, pestilential, plague, plaguesome, plaguey, plaguing, plead, plead with, ply, pray, press, pressure, proposition, provoking, push, recommend, soft-soap, solicit, supplicate, sweet-talk, tease, teasing, throw a pass, tiresome, tormenting, troublesome, troubling, urge, vexatious, vexing, wearisome, wheedle, work on, worrisome, worrying