VOCABULARY BUILDER
insouciance
Function: noun
Etymology: French, from in- + soucier to trouble, disturb, from Old French, from Latin sollicitare — more at SOLICIT
Date: 1799
: lighthearted unconcern : NONCHALANCE
–insouciant adjective
–insouciantly adverb
solicit
Function: verb
Etymology: Middle English, to disturb, promote, from Anglo-French solliciter, from Latin sollicitare to disturb, from sollicitus anxious, from sollus whole (from Oscan; akin to Greek holos whole) + citus, past participle of ciere to move
Date: 15th century
transitive verb
1 a : to make petition to : ENTREAT b : to approach with a request or plea <solicited Congress for funding>
2 : to urge (as one's cause) strongly
3 a : to entice or lure especially into evil b : to proposition (someone) especially as or in the character of a prostitute
4 : to try to obtain by usually urgent requests or pleas <solicited donations>
intransitive verb
1 : to make solicitation : IMPORTUNE
2 of a prostitute : to offer to have sexual relations with someone for money
synonyms see ASK
Source: The Merriam-Webster’s 11th Collegiate Dictionary