quaeso

Latin

Alternative forms

quæso (Ecclesiastical Latin)
quēsō (Medieval Latin)

Etymology

Related to quaerō. Perhaps for *quaessō, desiderative formation with Proto-Indo-European *-(h₁)seti (as in vīsō).^[1]

Pronunciation

(Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [ˈkʷae̯.soː]
(modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [ˈkʷɛː.s̬o]

Verb

quaesō (present infinitive quaesere, perfect active quaesīvī or quaesiī, supine quaesītum); third conjugation

to beg or ask (for) [with ut and subjunctive]
Synonyms: exposcō, flagitō, efflagitō, exigō, rogō, ērogō, exorō, precor, petō, expetō, prehensō
- c. 190 BCE, Plautus, Bacchides 2.2.1:
  Mirumst me ut redeam te opere tanto quaesere, […]
  (please add an English translation of this quotation)
- 161 BCE, Publius Terentius Afer, Eunuchus 3.466–467:
  Quaeso hercle ut liceat, pace quod fiat tua,
  dare huic quae volumu’, convenire et conloqui.
  (please add an English translation of this quotation)
- 63 BCE, Cicero, Pro Rabirio perduellonis reo 38:
  Dixi ad id tempus quod mihi a tribuno pl. praestitutum est; a vobis peto quaesoque ut hanc meam defensionem pro amici periculo fidelem, pro rei publicae salute consularem putetis.
  (please add an English translation of this quotation)
- 27 BCE – 25 BCE, Titus Livius, Ab Urbe Condita 28.39:
  Id uti permittatis quaesumus, utique, si uobis ita uidetur, quae nobis imperatores uestri commoda tribuerunt, ea rata atque perpetua auctoritate vestra faciatis.
  (please add an English translation of this quotation)
(Old Latin, only attested in glosses) to seek
Synonyms: inquīrō, conquīrō, spectō, scrūtor, circumspiciō, quaerō, requīrō
- 2nd century CE, Sextus Pompeius Festus, edited by Karl Otfried Müller, De Significatione Verborum, published 1839, page 258; epitomized by Paul the Deacon, 8th c.:
  Quaeso, ut significat idem, quod rogo, ita quaesere ponitur ab antiquis pro quaerere, ut est apud Ennium I. II.: "Ostia munita est; idem loca navibus pulchris mundo† facit, nautisque mari quaesentibus vitam." et in Chresponte†: "ducit me uxorem liberorum sibi quaesendum gratia." et in Andromeda: "liberum quaesendum causa familiae matrem tuae."
  (please add an English translation of this quotation)
- c. 280 CE, Nonius Marcellus, De compendiosa doctrina I 61, (fragments from Plautius' Amphithryo):
  quaese adveniente morbo medicari tibi.
  (please add an English translation of this quotation)

Usage notes

The verb is classically only used in the first person present active indicative: quaesō or quaesumus. Other attested forms listed in the Oxford Latin Dictionary are:

quaesit, third person singular present active indicative
quaesitur, third person singular present passive
quaesere, present active infinitive
quaesentibus, dative or ablative plural of *quaesens, present active participle
quaesendum, inflected form of *quaesendus, future passive participle (gerundive)

Conjugation

Conjugation of quaesō (third conjugation)

indicative		singular				plural
indicative		first	second		third	first	second		third
active	present	quaesō	quaesis		quaesit	quaesumus, quaesimus	quaesitis		quaesunt
	imperfect	quaesēbam	quaesēbās		quaesēbat	quaesēbāmus	quaesēbātis		quaesēbant
	future	quaesam	quaesēs		quaeset	quaesēmus	quaesētis		quaesent
	perfect	quaesīvī, quaesiī	quaesīvistī, quaesiistī		quaesīvit, quaesiit	quaesīvimus, quaesiimus	quaesīvistis, quaesiistis		quaesīvērunt, quaesīvēre, quaesiērunt, quaesiēre
	pluperfect	quaesīveram, quaesieram	quaesīverās, quaesierās		quaesīverat, quaesierat	quaesīverāmus, quaesierāmus	quaesīverātis, quaesierātis		quaesīverant, quaesierant
	future perfect	quaesīverō, quaesierō	quaesīveris, quaesieris		quaesīverit, quaesierit	quaesīverimus, quaesierimus	quaesīveritis, quaesieritis		quaesīverint, quaesierint
passive	present	quaesor	quaeseris, quaesere		quaesitur	quaesimur	quaesiminī		quaesuntur
	imperfect	quaesēbar	quaesēbāris, quaesēbāre		quaesēbātur	quaesēbāmur	quaesēbāminī		quaesēbantur
	future	quaesar	quaesēris, quaesēre		quaesētur	quaesēmur	quaesēminī		quaesentur
	perfect	quaesītus + present active indicative of sum
	pluperfect	quaesītus + imperfect active indicative of sum
	future perfect	quaesītus + future active indicative of sum
subjunctive		singular				plural
subjunctive		first	second		third	first	second		third
active	present	quaesam	quaesās		quaesat	quaesāmus	quaesātis		quaesant
	imperfect	quaeserem	quaeserēs		quaeseret	quaeserēmus	quaeserētis		quaeserent
	perfect	quaesīverim, quaesierim	quaesīverīs, quaesierīs		quaesīverit, quaesierit	quaesīverīmus, quaesierīmus	quaesīverītis, quaesierītis		quaesīverint, quaesierint
	pluperfect	quaesīvissem, quaesiissem	quaesīvissēs, quaesiissēs		quaesīvisset, quaesiisset	quaesīvissēmus, quaesiissēmus	quaesīvissētis, quaesiissētis		quaesīvissent, quaesiissent
passive	present	quaesar	quaesāris, quaesāre		quaesātur	quaesāmur	quaesāminī		quaesantur
	imperfect	quaeserer	quaeserēris, quaeserēre		quaeserētur	quaeserēmur	quaeserēminī		quaeserentur
	perfect	quaesītus + present active subjunctive of sum
	pluperfect	quaesītus + imperfect active subjunctive of sum
imperative		singular				plural
imperative		first	second		third	first	second		third
active	present	—	quaese		—	—	quaesite		—
active	future	—	quaesitō		quaesitō	—	quaesitōte		quaesuntō
passive	present	—	quaesere		—	—	quaesiminī		—
passive	future	—	quaesitor		quaesitor	—	—		quaesuntor
non-finite forms		infinitive				participle
non-finite forms		active		passive		active		passive
present		quaesere		quaesī		quaesēns		—
future		quaesītūrum esse		quaesītum īrī		quaesītūrus		quaesendus, quaesundus
perfect		quaesīvisse, quaesiisse		quaesītum esse		—		quaesītus
future perfect		—		quaesītum fore		—		—
perfect potential		quaesītūrum fuisse		—		—		—
verbal nouns		gerund					supine
		genitive	dative		accusative	ablative	accusative		ablative
		quaesendī	quaesendō		quaesendum	quaesendō	quaesītum		quaesītū

Interjection

quaesō (plural quaesumus)

please (of one person entreating)
Near-synonyms: amābō, obsecrō

Potesne mihi succurrere, quaesō? ― Can you help me please?
- c. 206 BCE, Plautus, Miles Gloriosus 22–24:
  Curre intro atque ecferto aquam.
  — Nihil aquam moror, quiescat malo. Ne interveneris,
  quaeso, dum resipiscit.
  (please add an English translation of this quotation)

References

“quaeso”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
“quaeso”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
“quaeso”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.

^ Sihler, Andrew L. (1995), New Comparative Grammar of Greek and Latin, Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, § 457.B

[1] Sihler, Andrew L. (1995), New Comparative Grammar of Greek and Latin, Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, § 457.B

[1]