aiteō · ask

What it means

aiteō (αἰτέω) is a Greek word of the Bible that means “ask”.

Ask for.

How to say it

Approximate pronunciation. Vowels sound as in Spanish (a as in father, e as in bed, i as in machine, o as in note, u as in rule); the syllable in bold is stressed. The voice is your device's.

Its senses in the Bible

1. To tell another, or God in prayer, what one needs and hopes to receive.

From Abbott-Smith (1922) · Thayer (1889)

Word study

To ask, ask for: to request something from another, whether from God in prayer or from a person. Of the same group are αἴτημα (request) and παραιτέομαι (refuse).

• “Ask, and it will be given to you” Matthew 7:7Luke 11:9
• Asking in the name of Jesus John 14:14John 15:16
• Asking God for wisdom James 1:5James 4:2
• Asking something of a person: the body of Jesus, a promise Mark 15:43Mark 6:23
• Asking for a reason, for signs 1 Peter 3:151 Corinthians 1:22

How we translate it

Always “ask” in its forms (“ask” 38 times, “asked” 13, “asking” 11, “asks” 8). It does not change when the request is made to God or to a person; the context says which. ἐρωτάω (G2065), which is asking a question and at times requesting, is also rendered “ask”; pointing at the word shows which one the Greek uses. James 4:2-3 shows the verb in prayer: “You do not have because you do not ask”.

How it is translated

The words this translation uses for it, most frequent first.

• ask ×38
• asked ×13
• asking ×11
• asks ×8

Related words

Words of the same family, by Strong’s numbering.

Where it appears

• Matthew×14
• Mark×9
• Luke×11
• John×11
• Acts×10
• 1 Corinthians×1
• Ephesians×2
• Colossians×1
• James×5
• 1 Peter×1
• 1 John×5

• Matthew 5:42

  Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.

• Matthew 6:8

  So do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

• Matthew 7:7

  “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.

• Matthew 7:8

  For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.

• Matthew 7:9

  Or which man is there among you whose son will ask him for bread— he will not give him a stone, will he?

• Matthew 7:10

  Or if he also asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he?

• Matthew 7:11

  If then you, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

• Matthew 14:7

  so he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked.

• Matthew 18:19

  Again, truly I tell you that if two of you agree on earth about any matter that they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father who is in heaven.

• Matthew 20:20

  Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to him with her sons, bowing down and asking something of him.

• Matthew 20:22

  But Jesus answered and said, “You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink?” They say to him, “We can.”

• Matthew 21:22

  And everything that you ask for in prayer, believing, you will receive.”

• Matthew 27:20

  But the high priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas and to destroy Jesus.

• Matthew 27:58

  This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him.

• Mark 6:22

  And when the daughter of Herodias herself came in and danced, she pleased Herod and those reclining with him. And the king said to the girl, “Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you.”

• Mark 6:23

  And he swore to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half of my kingdom.”

• Mark 6:24

  And going out, she said to her mother, “What shall I ask for?” And she said, “The head of John the Immerser.”

• Mark 6:25

  And at once coming in with haste to the king, she asked, saying, “I want you to give me right now, on a platter, the head of John the Immerser.”

• Mark 10:35

  And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, come up to him, saying to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask you.”

• Mark 10:38

  But Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I drink, or be immersed with the immersion with which I am immersed?”

• Mark 11:24

  Therefore I tell you, everything that you pray and ask for, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

• Mark 15:8

  And the crowd came up and began to ask him to do as he used to do for them.

• Mark 15:43

  Joseph of Arimathea, a respected member of the council, who was also himself waiting for the kingdom of God, came and took courage and went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.

• Luke 1:63

  And asking for a writing tablet, he wrote, saying, “John is his name.” And they were all amazed.

• Luke 6:30

  Give to everyone who asks you, and from the one who takes away what is yours, do not demand it back.

• Luke 11:9

  And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.

• Luke 11:10

  For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.

• Luke 11:11

  And which of you fathers, if his son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead of a fish?

• Luke 11:12

  Or if he also asks for an egg, will he give him a scorpion?

• Luke 11:13

  So if you, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Father who is from heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

• Luke 12:48

  But the one who did not know, and did things deserving of blows, will be beaten with few blows. And from everyone to whom much was given, much will be required from him; and to whom they entrusted much, they will ask of him even more.

• Luke 23:23

  But they were insistent with loud voices, asking for him to be crucified; and their voices were prevailing.

• Luke 23:25

  and he released the one who had been thrown into prison for uprising and murder, whom they were asking for, but Jesus he handed over to their will.

• Luke 23:52

  This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.

• John 4:9

  So the Samaritan woman says to him, “How is it that you, being a Jew, ask for a drink from me, who am a Samaritan woman?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.)

• John 4:10

  Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who is saying to you, ‘Give me something to drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.”

• John 11:22

  And even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you.”

• John 14:13

  And whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

• John 14:14

  If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.

• John 15:7

  If you remain in me, and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

And 30 more times.