demand for identification
- noun
- /dɪˈmænd fɔr ˌaɪˌdɛntɪfɪˈkeɪʃən/
- The guard made a demand for identification as soon as he noticed the visitors approaching.
Examples
-
Their pilot answered repeated demands for identification.
Fiction book (1990) -
This demand for identification that opens possibilities of sanction and prohibition, even life and death, is the moment at which state power is practiced and state subjecthood is formed.
Academic text (2009) -
The security officer issued a demand for identification before allowing anyone to enter the building.
-
At the airport, there was a demand for identification from travelers to ensure safety.
Synonyms
A polite, formal asking for something to be done or given
Antonyms
How Strict
- US
Surface Forms
Morphology
demand + for + identification
The meaning 'a request to present identity documents' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'demand' (an assertive request) + 'for' (indicating the object/purpose of the request) + 'identification' (documents or evidence of identity). This is a straightforward compositional pattern found cross-linguistically and should be clear to a B1 learner who knows the constituent words.
Etymology
The phrase demand for identification comes from scenes at gates or checkpoints where a guard asks someone to show their papers, a literal demand for identification. So it now means a strong request by someone in authority for 'proof of who you are'.