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to call on

to call on

263 3.5
To ask someone to take action or give information, often in a meeting
  • phrasal verb
  • /kɔl ɑn/
  • Formal
: instar a
  • Health and safety organizations call on all parties to make changes.
  • call on the government
  • call on students
  • call on Congress

If said domestic terrorists are in your town, call on Parker.

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Examples

  • Immediately, we will call on every nation to disarm.

  • The Human Rights Watch is calling on all governments to ban shackling.

  • And the only fall back he could think of was to to call on God for help.

  • The people who you have to keep calling on are never going to be your best customers.

  • Rather than calling on power to limit itself, it now called on the state to share power.

    Academic text (1991)
  • And then for the study guide today, I can call on a few of you or get volunteers.

  • The teacher then calls on one or two groups to offer their responses.

    Academic text (2012)
  • We call on all great citizens of Warsaw to free our city and our nation.

  • Speaking at East Los Angeles College, Jackson called on all minorities to become environmental activists.

    Academic text (1990)
  • The charity decided to call on the community for donations to support their cause.

Synonyms

to ask
vsto call on
∞ 1.0

To request information or an answer from someone

is a formal appeal rather than a simple question to gain information
to call for
vsto call on
∞ 3.3

Ask people in public to give or do something

is a formal appeal made to a person rather than a public demand
to request
vsto call on
808 1.0

To ask for something politely or formally

is a formal appeal covering help, information, or action
to reach out
vsto call on
517 2.7

To contact someone to offer help or support

is a formal appeal rather than a friendly, informal contact or offer
to call in
vsto call on
371 3.0

Ask someone to come in to help, often an expert or worker

is a formal appeal but usually to invite someone physically to help
to approach
vsto call on
305 3.0

To speak to someone to ask for something or make an offer

is a formal appeal, not merely an initial casual contact to someone
to ask for help
vsto call on
250 1.0

To tell someone you need support with a task or problem

is a formal appeal often used in official or public contexts
to call for help
vsto call on
112 1.6

To ask loudly for help in an emergency

is a formal appeal used in organized requests, not an urgent shouted plea
to solicit
vsto call on
  • Formal
72 6.8

To ask people for something, often in a formal or persistent way

is a formal appeal but not necessarily persistent or insistent
to seek help
vsto call on
62 2.0

Ask someone for support when you face a problem

is a formal appeal rather than merely trying to obtain help oneself
to implore
vsto call on
  • Formal
46 5.3

To ask someone very seriously to do or not do something

is a formal appeal that is not necessarily desperate or frantic
to beseech
vsto call on
  • Formal
39 8.2

To ask someone earnestly for something

is a formal appeal without such intense emotional pleading
to entreat
vsto call on
  • Formal
12 8.1

Ask someone in a serious, emotional way to do something

is a formal appeal that lacks the same urgent, pleading tone
to call for support
vsto call on
8 3.1

To ask people or groups for help when you need it

is a formal appeal that also includes information requests or other actions
to inquire
vsto call on
  • Formal
6 3.7

To ask questions as part of an official investigation

is a formal appeal that also covers help or action not only information

Antonyms

∞ 1.0

Choose not to pay attention to someone or something

How Forceful

to order
∞ 1.3
to demand
923 2.7
to urge
514 3.2
to call on
  • Formal
263 3.5
to ask
∞ 1.0
to request
808 1.0

Surface Forms

call on infinitive
called on past
called on past participle
calling on present participle
calls on third person singular

Morphology

call + on

The sense 'to challenge or ask someone to explain/take responsibility' is partly related to the idea of 'call' as summoning or requesting and 'on' as directed toward someone, so a learner may get a general sense of addressing or asking someone. However, the specific pragmatic nuance of demanding justification or holding someone accountable is an extended, discourse-level meaning not directly predictable from the literal constituents without prior exposure.

Etymology

Call on comes from the idea of a leader or teacher who calls someone on in front of a group to speak or to ask for help. That's why it means 'to formally ask or appeal to someone for help, information, or action'.