pleasev.

Brit.

/pliːz/, U.S.

/pliz/

Forms:

α. Middle English place (in a late copy), Middle English pleasse, Middle English plece, Middle English pleese, Middle English pleise, Middle English ples, Middle English pleyze, Middle English pleyzse, Middle English–1500s plaise, Middle English–1500s playse, Middle English–1500s pleace, Middle English–1500s plesse, Middle English–1500s pleyse, Middle English–1600s pleas, Middle English–1700s plese, Middle English– please, 1500s plees, 1500s plesase (transmission error), 1500s plise, 1500s–1600s plase; English regional 1800s– plaise, 1800s– plaize, 1800s– plase, 1800s– plaze, 1800s– pleease (northern); U.S. regional (chiefly in African-American usage) 1800s pleaged (past participle), 1900s– plead (past participle); Scottish pre-1700 place, pre-1700 plais, pre-1700 plaize, pre-1700 plase, pre-1700 plays, pre-1700 pleace, pre-1700 pleais, pre-1700 pleas, pre-1700 plece, pre-1700 pleice, pre-1700 pleise, pre-1700 pleiss, pre-1700 pleisse, pre-1700 pleisz, pre-1700 ples, pre-1700 plese, pre-1700 pless, pre-1700 plesse, pre-1700 pleys, pre-1700 pleyse, pre-1700 pleyss, pre-1700 pleysse, pre-1700 plis, pre-1700 1700s pleis, pre-1700 1700s– please, pre-1700 1900s– plaise, 1800s pleese; Irish English (northern) 1800s– plase, 1900s– pleasche, 1900s– pleash; N.E.D. (1907) also records forms Middle English plase, Middle English pleece, Middle English pleys.

β. late Middle English–1500s ple.

Origin: A borrowing from French. Etymons: French plais-, pleare, plaire; French plaiser, plaisir.

Etymology: Partly < Anglo-Norman plais-, plas-, pleas-, plees-, pleis-, ples- and Middle French plais-, stem (of plural present indicative and subjunctive forms) of Anglo-Norman pleare, pleer, pleere, pleire, plere, plerre and Middle French plaire (beginning of the 12th cent. in Anglo-Norman; French plaire ; further origin uncertain: see below), and partly < Anglo-Norman plaiser, plaisir, plasir, pleasere, pleiser, pleisir, pleissir, pleser, plesir and Middle French (rare) plaisir (early 13th cent. in Anglo-Norman; < classical Latin placēre to be pleasing or agreeable: see placet int. and n.). French plaire is perhaps < an unattested post-classical Latin form *plácĕre , variant of classical Latin placēre (see placet int. and n.), or is perhaps an alteration of plaiser, plaisir, etc., by analogy with verbs such as faire, traire, etc. Compare Old Occitan plazer, plaire, Catalan †plaer, †plaser (both 12th cent.; now plaure), Spanish placer (a1207), Portuguese prazer (1152), Italian piacere (first half of the 13th cent. in this form; earlier in 3rd person plural indicative plaçono (end of the 12th cent.)).In Middle English prefixed and unprefixed forms of the past participle are attested (see y- prefix). The β. forms apparently result from reanalysis of the present subjunctive as if ending in the 3rd person singular morpheme. With constructions at senses 1, 2a, and 3a compare uses of classical Latin placēre with dative, and Middle French, French plaire à with indirect object. With sense 3b(a) compare classical Latin si tibi (vobis, etc.) placet , Middle French, French s'il vous plaît (second half of the 12th cent. in Old French as s'il vus plaist ), and similar constructions in other European languages; these would appear also to have acted as a semantic model for uses at sense 6c(a). The uses in branch II. and the passive use in sense 4 are not paralleled in French. The development of the ‘inverted’ use of please in branch II. is noteworthy: it is probably not due to confusion resulting from the loss of case distinctions, but is more plausibly explained as resulting from the reassignment of the sentence element expressing the ‘experiencer’ role to the subject function (compare the development of the partly synonymous verb like v.¹, which, however, did not develop passive uses parallel to sense 4, but developed the ‘inverted’ use more extensively). See further C. L. Allen Case Marking & Reanalysis(1995) vii.

I. With a person as object: to satisfy, be agreeable to.

†1.

a. intransitive. To be agreeable; to give pleasure or satisfaction. With till, to, with. Obsolete.

ΚΠ

c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) xviii. 15 (MED) Þe wordes of my mouþe shul ben þat hii plesen [L. complaceant] to þe.

a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) 4729 In what maner þat i miȝt mest with þe plece.

c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) 1 Thess. iv. 1 As ȝe han resceyued of vs how it bihoueth ȝou for to go and plese to God.

?a1425 (c1400) Mandeville's Trav. (Titus C.xvi) (1919) 83 Ȝif this matiere plese to ony worthi man..he may telle it.

1489 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (Adv.) i. 198 That Scottis-men mycht do na thing That euer mycht pleys to thar liking.

c1520 M. Nisbet New Test. in Scots (1903) II. 1 Cor. x. 33 As I be althingis pleise to almen.

a1530 (c1425) Andrew of Wyntoun Oryg. Cron. Scotl. (Royal) viii. 1590 That plesyd till [a1500 Nero pleyssit to] this Kyng Edward welle.

b. intransitive. to please to oneself and variants: to take pleasure, be well pleased. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > emotion > pleasure > take pleasure or enjoy oneself [verb (reflexive)]

likeOE

joyc1260

litea1300

to please to oneselfa1382

relish1580

contentc1600

complease1604

pleasurea1640

enjoy1653

a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(1)) (1850) Isa. xlii. 1 Al plesede to hym in hym my soule [a1425 L.V. my soule pleside to it silf in hym; L. complacuit sibi in illo anima mea].

a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) Wisd. vi. 3 Ȝeueþ eres, ȝee þat holden togidere multitudes & plesen to ȝou [a1425 L.V. plesen ȝou; L. placetis vobis] in cumpanyes of naciouns.

a. transitive. To be agreeable to; to gratify, satisfy, delight.The verb here was perhaps originally intransitive with indirect object, but came to be treated as transitive, with a passive voice (see sense 4).

ΘΚΠ

the mind > emotion > pleasure > contentment or satisfaction > be content or satisfied with [verb (transitive)] > content or satisfy

paya1200

apaya1250

pleasec1350

assythc1375

savourc1390

filsen?a1425

satisfy?a1425

sufficec1430

satify1434

applease1470

content1477

assethe1481

appetite1509

syth1513

satisfice?1531

gratify1569

gree1570

explenish1573

promerit1582

accommodate1624

placentiate1694

c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) xxxiv. 17 Y pleised neȝbur as our broþer [L. Quasi proximum, et quasi fratrem nostrum, sic complacebam].

a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) 188 Bliþe was eche a barn ho best miȝt him plese.

a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add.) f. 70^v A norse..plesiþ [L. demulcet] þe childe with whistlinge & songe.

?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) ii. 68 Þe meyne in alle þing plesed him next þe kyng.

a1425 Comm. in H. R. Bramley Rolle's Psalter (1884) 1 (MED) The psalmes ben ful swete To hem that..lvsten god to plese or paye.

?1472 E. Paston in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 635 Yt is nomore but þat he can not plese alle partys.

1480 Table Prouffytable Lernynge (Caxton) (1964) 4 Mais sil vous plaist aulcune chose Que ie puisse fayre. But if you plaise ony thyng That I may doo.

a1500 (?a1390) J. Mirk Festial (Gough) (1905) 230 (MED) Hit ys ynpossybull for any mon forto ples God wythout faythe.

1568 A. Scott Poems (1896) x. 38 Is no^t in erd I cure, Bot pleiss my lady pure.

a1593 C. Marlowe Edward II (1594) sig. G4 Madam, returne to England, And please my father well.

1611 Bible (King James) Esther ii. 4 The thing pleased the king, and he did so.

1669 S. Sturmy Mariners Mag. a Never any man living, in his writing, could please the phansie of all men.

1748 T. Smollett Roderick Random II. xl. 34 But she was resolved to please her eye, if she should plague her heart.

1789 A. Young Jrnl. 23 Aug. in Trav. France (1792) i. 171 Mons. Faujas pleases me much; the liveliness, vivacity, phlogiston of his character, do not run into pertness, foppery, or affectation.

1811 J. Austen Sense & Sensibility II. xi. 214 There was something in her stile of beauty, to please them [i.e. men] particularly.

1844 J. Ruskin Jrnl. 30 Apr. in Diaries 1835–47 (1956) 274 Gastineau came up and don't like mine: can't please everybody.

1884 Harper's Mag. May 969/2 A newspaper..should..be like the most entertaining visitor who would please men and women alike.

1940 J. Buchan Memory Hold-the-Door iii. 72 His boyish charm and gallantry pleased people.

1995 Midwest Living Feb. 16/4 New attractions also aim to please families and other visitors who won't settle simply for 24-hour gaming.

b. intransitive. To be pleasing.Perhaps originally a use of sense 1a without prepositional phrase.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > emotion > pleasure > quality of being pleasant or pleasurable > be pleasant or enjoyable [verb (intransitive)]

likeeOE

pleasea1393

savoura1400

payc1400

savourc1440

relish1594

smile1594

a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) vii. 2172 (MED) Thei that cunnen plese and glose Ben..the norrices Unto the fostringe of the vices.

a1425 (a1382) Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Corpus Oxf.) (1850) 1 Kings xviii. 26 The word pleside in the eyen of Dauyd.

1484 W. Caxton tr. Subtyl Historyes & Fables Esope i. xvii The vnwyse displeseth there where as he supposeth to please.

c1530 Polit., Relig., & Love Poems (1866) 31 Pleace with thi dedys rathir than with thy clothis.

1568 in W. T. Ritchie Bannatyne MS f. 132 Allyk sall pleis eis or diseis.

1681 J. Dryden Absalom & Achitophel 23 Two names, that always cheat and always please.

1697 R. Blackmore King Arthur iii. 71 This Prince those Subjects only will prefer, Who always please, or necessary are.

1747 S. Johnson Prol. Opening of Theatre 3 The Drama's Laws, the Drama's Patrons give, For we that live to please, must please to live.

1796 W. Gilbert Hurricane ii. 33 I shall always please.

a1849 H. Coleridge Ess. & Marginalia (1851) I. 356 Men and writers, if they please at all, must please by doing their best in their own way.

1877 F. J. Furnivall Leopold Shakspere Introd. 120 The revived doctrine that the main object of poetry is to please, seems to me too contemptible to be discusst.

1929 Amer. Mercury Jan. 32/1 Eager to please, the young statesman threw into the hopper..a bill providing for absolute Prohibition, excepting only for the communion service.

1997 Daily Tel. 29 Jan. 17/2 She wants to please, but she is quite a disturbing person to meet because she has two very distinct and mercurially changing faces.

c. transitive (reflexive). To gratify or satisfy oneself; (colloquial, frequently with dismissive force) to do as one likes, have one's own way.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > emotion > pleasure > contentment or satisfaction > be contented [verb (reflexive)] > make oneself contented or satisfied

wreak1377

suffice1484

please1533

satisfy1542

1533 T. More Debellacyon Salem & Bizance ii. xx. f. cxxxviii^v Two places, wherin I perceyue he pleaseth hym selfe ryght well.

c1595 Countess of Pembroke Psalme xlix. 37 in Coll. Wks. (1998) II. 47 Please theie them selues, and think at happiest staie Who please them selues.

a1616 W. Shakespeare As you like It (1623) v. iv. 73 If I sent him word..it [sc. his beard] was not well cut, he wold send me word he cut it to please himselfe: this is call'd the quip modest.

1620 T. Granger Syntagma Logicum sig. a3 I purposed not so much to please my selfe, and a few, as to be beneficiall.

1691 A. Wood Athenæ Oxonienses I. 893 He..delighted to please himself in a juvenile and bantring way.

1721 C. Cibber Refusal iii. 41 She may please herself.

1781 S. Johnson Pope in Pref. Wks. Eng. Poets VII. 166 Warburton..had, in the early part of his life, pleased himself with the notice of inferior wits.

1810 J. Poole Hamlet Travestied iii. iv. 58 Shall we quiz him?—Please yourself.

1855 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. III. xiii. 334 The clans which took no part in the insurrection..pleased themselves with the hope that they should easily make their peace with the conquerors.

1881 J. H. Shorthouse John Inglesant (1905) xxvii. 313 The visitor could please himself as to the strength and nature of his beverage.

1926 J. Devanny Butcher Shop xxi. 268 Miette had, before going very far, suggested that she had better go back as her shoes were wet. And the man had absently remarked: ‘Oh, well, we haven't far to go, but please yourself.’

1960 S. Unwin Truth about Publisher xxi. 370 In Germany people did what they were told; in England people pleased themselves.

1993 P. Mayle Hotel Pastis i. 6 Please yourself, cock.

3. With a proposition expressed by an infinitive or that-clause or understood: to seem good to one; to be one's will or pleasure.Equivalent in sense to ‘will’, ‘choose’, ‘think proper’, etc., with the person as subject: cf. sense 4b. Formerly usual in deferential phrases of address or request, as and (an, if) it please (to) you, will it please you (your honour, etc.). please the pigs: see pig n.¹ Phrases 8.

†a. intransitive. With non-referential it as subject. With to. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > emotion > pleasure > quality of being pleasant or pleasurable > please or give pleasure to [verb (transitive)]

i-quemec893

ywortheOE

queemeOE

likeOE

paya1200

gamec1225

lustc1230

apaya1250

savoura1300

feastc1300

comfort1303

glew1303

pleasec1350

ticklec1386

feedc1400

agreea1413

agreec1425

emplessc1450

gree1468

applease1470

complaire1477

enjoy1485

warm1526

to claw the ears1549

content1552

pleasure1556

oblect?1567

relish1567

gratify1569

sweeta1575

promerit1582

tinkle1582

tastea1586

aggrate1590

gratulatea1592

greeta1592

grace1595

arride1600

complease1604

honey1604

agrade1611

oblectate1611

oblige1652

placentiate1694

flatter1695

to shine up to1882

fancy-

the mind > will > wish or inclination > be inclined [verb (intransitive)] > do as one wishes

pleasec1350

choosec1400

to be at one's choice1569

swinge1613

c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) xxxix. 18 (MED) Plese it, Lorde, to þe [L. Complaceat tibi Domine], þat þou defende me.

a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) Esther i. 19 If it plese to þee [L. si tibi placet], go þer out a maundement.

?1433 W. Dallyng Petition to Parl. in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) II. 508 Plese it to Commines of the present Parlement that William Paston..takyth diuerse fees [etc.].

?c1450 tr. Bk. Knight of La Tour Landry (1906) 90 (MED) But she was paied, as it plesed to God, atte the laste.

c1460 in A. Clark Eng. Reg. Oseney Abbey (1907) 74 (MED) If in oony tyme hit will please to þe forsaide Abbot and chanons..to oure Mille Come, of no Sute Dewte..we shall axe.

b. transitive. With the person in the ‘experiencer’ role as object.

(a) With non-referential it as subject. Formerly also so please it you, please it you: (so) may it be agreeable to you, if it be your desire (now archaic).Frequently with bare infinitive in the 16–17th centuries.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > will > wish or inclination > be one's will [phrase]

please?1406

the mind > attention and judgement > importance > [interjection] > emphasizing a following statement

whatOE

loOE

lookOE

aha1225

loura1225

halec1300

why1545

if (also and) you pleasec1563

ahem1606

I say1613

ahey1696

sithee1828

please it you1881

lookit1907

?1406 T. Hoccleve La Mâle Règle 416 in E. P. Hammond Eng. Verse between Chaucer & Surrey (1927) 66/1 If it thee lyke & plese.

1423 Rolls of Parl. IV. 249/1 Please it your full wyse discretions to consider the matier above said.

?a1425 tr. Catherine of Siena Orcherd of Syon (Harl.) (1966) 237 (MED) It plesiþ myche God whanne a man axiþ and preieth wiþ perseueraunce.

1478 Paston Lett. (1904) V. 316 Withouth it ple yow to send oon of yowr men to me.

1503 Rolls of Parl. VI. 553/1 Pleas it nowe your Highnesse..to ordeyn.

1509 in J. Gairdner Historia Regis Henrici Septimi (1858) 433 And hyt ple your grace..that [etc.].

a1593 C. Marlowe Tragicall Hist. Faustus (1616) sig. E Please it your holinesse, I thinke it be some Ghost.

1597 W. Shakespeare Richard III iv. iv. 418 Please it your Maiestie to giue me leaue, Ile muster vp my friendes.

1606 Returne from Pernassus ii. vi. sig. D3^v Not a word more Sir, an't please you.

1611 Bible (King James) Acts xv. 34 It pleased Silas to abide there still.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Merry Wives of Windsor (1623) i. i. 246 Wil't please your worship to come in, Sir?

a1616 W. Shakespeare Two Gentlemen of Verona (1623) i. ii. 140 Come, come, wilt please you goe.

1646 Hamilton Papers (1880) 117 May it please your Grace.

1712 W. Fleetwood 4 Serm. (ESTC T114582) Pref. p. viii That precious Life, had it pleased God to have prolonged it to the usual Space.

1774 J. Wesley Let. 12 Apr. (1931) VI. 78 When it pleases God to take any of His children to Himself..He usually sends a gracious rain upon the survivors.

1822 Baroness Bunsen in A. J. C. Hare Life & Lett. Baroness Bunsen (1879) I. vi. 196 Wherefore he follows this plan it has never pleased him to explain.

1881 ‘M. Twain’ Prince & Pauper xii. 138 With never a by-your-leave or so-please-it-you, or anything of the sort.

1967 T. W. Blackburn Good Day to Die xv. 107 It pleased him that this leathern lodge..did indeed feel like home.

1985 M. Atwood Handmaid's Tale (1988) iv. viii. 69 It pleases me to think I'm communing with her, this unknown woman.

(b) Without it as subject. Formerly esp. in please you, so please you: may it (so) be agreeable to you (now archaic). Now usually in please God, please Heaven, etc.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > will > wish or inclination > wish or be disposed or inclined [verb]

willeOE

listc1200

to be of (also in) (a) minda1325

to will well that1340

likea1375

to find in one's hearta1393

to have a minda1400

pleasec1450

set1470

to have a mind1530

care1560

fadge1592

please1611

choose1622

offer1639

to feel like1808

c1450 Alphabet of Tales (1904) I. 72 (MED) Me plesis not at nowder of þies sulde be sent þis message.

?a1475 Ludus Coventriae (1922) 54 (MED) Whan þou art sett at þe nale and hast þi langage as plesyth þe, loke þin othis be non or smale.

1569 R. Grafton Chron. II. 350 Pleaseth you also to remember how many Lords noble men, & good commons..died in thoss warres.

a1616 W. Shakespeare As you like It (1623) iv. iii. 38 Ros. Will you heare the letter? Sil. So please you, for I neuer heard it yet.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Cymbeline (1623) ii. ii. 1 Imo. Who's there? My woman: Helene? Lady. Please you Madam.

1738 J. Swift Compl. Coll. Genteel Conversat. 69 An please your Honour, there's a Man below wants to speak to you.

1794 A. Radcliffe Myst. of Udolpho I. vi. 169 ‘Please your honour, he may be a robber,’ said Michael.

1808 W. Scott Marmion i. xxviii. 49 So please you, gentle youth, to call This Palmer to the castle hall.

1834 E. Bulwer-Lytton Last Days of Pompeii I. ii. ii. 197 To-morrow night, please the gods, we will have then a snug carousel.

1886 A. Edwardes Playwright's Daughter xvi. 181 You will do as I tell you, and, please God, shall come through without a singe.

1906 J. M. Synge Let. 27 Dec. (1971) 81 Please Heaven we shall have a few years of divine love and life together.

1959 A. Wesker Chicken Soup with Barley in E. M. Browne New Eng. Dramatists I. i. 222 Please God he'll be a hotel manager one day.

1996 H. K. Smith Events leading up to my Death liii. 249 But not now, please God, never now.

a. transitive (in passive). With prepositional phrase or that-clause as complement: to be gratified, delighted, or agreeably satisfied.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > emotion > pleasure > be pleased [verb (intransitive)]

pleasea1382

agree?a1500

like1780

a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1959) Exod. xxxii. 14 Þe lord was pleisid [L. placatus], þat he dyde not þe harme þat he speke aȝeinst his puple.

a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1882) VIII. 149 (MED) Þe pepil was i-plesed [L. placatus] wiþ his faire speche.

c1426 J. Audelay Poems (1931) 3 (MED) Kepe ȝoure wedlocke..God..Þer-with..is boþ plesud and payd.

c1475 Brome Abraham & Isaac in N. Davis Non-Cycle Plays & Fragm. (1970) 51 I had as leve myselffe to dey, Yffe God wyll be plecyd wyth my dede.

1535 Bible (Coverdale) Psalms l[i]. 19 Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifice of rightuousnesse.

1599 E. Sandys Europæ Speculum (1632) 123 The wisest men have been..pleased, that losers should have their words.

1653 D. Osbourne Let. 7 Apr. (1888) 66 I was not pleased that you should..go lie upon the cold ground.

1718 Free-thinker No. 51. 2 Every One is pleased with such an Occasion of shewing the Superiority of his Understanding.

1766 O. Goldsmith Vicar of Wakefield I. ix. 87 Well pleased, that my little ones were kept up beyond the usual time.

1782 F. Burney Cecilia IV. viii. vii. 281 I am not quite pleased with your looks.

1845 C. Darwin Let. 25 Aug. in Corr. (1987) III. 242 I was much pleased by Lindley picking out my Extinction paragraphs & giving them uncurtailed.

1860 J. A. Symonds Let. 15 June (1967) I. 245 I am so glad you are pleased about the Newdigate.

1927 Observer 12 June 10/3 The best recruiter is the man who is pleased with his ‘crush’.

1954 H. Gaitskell in N.Y. Times Mag. 27 June People in Britain are pleased that Sir Winston Churchill and Anthony Eden are meeting the President.

1992 H. Owen Littlejohn vi. 72 Daddy wasn't any too pleased about it, but he might of bought it if Momma hadn't cut such a shine.

b. transitive (in passive). With infinitive. Originally: to be gratified or satisfied. Subsequently: to have the will or desire; to have the inclination or disposition; (also) to think proper, choose, or be so obliging as to do something. Now frequently in pleased to meet you: a formula used in reply to an introduction. Cf. sense 6b.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > courtesy > courteous act or expression > courteous formulae [phrase] > reply to introduction

pleased to meet youa1425

the mind > will > wish or inclination > wish or be disposed or inclined [verb]

willeOE

listc1200

to be of (also in) (a) minda1325

to will well that1340

likea1375

to find in one's hearta1393

to have a minda1400

pleasec1450

set1470

to have a mind1530

care1560

fadge1592

please1611

choose1622

offer1639

to feel like1808

the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > courtesy > be courteous [verb (intransitive)] > be so obliging as to do something

please1611

the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > kindness > show kindness [verb (intransitive)] > be so kind as to do something

please1611

a1425 (?a1400) G. Chaucer Romaunt Rose (Hunterian) 3008 I was wel plesed..To se the botoun fair and swote So freshe spronge out of the rote.

1570 in J. Cranstoun Satirical Poems Reformation (1891) I. 93 God wes pleist to pas him out of pyne.

1589 R. Lane in R. Hakluyt Princ. Navigations iii. 747 I would resolue my selfe, with my companie to goe into England in that Fleete, and accordingly to make request to the Generall in all our names, that he would bee pleased to giue vs present passage with him.

1611 M. Smith in Bible (King James) Transl. Pref. 10 The tongues wherein God was pleased to speake to his Church by his Prophets and Apostles.

a1616 W. Shakespeare King John (1623) ii. i. 246 Be pleased then To pay that dutie which you truly owe.

a1666 R. Blair Life (1848) (modernized text) ii. 49 The Lord is pleased by trials to fine the faith of his servants.

1680 Sir C. Lyttelton in E. M. Thompson Corr. Family of Hatton (1878) I. 239 He was pleased to tell mee the King sayd it was for his service.

1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 110 Pleas'd I am, no beaten Road to take.

1712 T. Hearne Remarks & Coll. (1889) III. 424 He was pleas'd to mention the Controversy between D^r. Kennett and me.

1759 R. Jackson Hist. Rev. Pennsylvania 268 The Governor is pleased to doubt our having such Letters as we mentioned.

1826 B. Disraeli Vivian Grey I. i. vi. 43 My dear sir, you are pleased to be amusing this morning.

1871 E. A. Freeman Hist. Norman Conquest IV. xvii. 67 A noble and powerful city, inhabited by rich, daring, and he is pleased to add faithless, citizens.

1916 ‘Taffrail’ Pincher Martin vii. 102 Pleased ter meet yer, miss.

1934 A. Christie Murder on Orient Express ii. iv. 97 Mrs. Hubbard murmured: ‘Pleased to meet you, I'm sure.’

1977 Bangladesh Times 20 Jan. 1 (advt.) The BTMC Management has been pleased to decide that the Mill gate sale and maximum retail price will be only 10%..above the ex-mill price.

2000 New Scientist 4 Nov. 85/2 (advt.) We are pleased to announce that an exciting opportunity at the Group Leader level has recently arisen.

†a. transitive. To appease, placate, pacify; spec. to propitiate (God). Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

society > society and the community > dissent > absence of dissension or peace > bringing about concord or peace > bring to peace (strife or discord) [verb (transitive)] > appease or propitiate

soft?c1225

queema1325

appeasec1374

pleasea1382

softena1382

mollifya1450

pacifya1500

apeace1523

temper1525

mitigatea1535

qualify?c1550

thaw1582

propitiate1583

aslake1590

smooth1608

to lay down1629

addulce1655

sweeten1657

acquiesce1659

gentle1663

palliate1678

placate1678

conciliate1782

to pour oil on the waters (also on troubled waters)1847

square1859

square1945

a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1961) Lev. i. 3 Amaale wiþoute wem he shal offre..to plese to hym þe lord [a1425 L.V. to make the Lord plesid to hym, L. ad placandum sibi dominum].

a1400 (c1303) R. Mannyng Handlyng Synne (Harl.) 2004 (MED) Þese wymmen..plesyd god with lytyl penaunce.

a1450 Pater Noster Richard Ermyte (Westm. Sch. 3) (1967) 50 (MED) Werkis of penaunce vnskilfully wrouȝt plesen noȝt God.

1563 2nd Tome Homelyes For Gd. Friday ii, in J. Griffiths Two Bks. Homilies (1859) ii. 420 He could do nothing that might please God's wrath.

1565–73 T. Cooper Thesaurus at Pio Delicta plare..to please god for sinne.

b. transitive. Originally (Scottish): to satisfy by payment of compensation, a debt, etc. Subsequently (English regional (northern)): to pay in return for a service, etc.; to give a quid pro quo to. Now rare.

ΚΠ

1496 in G. Neilson & H. Paton Acts Lords of Council Civil Causes (1918) II. 15 Grantit..that he was plesit and payit of the tother half of [the debt].

1521 in C. Innes Liber Sancte Marie de Melros (1837) 632 Aye and quhill thai be contentit assithit and plesit of all dampnages and skaithis.

1539 in R. Renwick Abstr. Protocols Town Clerks Glasgow (1897) IV. 118 To geif to thame [12 s.]..or ellis pleis thame for thair travellis as he and thai can best aggre.

1548 in R. Pitcairn Criminal Trials Scotl. (1833) I. 336 That thai..sall assythe satefy [sic] and pleise Robert Cathcart..for the mutilatioune committit be thame vpoune him.

1616 in J. Imrie & J. G. Dunbar Accts. Masters of Wks. (1982) II. 23 And gevin him to fie pilottis and pleis the company [£4.17.6].

1828 W. Carr Dial. Craven (ed. 2) Pleease, to satisfy, to make an equivalent. ‘I'll pleease you for 't.’

1886 R. Holland Gloss. Words County of Chester 263 Plaze or Pleease, to satisfy with a gift..in payment for some service rendered; to fee a person.

1892 M. C. F. Morris Yorks. Folk-talk (at cited word) My muther says mud sha hev a dhrop o' brandy an' sha'll pleease ya for't.

II. With a person as subject: to be satisfied, to desire, to like.

†a. intransitive. To take pleasure, to be satisfied. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > emotion > pleasure > be pleased [verb (intransitive)] > take pleasure

pleasec1350

banquet?1518

framp1532

pleasure1538

to take (a) pleasure1538

c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) xxv. 3 (MED) Þy mercy ys to-fore myn eȝen, and ich plesed in þy soþenesse.

c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) xliii.5 (MED) Her myȝt ne shal nouȝt sauen hem, Ac þy god-hede..for þou plesed to hem.

a1450 (c1410) H. Lovelich Hist. Holy Grail xxxvi. 206 (MED) Whanne he hire say, his herte gan to plese.

b. intransitive. To be pleased, to like; to have the will or desire; to have the inclination or disposition; to think proper; to choose. Chiefly Scottish in earlier use.Equivalent in sense to the passive in sense 4b.Chiefly used in constructions where the desirable action or state is implied or understood; now rarely with this expressed by an infinitive clause.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > will > wish or inclination > be inclined [verb (intransitive)]

inclinea1413

willc1443

please?1467

regard?1542

fantasy1548

depend1586

to be bent1626

point1638

bias1656

to be on1886

?1467 in F. W. Weaver Somerset Medieval Wills (1901) 198 (MED) That Crapenell of Wilteshir have 20 li., or else that he with his goode wille may please to forgyf me.

1474 in T. Thomson Acts Lords Auditors (1839) 35/2 Thai sall occupij alsmekle therof as thai ples.

1498 in G. Neilson & H. Paton Acts Lords of Council Civil Causes (1918) II. 187 To call quhat persone he plesis.

a1500 in R. H. Robbins Hist. Poems 14th & 15th Cent. (1959) 240 Be mony insampuls men mey see Þat we plese not al owre god to pey.

a1500 Consail & Teiching Vys Man (Cambr. Kk.1.5) in R. Girvan Ratis Raving & Other Early Scots Poems (1939) 68 Þow may nocht ples hyme to rapruf.

1556 in C. Rogers Rental Bk. Cupar-Angus (1880) II. 261 Samony ky..as we plais deliuer thame.

1581 N. Burne Disput. Headdis of Relig. in T. G. Law Catholic Tractates (1901) 122 Lauch alsmekle als ye pleiss.

1581 G. Pettie tr. S. Guazzo Ciuile Conuersat. (1586) i. 2 b This your anguish of mind, or melancholie, as you please to tearme it.

1602 in G. Donaldson Court Bk. Shetland, 1602–4 (1954) 47 Obleist to pay foir his buird quhairever he pleisseit to eit.

a1625 W. Shakespeare & J. Fletcher Two Noble Kinsmen (1634) ii. ii. 59 I see two comforts rysing, two meere blessings, If the gods please .

1638 T. Herbert Some Yeares Trav. (rev. ed.) 140 They..single what beast they please to fight with.

1660 F. Brooke tr. V. Le Blanc World Surveyed 21 He travels a foot with his whole Court, yet his Courtiers go as they please.

1665 R. Boyle Occas. Refl. iv. xvii. sig. Hh1 I can make her speak to me, just what I please.

1684 J. Bunyan Pilgrim's Progress 2nd Pt. 79 That he will please to let me know all therein.

1713 J. Addison in Guardian 14 Sept. 2/1 You may make what Use of it you please.

1774 J. Wesley Let. 26 Feb. (1931) VI. 75 You will please to send the Essays and Equal Check to London unstitched.

1810 W. B. Rhodes Bombastes Furioso i. 7 What will your Majesty please to wear?

1885 Law Rep.: Chancery Div. 29 488 The plaintiff..has a right to have the trial where he pleases.

1908 K. Grahame Wind in Willows iv. 77 And take your time tomorrow morning—breakfast at any hour you please!

1947 P. Larkin Girl in Winter ii. v. 138 She had resolved that morning to let Robin handle the outing as he pleased, and to attend not to her own wishes but to his suggestions.

2003 C. Mendelson Daughters of Jerusalem 177 She can do as she pleases.

c. if (also †and) you please.

(a) intransitive. Used as a courteous qualification to a polite request, or as an acceptance of an offer, etc.: if it be your will or pleasure, with your permission, if you like.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > attention and judgement > importance > [interjection] > emphasizing a following statement

whatOE

loOE

lookOE

aha1225

loura1225

halec1300

why1545

if (also and) you pleasec1563

ahem1606

I say1613

ahey1696

sithee1828

please it you1881

lookit1907

the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > courtesy > courteous act or expression > courteous formulae [phrase] > qualifying a request or statement

if (also and) you pleasec1563

c1563 Jyl of Breyntfords Test. sig. B.ii But tary I pray you all if ye please.

1598 W. Shakespeare Love's Labour's Lost i. i. 50 Let me say no my liedge, and yf you please.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Twelfth Night (1623) iii. iv. 314 Pray sir, put your sword vp if you please .

1621 H. Elsynge Notes Deb. House of Lords (1870) 58 I wyll goe, and you please.

a1653 H. Binning Serm. (1845) 419 Ye need not be made miserable, but if you please.

1749 H. Fielding Tom Jones IV. x. iii. 28 ‘I think, I have sufficiently warmed myself,’ answered the Lady, ‘so if you please I will go now.’

1800 J. T. Allingham 'Tis All Farce i. 18 Serj. Now, Sir, follow me, if you please. Num. But I do not please, Sir.

1873 A. Trollope Eustace Diamonds I. vi. 75 I'll sit down, if you please.

1906 O. Wester Lady Baltimore vii. 89 I'll have to-day, if you please, another slice of that Lady Baltimore.

1992 H. Mitchell One Man's Garden xi. 227 Concentrate if you please on some favorite flower, but avoid monoculture.

(b) intransitive. Used sarcastically to express surprise and indignation at something unreasonable (as if asking leave to report such a thing).

ΚΠ

1816 J. Austen Emma I. xii. 214 South End is prohibited, if you please .

1848 W. M. Thackeray Let. in Scribner's Mag. (1887) Apr. 391/1 I heard of the father and son in the other regiment.., the Slashers if you please, being carried up drunk to bed.

1879 Cornhill Mag. 40 558 He wants to pay his addresses, if you please, to Ursula!

1951 J. Cornish Provincials 57 In the winter the heating system was always going on the blink and then the headmistress would scurry round opening windows, if you please.

1973 Math. Teacher May 479/1 To a monotonous degree, then, each aspect of the operation of the Council is in the hands of the mathematics educators—the teachers, if you please.

1996 Neon Dec. 92/4 Brando wears a kaftan apparently borrowed from Claire Rayner and rides around in a popemobile, if you please.

d. intransitive. Originally Scottish. In imperative or optative use: ‘may it (or let it) please you’, used chiefly to introduce a respectful request. Formerly with bare infinitive, that-clause, or and followed by imperative. Now only with to-infinitive (chiefly regional).Examples with bare infinitive complement are now usually analysed as please adv. followed by an imperative. This change probably dates from the development of the adverb, which may stand at the beginning of a clause modifying a main verb in the imperative.

ΚΠ

1543 in A. I. Cameron Sc. Corr. Mary of Lorraine (1927) 8 Mademe..pleis wit I have spokin with my lord governour.

1568 ( D. Lindsay Satyre (Bannatyne) l. 2953 in Wks. (1931) II. 330 Schir, pleiss ȝe that we twa invaid thame, And ȝe sell se ws sone degraid thame.

1617 in L. B. Taylor Aberdeen Council Lett. (1942) I. 144 Pleis ressave the contract.

1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost v. 397 Heav'nly stranger, please to taste These bounties which our Nourisher,..To us for food and for delight hath caus'd The Earth to yeild.

1688 J. Bloome Let. 7 Mar. in R. Law Eng. in W. Afr. (2001) II. 149 Please to procure mee weights, scales, blow panns and sifters.

1716 J. Steuart Let.-bk. (1915) 36 Please and forward the inclosed for Hamburg.

1757 W. Provoost Let. 25 Aug. in Beekman Mercantile Papers (1956) II. 659 Please to send me the following things Vizt. 1 Dozen of Black mitts. 1 piece of Black Durant fine.

1798 T. Holcroft Inquisitor iv. viii. 49 Please, Sir, to read, and be convinced.

1805 E. Cavanagh Let. 20 Aug. in M. Wilmot & C. Wilmot Russ. Jrnls. (1934) ii. 183 Will you plaise to tell them down below that I never makes free with any Body.

1871 B. Jowett tr. Plato Dialogues I. 88 Please then to take my place.

1926 N.E.D. at Way sb.¹ There lies your way, please to go away.

1973 Punch 3 Oct. Please to shut up!

1997 P. Melville Ventriloquist's Tale (1998) ii. 140 Please to keep quiet and mime the songs, chile.

e. intransitive. as you please: (in comparative phrases) as you like, as you could wish for; as it is possible to be. Now usually used to emphasize the manner in which someone does something, esp. when this is seen as surprising.

ΚΠ

1559 W. Cuningham Cosmogr. Glasse 15 There may be..as many as you please in a sphere.

1594 Knacke to knowe Knaue sig. C4 Your Honor shall repose you here to night, And earlie as you please, begin your taske.

1607 G. Markham Cavelarice v. 27 If your horses maine be too thick..you may with a tasler made of Iron with three or foure teeth, make it..as thinne as you please.

1693 Humours & Conversat. Town 31 By all means Sir, Object and Return, as often as you please.

1712 R. Steele Spectator No. 533. ⁋1 Well, well, you may banter as long as you please.

1770 J. Armstrong Forced Marriage ii. iv. 53 He knew The art of speaking to the palm; and was A docile boy, as stupid as you please, And not too apt to rouse much jealousy.

1824 P. Hawker Instr. Young Sportsmen (ed. 3) 42 The solid cock..will admit of mainsprings as strong as you please.

1886 W. Carleton City Ballads 160 An' he led me 'cross the fallow, underneath some picnic trees, Where my gal an' that wheel fellow sat as cosy as you please.

1928 ‘Brent of Bin Bin’ Up Country xvi. 273 The native-born maids were as pretty and perky as you please.

1989 B. Roche Handful of Stars ii. ii, in K. Harwood First Run 242 I'd come in here to find them all lookin' as innocent as you please.

†7. transitive. Scottish and Irish English. To be pleased with, take pleasure in; to like. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > emotion > pleasure > be pleased with [verb (transitive)]

belovec1275

likea1393

agreec1450

pleasea1522

belike1547

a1522 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid (1957) iii. ix. 143 Quhat deith ye ples, the lyfe fra me gar taik.

a1540 (c1460) G. Hay tr. Bk. King Alexander (1974) 4141 The fortoun followit him sa halely That euery man plesit his cumpaney Quhan thai hade of him knawlege.

1578 Psalm li, in J. G. Dalyell Scotish Poems 16th Cent. (1801) II. 119 Gif thou had pleased sacrifice I suld have offered thee.

1616 J. Haig in J. Russell Haigs of Bemersyde (1881) vi. 139 Gif they pleasit not his wark when they saw it, he should correct it.

1716 West-Country Intelligence (Glasgow) 21 Jan. 12 The Highland Men did not please his Aspect, which is but Meagre and grim.

1719 R. Wodrow Corr. (1843) II. 470 I please what you term the demy [paper], but I think it's thin.

1865 J. S. Le Fanu Guy Deverell I. i. 3 ‘More than two dozen left, Sir Jekyl; would you please some?’ ‘You've hit it, you wicked little conjurer—a bottle.’

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2006; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

单词	please
释义	† pleasen. Forms: see please v. Origin: Formed within English, by conversion. Etymon: please v. Etymology: < please v. Compare earlier pleasing n.¹, pleasure n. Obsolete. rare. Pleasing; pleasure. ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > pleasure > [noun] lustc888 lustfulnessa900 queemnesseOE mirtheOE estec1000 winOE queemc1175 sweetness?c1225 solace1297 dutea1300 lustinga1300 joyingc1300 jollityc1330 lustiheadc1369 lustinessc1374 sweet1377 voluptyc1380 well-pleasinga1382 pleasancec1385 pleasurea1393 volupta1398 easementc1400 pleasingc1400 complacencec1436 pleasec1475 satisfaction1477 likancea1500 oblectation1508 beauty1523 aggradation1533 pleasurancec1540 joc1560 likement1577 contentment1587 beloving1589 gratification1598 savouriness1599 entertain1601 pleasedness1626 well-apaidness1633 well-pleasedness1633 pleasingness1649 complacency1652 adlubescence1656 enjoyment1665 volupe1669 musica1674 pleasantry1740 barrel of fun (laughs, etc.)1915 c1475 Guy of Warwick (Caius) 7684 (MED) They had etyn and made hem at ease And seruyd all thyng to theire please. 1568 (a1500) Freiris Berwik 407 in W. T. Ritchie Bannatyne MS (1930) IV. 273 Bot all þair sport quhen thay wer maist at eiss Vnto our deme it wes bot littill pleiss. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2006; most recently modified version published online June 2018). pleasev. Brit. /pliːz/, U.S. /pliz/ Forms: α. Middle English place (in a late copy), Middle English pleasse, Middle English plece, Middle English pleese, Middle English pleise, Middle English ples, Middle English pleyze, Middle English pleyzse, Middle English–1500s plaise, Middle English–1500s playse, Middle English–1500s pleace, Middle English–1500s plesse, Middle English–1500s pleyse, Middle English–1600s pleas, Middle English–1700s plese, Middle English– please, 1500s plees, 1500s plesase (transmission error), 1500s plise, 1500s–1600s plase; English regional 1800s– plaise, 1800s– plaize, 1800s– plase, 1800s– plaze, 1800s– pleease (northern); U.S. regional (chiefly in African-American usage) 1800s pleaged (past participle), 1900s– plead (past participle); Scottish pre-1700 place, pre-1700 plais, pre-1700 plaize, pre-1700 plase, pre-1700 plays, pre-1700 pleace, pre-1700 pleais, pre-1700 pleas, pre-1700 plece, pre-1700 pleice, pre-1700 pleise, pre-1700 pleiss, pre-1700 pleisse, pre-1700 pleisz, pre-1700 ples, pre-1700 plese, pre-1700 pless, pre-1700 plesse, pre-1700 pleys, pre-1700 pleyse, pre-1700 pleyss, pre-1700 pleysse, pre-1700 plis, pre-1700 1700s pleis, pre-1700 1700s– please, pre-1700 1900s– plaise, 1800s pleese; Irish English (northern) 1800s– plase, 1900s– pleasche, 1900s– pleash; N.E.D. (1907) also records forms Middle English plase, Middle English pleece, Middle English pleys. β. late Middle English–1500s ple. Origin: A borrowing from French. Etymons: French plais-, pleare, plaire; French plaiser, plaisir. Etymology: Partly < Anglo-Norman plais-, plas-, pleas-, plees-, pleis-, ples- and Middle French plais-, stem (of plural present indicative and subjunctive forms) of Anglo-Norman pleare, pleer, pleere, pleire, plere, plerre and Middle French plaire (beginning of the 12th cent. in Anglo-Norman; French plaire ; further origin uncertain: see below), and partly < Anglo-Norman plaiser, plaisir, plasir, pleasere, pleiser, pleisir, pleissir, pleser, plesir and Middle French (rare) plaisir (early 13th cent. in Anglo-Norman; < classical Latin placēre to be pleasing or agreeable: see placet int. and n.). French plaire is perhaps < an unattested post-classical Latin form plácĕre , variant of classical Latin placēre* (see placet int. and n.), or is perhaps an alteration of plaiser, plaisir, etc., by analogy with verbs such as faire, traire, etc. Compare Old Occitan plazer, plaire, Catalan †plaer, †plaser (both 12th cent.; now plaure), Spanish placer (a1207), Portuguese prazer (1152), Italian piacere (first half of the 13th cent. in this form; earlier in 3rd person plural indicative plaçono (end of the 12th cent.)).In Middle English prefixed and unprefixed forms of the past participle are attested (see y- prefix). The β. forms apparently result from reanalysis of the present subjunctive as if ending in the 3rd person singular morpheme. With constructions at senses 1, 2a, and 3a compare uses of classical Latin placēre with dative, and Middle French, French plaire à with indirect object. With sense 3b(a) compare classical Latin si tibi (vobis, etc.) placet , Middle French, French s'il vous plaît (second half of the 12th cent. in Old French as s'il vus plaist ), and similar constructions in other European languages; these would appear also to have acted as a semantic model for uses at sense 6c(a). The uses in branch II. and the passive use in sense 4 are not paralleled in French. The development of the ‘inverted’ use of please in branch II. is noteworthy: it is probably not due to confusion resulting from the loss of case distinctions, but is more plausibly explained as resulting from the reassignment of the sentence element expressing the ‘experiencer’ role to the subject function (compare the development of the partly synonymous verb like v.¹, which, however, did not develop passive uses parallel to sense 4, but developed the ‘inverted’ use more extensively). See further C. L. Allen Case Marking & Reanalysis(1995) vii. I. With a person as object: to satisfy, be agreeable to. †1. a. intransitive. To be agreeable; to give pleasure or satisfaction. With till, to, with. Obsolete. ΚΠ c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) xviii. 15 (MED) Þe wordes of my mouþe shul ben þat hii plesen [L. complaceant] to þe. a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) 4729 In what maner þat i miȝt mest with þe plece. c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) 1 Thess. iv. 1 As ȝe han resceyued of vs how it bihoueth ȝou for to go and plese to God. ?a1425 (c1400) Mandeville's Trav. (Titus C.xvi) (1919) 83 Ȝif this matiere plese to ony worthi man..he may telle it. 1489 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (Adv.) i. 198 That Scottis-men mycht do na thing That euer mycht pleys to thar liking. c1520 M. Nisbet New Test. in Scots (1903) II. 1 Cor. x. 33 As I be althingis pleise to almen. a1530 (c1425) Andrew of Wyntoun Oryg. Cron. Scotl. (Royal) viii. 1590 That plesyd till [a1500 Nero pleyssit to] this Kyng Edward welle. b. intransitive. to please to oneself and variants: to take pleasure, be well pleased. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > pleasure > take pleasure or enjoy oneself [verb (reflexive)] likeOE joyc1260 litea1300 to please to oneselfa1382 relish1580 contentc1600 complease1604 pleasurea1640 enjoy1653 a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(1)) (1850) Isa. xlii. 1 Al plesede to hym in hym my soule [a1425 L.V. my soule pleside to it silf in hym; L. complacuit sibi in illo anima mea]. a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) Wisd. vi. 3 Ȝeueþ eres, ȝee þat holden togidere multitudes & plesen to ȝou [a1425 L.V. plesen ȝou; L. placetis vobis] in cumpanyes of naciouns. 2. a. transitive. To be agreeable to; to gratify, satisfy, delight.The verb here was perhaps originally intransitive with indirect object, but came to be treated as transitive, with a passive voice (see sense 4). ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > pleasure > contentment or satisfaction > be content or satisfied with [verb (transitive)] > content or satisfy paya1200 apaya1250 pleasec1350 assythc1375 savourc1390 filsen?a1425 satisfy?a1425 sufficec1430 satify1434 applease1470 content1477 assethe1481 appetite1509 syth1513 satisfice?1531 gratify1569 gree1570 explenish1573 promerit1582 accommodate1624 placentiate1694 c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) xxxiv. 17 Y pleised neȝbur as our broþer [L. Quasi proximum, et quasi fratrem nostrum, sic complacebam]. a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) 188 Bliþe was eche a barn ho best miȝt him plese. a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add.) f. 70^v A norse..plesiþ [L. demulcet] þe childe with whistlinge & songe. ?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) ii. 68 Þe meyne in alle þing plesed him next þe kyng. a1425 Comm. in H. R. Bramley Rolle's Psalter (1884) 1 (MED) The psalmes ben ful swete To hem that..lvsten god to plese or paye. ?1472 E. Paston in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 635 Yt is nomore but þat he can not plese alle partys. 1480 Table Prouffytable Lernynge (Caxton) (1964) 4 Mais sil vous plaist aulcune chose Que ie puisse fayre. But if you plaise ony thyng That I may doo. a1500 (?a1390) J. Mirk Festial (Gough) (1905) 230 (MED) Hit ys ynpossybull for any mon forto ples God wythout faythe. 1568 A. Scott Poems (1896) x. 38 Is no^t in erd I cure, Bot pleiss my lady pure. a1593 C. Marlowe Edward II (1594) sig. G4 Madam, returne to England, And please my father well. 1611 Bible (King James) Esther ii. 4 The thing pleased the king, and he did so. View more context for this quotation 1669 S. Sturmy Mariners Mag. a Never any man living, in his writing, could please the phansie of all men. 1748 T. Smollett Roderick Random II. xl. 34 But she was resolved to please her eye, if she should plague her heart. 1789 A. Young Jrnl. 23 Aug. in Trav. France (1792) i. 171 Mons. Faujas pleases me much; the liveliness, vivacity, phlogiston of his character, do not run into pertness, foppery, or affectation. 1811 J. Austen Sense & Sensibility II. xi. 214 There was something in her stile of beauty, to please them [i.e. men] particularly. View more context for this quotation 1844 J. Ruskin Jrnl. 30 Apr. in Diaries 1835–47 (1956) 274 Gastineau came up and don't like mine: can't please everybody. 1884 Harper's Mag. May 969/2 A newspaper..should..be like the most entertaining visitor who would please men and women alike. 1940 J. Buchan Memory Hold-the-Door iii. 72 His boyish charm and gallantry pleased people. 1995 Midwest Living Feb. 16/4 New attractions also aim to please families and other visitors who won't settle simply for 24-hour gaming. b. intransitive. To be pleasing.Perhaps originally a use of sense 1a without prepositional phrase. ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > pleasure > quality of being pleasant or pleasurable > be pleasant or enjoyable [verb (intransitive)] likeeOE pleasea1393 savoura1400 payc1400 savourc1440 relish1594 smile1594 a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) vii. 2172 (MED) Thei that cunnen plese and glose Ben..the norrices Unto the fostringe of the vices. a1425 (a1382) Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Corpus Oxf.) (1850) 1 Kings xviii. 26 The word pleside in the eyen of Dauyd. 1484 W. Caxton tr. Subtyl Historyes & Fables Esope i. xvii The vnwyse displeseth there where as he supposeth to please. c1530 Polit., Relig., & Love Poems (1866) 31 Pleace with thi dedys rathir than with thy clothis. 1568 in W. T. Ritchie Bannatyne MS f. 132 Allyk sall pleis eis or diseis. 1681 J. Dryden Absalom & Achitophel 23 Two names, that always cheat and always please. 1697 R. Blackmore King Arthur iii. 71 This Prince those Subjects only will prefer, Who always please, or necessary are. 1747 S. Johnson Prol. Opening of Theatre 3 The Drama's Laws, the Drama's Patrons give, For we that live to please, must please to live. 1796 W. Gilbert Hurricane ii. 33 I shall always please. a1849 H. Coleridge Ess. & Marginalia (1851) I. 356 Men and writers, if they please at all, must please by doing their best in their own way. 1877 F. J. Furnivall Leopold Shakspere Introd. 120 The revived doctrine that the main object of poetry is to please, seems to me too contemptible to be discusst. 1929 Amer. Mercury Jan. 32/1 Eager to please, the young statesman threw into the hopper..a bill providing for absolute Prohibition, excepting only for the communion service. 1997 Daily Tel. 29 Jan. 17/2 She wants to please, but she is quite a disturbing person to meet because she has two very distinct and mercurially changing faces. c. transitive (reflexive). To gratify or satisfy oneself; (colloquial, frequently with dismissive force) to do as one likes, have one's own way. ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > pleasure > contentment or satisfaction > be contented [verb (reflexive)] > make oneself contented or satisfied wreak1377 suffice1484 please1533 satisfy1542 1533 T. More Debellacyon Salem & Bizance ii. xx. f. cxxxviii^v Two places, wherin I perceyue he pleaseth hym selfe ryght well. c1595 Countess of Pembroke Psalme xlix. 37 in Coll. Wks. (1998) II. 47 Please theie them selues, and think at happiest staie Who please them selues. a1616 W. Shakespeare As you like It (1623) v. iv. 73 If I sent him word..it [sc. his beard] was not well cut, he wold send me word he cut it to please himselfe: this is call'd the quip modest. View more context for this quotation 1620 T. Granger Syntagma Logicum sig. a3 I purposed not so much to please my selfe, and a few, as to be beneficiall. 1691 A. Wood Athenæ Oxonienses I. 893 He..delighted to please himself in a juvenile and bantring way. 1721 C. Cibber Refusal iii. 41 She may please herself. 1781 S. Johnson Pope in Pref. Wks. Eng. Poets VII. 166 Warburton..had, in the early part of his life, pleased himself with the notice of inferior wits. 1810 J. Poole Hamlet Travestied iii. iv. 58 Shall we quiz him?—Please yourself. 1855 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. III. xiii. 334 The clans which took no part in the insurrection..pleased themselves with the hope that they should easily make their peace with the conquerors. 1881 J. H. Shorthouse John Inglesant (1905) xxvii. 313 The visitor could please himself as to the strength and nature of his beverage. 1926 J. Devanny Butcher Shop xxi. 268 Miette had, before going very far, suggested that she had better go back as her shoes were wet. And the man had absently remarked: ‘Oh, well, we haven't far to go, but please yourself.’ 1960 S. Unwin Truth about Publisher xxi. 370 In Germany people did what they were told; in England people pleased themselves. 1993 P. Mayle Hotel Pastis i. 6 Please yourself, cock. 3. With a proposition expressed by an infinitive or that-clause or understood: to seem good to one; to be one's will or pleasure.Equivalent in sense to ‘will’, ‘choose’, ‘think proper’, etc., with the person as subject: cf. sense 4b. Formerly usual in deferential phrases of address or request, as and (an, if) it please (to) you, will it please you (your honour, etc.). please the pigs: see pig n.¹ Phrases 8. †a. intransitive. With non-referential it as subject. With to. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > pleasure > quality of being pleasant or pleasurable > please or give pleasure to [verb (transitive)] i-quemec893 ywortheOE queemeOE likeOE likeOE paya1200 gamec1225 lustc1230 apaya1250 savoura1300 feastc1300 comfort1303 glew1303 pleasec1350 ticklec1386 feedc1400 agreea1413 agreec1425 emplessc1450 gree1468 applease1470 complaire1477 enjoy1485 warm1526 to claw the ears1549 content1552 pleasure1556 oblect?1567 relish1567 gratify1569 sweeta1575 promerit1582 tinkle1582 tastea1586 aggrate1590 gratulatea1592 greeta1592 grace1595 arride1600 complease1604 honey1604 agrade1611 oblectate1611 oblige1652 placentiate1694 flatter1695 to shine up to1882 fancy- the mind > will > wish or inclination > be inclined [verb (intransitive)] > do as one wishes pleasec1350 choosec1400 to be at one's choice1569 swinge1613 c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) xxxix. 18 (MED) Plese it, Lorde, to þe [L. Complaceat tibi Domine], þat þou defende me. a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) Esther i. 19 If it plese to þee [L. si tibi placet], go þer out a maundement. ?1433 W. Dallyng Petition to Parl. in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) II. 508 Plese it to Commines of the present Parlement that William Paston..takyth diuerse fees [etc.]. ?c1450 tr. Bk. Knight of La Tour Landry (1906) 90 (MED) But she was paied, as it plesed to God, atte the laste. c1460 in A. Clark Eng. Reg. Oseney Abbey (1907) 74 (MED) If in oony tyme hit will please to þe forsaide Abbot and chanons..to oure Mille Come, of no Sute Dewte..we shall axe. b. transitive. With the person in the ‘experiencer’ role as object. (a) With non-referential it as subject. Formerly also so please it you, please it you: (so) may it be agreeable to you, if it be your desire (now archaic).Frequently with bare infinitive in the 16–17th centuries. ΘΚΠ the mind > will > wish or inclination > be one's will [phrase] please?1406 the mind > attention and judgement > importance > [interjection] > emphasizing a following statement whatOE loOE lookOE aha1225 loura1225 halec1300 why1545 if (also and) you pleasec1563 ahem1606 I say1613 ahey1696 sithee1828 please it you1881 lookit1907 ?1406 T. Hoccleve La Mâle Règle 416 in E. P. Hammond Eng. Verse between Chaucer & Surrey (1927) 66/1 If it thee lyke & plese. 1423 Rolls of Parl. IV. 249/1 Please it your full wyse discretions to consider the matier above said. ?a1425 tr. Catherine of Siena Orcherd of Syon (Harl.) (1966) 237 (MED) It plesiþ myche God whanne a man axiþ and preieth wiþ perseueraunce. 1478 Paston Lett. (1904) V. 316 Withouth it ple yow to send oon of yowr men to me. 1503 Rolls of Parl. VI. 553/1 Pleas it nowe your Highnesse..to ordeyn. 1509 in J. Gairdner Historia Regis Henrici Septimi (1858) 433 And hyt ple your grace..that [etc.]. a1593 C. Marlowe Tragicall Hist. Faustus (1616) sig. E Please it your holinesse, I thinke it be some Ghost. 1597 W. Shakespeare Richard III iv. iv. 418 Please it your Maiestie to giue me leaue, Ile muster vp my friendes. View more context for this quotation 1606 Returne from Pernassus ii. vi. sig. D3^v Not a word more Sir, an't please you. 1611 Bible (King James) Acts xv. 34 It pleased Silas to abide there still. View more context for this quotation a1616 W. Shakespeare Merry Wives of Windsor (1623) i. i. 246 Wil't please your worship to come in, Sir? View more context for this quotation a1616 W. Shakespeare Two Gentlemen of Verona (1623) i. ii. 140 Come, come, wilt please you goe. View more context for this quotation 1646 Hamilton Papers (1880) 117 May it please your Grace. 1712 W. Fleetwood 4 Serm. (ESTC T114582) Pref. p. viii That precious Life, had it pleased God to have prolonged it to the usual Space. 1774 J. Wesley Let. 12 Apr. (1931) VI. 78 When it pleases God to take any of His children to Himself..He usually sends a gracious rain upon the survivors. 1822 Baroness Bunsen in A. J. C. Hare Life & Lett. Baroness Bunsen (1879) I. vi. 196 Wherefore he follows this plan it has never pleased him to explain. 1881 ‘M. Twain’ Prince & Pauper xii. 138 With never a by-your-leave or so-please-it-you, or anything of the sort. 1967 T. W. Blackburn Good Day to Die xv. 107 It pleased him that this leathern lodge..did indeed feel like home. 1985 M. Atwood Handmaid's Tale (1988) iv. viii. 69 It pleases me to think I'm communing with her, this unknown woman. (b) Without it as subject. Formerly esp. in please you, so please you: may it (so) be agreeable to you (now archaic). Now usually in please God, please Heaven, etc. ΘΚΠ the mind > will > wish or inclination > wish or be disposed or inclined [verb] willeOE listc1200 to be of (also in) (a) minda1325 to will well that1340 likea1375 to find in one's hearta1393 to have a minda1400 pleasec1450 set1470 to have a mind1530 care1560 fadge1592 please1611 choose1622 offer1639 to feel like1808 c1450 Alphabet of Tales (1904) I. 72 (MED) Me plesis not at nowder of þies sulde be sent þis message. ?a1475 Ludus Coventriae (1922) 54 (MED) Whan þou art sett at þe nale and hast þi langage as plesyth þe, loke þin othis be non or smale. 1569 R. Grafton Chron. II. 350 Pleaseth you also to remember how many Lords noble men, & good commons..died in thoss warres. a1616 W. Shakespeare As you like It (1623) iv. iii. 38 Ros. Will you heare the letter? Sil. So please you, for I neuer heard it yet. View more context for this quotation a1616 W. Shakespeare Cymbeline (1623) ii. ii. 1 Imo. Who's there? My woman: Helene? Lady. Please you Madam. View more context for this quotation 1738 J. Swift Compl. Coll. Genteel Conversat. 69 An please your Honour, there's a Man below wants to speak to you. 1794 A. Radcliffe Myst. of Udolpho I. vi. 169 ‘Please your honour, he may be a robber,’ said Michael. 1808 W. Scott Marmion i. xxviii. 49 So please you, gentle youth, to call This Palmer to the castle hall. 1834 E. Bulwer-Lytton Last Days of Pompeii I. ii. ii. 197 To-morrow night, please the gods, we will have then a snug carousel. 1886 A. Edwardes Playwright's Daughter xvi. 181 You will do as I tell you, and, please God, shall come through without a singe. 1906 J. M. Synge Let. 27 Dec. (1971) 81 Please Heaven we shall have a few years of divine love and life together. 1959 A. Wesker Chicken Soup with Barley in E. M. Browne New Eng. Dramatists I. i. 222 Please God he'll be a hotel manager one day. 1996 H. K. Smith Events leading up to my Death liii. 249 But not now, please God, never now. 4. a. transitive (in passive). With prepositional phrase or that-clause as complement: to be gratified, delighted, or agreeably satisfied. ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > pleasure > be pleased [verb (intransitive)] pleasea1382 agree?a1500 like1780 a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1959) Exod. xxxii. 14 Þe lord was pleisid [L. placatus], þat he dyde not þe harme þat he speke aȝeinst his puple. a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1882) VIII. 149 (MED) Þe pepil was i-plesed [L. placatus] wiþ his faire speche. c1426 J. Audelay Poems (1931) 3 (MED) Kepe ȝoure wedlocke..God..Þer-with..is boþ plesud and payd. c1475 Brome Abraham & Isaac in N. Davis Non-Cycle Plays & Fragm. (1970) 51 I had as leve myselffe to dey, Yffe God wyll be plecyd wyth my dede. 1535 Bible (Coverdale) Psalms l[i]. 19 Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifice of rightuousnesse. 1599 E. Sandys Europæ Speculum (1632) 123 The wisest men have been..pleased, that losers should have their words. 1653 D. Osbourne Let. 7 Apr. (1888) 66 I was not pleased that you should..go lie upon the cold ground. 1718 Free-thinker No. 51. 2 Every One is pleased with such an Occasion of shewing the Superiority of his Understanding. 1766 O. Goldsmith Vicar of Wakefield I. ix. 87 Well pleased, that my little ones were kept up beyond the usual time. 1782 F. Burney Cecilia IV. viii. vii. 281 I am not quite pleased with your looks. 1845 C. Darwin Let. 25 Aug. in Corr. (1987) III. 242 I was much pleased by Lindley picking out my Extinction paragraphs & giving them uncurtailed. 1860 J. A. Symonds Let. 15 June (1967) I. 245 I am so glad you are pleased about the Newdigate. 1927 Observer 12 June 10/3 The best recruiter is the man who is pleased with his ‘crush’. 1954 H. Gaitskell in N.Y. Times Mag. 27 June People in Britain are pleased that Sir Winston Churchill and Anthony Eden are meeting the President. 1992 H. Owen Littlejohn vi. 72 Daddy wasn't any too pleased about it, but he might of bought it if Momma hadn't cut such a shine. b. transitive (in passive). With infinitive. Originally: to be gratified or satisfied. Subsequently: to have the will or desire; to have the inclination or disposition; (also) to think proper, choose, or be so obliging as to do something. Now frequently in pleased to meet you: a formula used in reply to an introduction. Cf. sense 6b. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > courtesy > courteous act or expression > courteous formulae [phrase] > reply to introduction pleased to meet youa1425 the mind > will > wish or inclination > wish or be disposed or inclined [verb] willeOE listc1200 to be of (also in) (a) minda1325 to will well that1340 likea1375 to find in one's hearta1393 to have a minda1400 pleasec1450 set1470 to have a mind1530 care1560 fadge1592 please1611 choose1622 offer1639 to feel like1808 the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > courtesy > be courteous [verb (intransitive)] > be so obliging as to do something please1611 the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > kindness > show kindness [verb (intransitive)] > be so kind as to do something please1611 a1425 (?a1400) G. Chaucer Romaunt Rose (Hunterian) 3008 I was wel plesed..To se the botoun fair and swote So freshe spronge out of the rote. 1570 in J. Cranstoun Satirical Poems Reformation (1891) I. 93 God wes pleist to pas him out of pyne. 1589 R. Lane in R. Hakluyt Princ. Navigations iii. 747 I would resolue my selfe, with my companie to goe into England in that Fleete, and accordingly to make request to the Generall in all our names, that he would bee pleased to giue vs present passage with him. 1611 M. Smith in Bible (King James) Transl. Pref. 10 The tongues wherein God was pleased to speake to his Church by his Prophets and Apostles. a1616 W. Shakespeare King John (1623) ii. i. 246 Be pleased then To pay that dutie which you truly owe. View more context for this quotation a1666 R. Blair Life (1848) (modernized text) ii. 49 The Lord is pleased by trials to fine the faith of his servants. 1680 Sir C. Lyttelton in E. M. Thompson Corr. Family of Hatton (1878) I. 239 He was pleased to tell mee the King sayd it was for his service. 1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 110 Pleas'd I am, no beaten Road to take. View more context for this quotation 1712 T. Hearne Remarks & Coll. (1889) III. 424 He was pleas'd to mention the Controversy between D^r. Kennett and me. 1759 R. Jackson Hist. Rev. Pennsylvania 268 The Governor is pleased to doubt our having such Letters as we mentioned. 1826 B. Disraeli Vivian Grey I. i. vi. 43 My dear sir, you are pleased to be amusing this morning. 1871 E. A. Freeman Hist. Norman Conquest IV. xvii. 67 A noble and powerful city, inhabited by rich, daring, and he is pleased to add faithless, citizens. 1916 ‘Taffrail’ Pincher Martin vii. 102 Pleased ter meet yer, miss. 1934 A. Christie Murder on Orient Express ii. iv. 97 Mrs. Hubbard murmured: ‘Pleased to meet you, I'm sure.’ 1977 Bangladesh Times 20 Jan. 1 (advt.) The BTMC Management has been pleased to decide that the Mill gate sale and maximum retail price will be only 10%..above the ex-mill price. 2000 New Scientist 4 Nov. 85/2 (advt.) We are pleased to announce that an exciting opportunity at the Group Leader level has recently arisen. 5. †a. transitive. To appease, placate, pacify; spec. to propitiate (God). Obsolete. ΘΚΠ society > society and the community > dissent > absence of dissension or peace > bringing about concord or peace > bring to peace (strife or discord) [verb (transitive)] > appease or propitiate soft?c1225 queema1325 appeasec1374 pleasea1382 softena1382 mollifya1450 pacifya1500 apeace1523 temper1525 mitigatea1535 qualify?c1550 thaw1582 propitiate1583 aslake1590 smooth1608 to lay down1629 addulce1655 sweeten1657 acquiesce1659 gentle1663 palliate1678 placate1678 conciliate1782 to pour oil on the waters (also on troubled waters)1847 square1859 square1945 a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1961) Lev. i. 3 Amaale wiþoute wem he shal offre..to plese to hym þe lord [a1425 L.V. to make the Lord plesid to hym, L. ad placandum sibi dominum]. a1400 (c1303) R. Mannyng Handlyng Synne (Harl.) 2004 (MED) Þese wymmen..plesyd god with lytyl penaunce. a1450 Pater Noster Richard Ermyte (Westm. Sch. 3) (1967) 50 (MED) Werkis of penaunce vnskilfully wrouȝt plesen noȝt God. 1563 2nd Tome Homelyes For Gd. Friday ii, in J. Griffiths Two Bks. Homilies (1859) ii. 420 He could do nothing that might please God's wrath. 1565–73 T. Cooper Thesaurus at Pio Delicta plare..to please god for sinne. b. transitive. Originally (Scottish): to satisfy by payment of compensation, a debt, etc. Subsequently (English regional (northern)): to pay in return for a service, etc.; to give a quid pro quo to. Now rare. ΚΠ 1496 in G. Neilson & H. Paton Acts Lords of Council Civil Causes (1918) II. 15 Grantit..that he was plesit and payit of the tother half of [the debt]. 1521 in C. Innes Liber Sancte Marie de Melros (1837) 632 Aye and quhill thai be contentit assithit and plesit of all dampnages and skaithis. 1539 in R. Renwick Abstr. Protocols Town Clerks Glasgow (1897) IV. 118 To geif to thame [12 s.]..or ellis pleis thame for thair travellis as he and thai can best aggre. 1548 in R. Pitcairn Criminal Trials Scotl. (1833) I. 336 That thai..sall assythe satefy [sic] and pleise Robert Cathcart..for the mutilatioune committit be thame vpoune him. 1616 in J. Imrie & J. G. Dunbar Accts. Masters of Wks. (1982) II. 23 And gevin him to fie pilottis and pleis the company [£4.17.6]. 1828 W. Carr Dial. Craven (ed. 2) Pleease, to satisfy, to make an equivalent. ‘I'll pleease you for 't.’ 1886 R. Holland Gloss. Words County of Chester 263 Plaze or Pleease, to satisfy with a gift..in payment for some service rendered; to fee a person. 1892 M. C. F. Morris Yorks. Folk-talk (at cited word) My muther says mud sha hev a dhrop o' brandy an' sha'll pleease ya for't. II. With a person as subject: to be satisfied, to desire, to like. 6. †a. intransitive. To take pleasure, to be satisfied. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > pleasure > be pleased [verb (intransitive)] > take pleasure pleasec1350 banquet?1518 framp1532 pleasure1538 to take (a) pleasure1538 c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) xxv. 3 (MED) Þy mercy ys to-fore myn eȝen, and ich plesed in þy soþenesse. c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) xliii.5 (MED) Her myȝt ne shal nouȝt sauen hem, Ac þy god-hede..for þou plesed to hem. a1450 (c1410) H. Lovelich Hist. Holy Grail xxxvi. 206 (MED) Whanne he hire say, his herte gan to plese. b. intransitive. To be pleased, to like; to have the will or desire; to have the inclination or disposition; to think proper; to choose. Chiefly Scottish in earlier use.Equivalent in sense to the passive in sense 4b.Chiefly used in constructions where the desirable action or state is implied or understood; now rarely with this expressed by an infinitive clause. ΘΚΠ the mind > will > wish or inclination > be inclined [verb (intransitive)] inclinea1413 willc1443 please?1467 regard?1542 fantasy1548 depend1586 to be bent1626 point1638 bias1656 to be on1886 ?1467 in F. W. Weaver Somerset Medieval Wills (1901) 198 (MED) That Crapenell of Wilteshir have 20 li., or else that he with his goode wille may please to forgyf me. 1474 in T. Thomson Acts Lords Auditors (1839) 35/2 Thai sall occupij alsmekle therof as thai ples. 1498 in G. Neilson & H. Paton Acts Lords of Council Civil Causes (1918) II. 187 To call quhat persone he plesis. a1500 in R. H. Robbins Hist. Poems 14th & 15th Cent. (1959) 240 Be mony insampuls men mey see Þat we plese not al owre god to pey. a1500 Consail & Teiching Vys Man (Cambr. Kk.1.5) in R. Girvan Ratis Raving & Other Early Scots Poems (1939) 68 Þow may nocht ples hyme to rapruf. 1556 in C. Rogers Rental Bk. Cupar-Angus (1880) II. 261 Samony ky..as we plais deliuer thame. 1581 N. Burne Disput. Headdis of Relig. in T. G. Law Catholic Tractates (1901) 122 Lauch alsmekle als ye pleiss. 1581 G. Pettie tr. S. Guazzo Ciuile Conuersat. (1586) i. 2 b This your anguish of mind, or melancholie, as you please to tearme it. 1602 in G. Donaldson Court Bk. Shetland, 1602–4 (1954) 47 Obleist to pay foir his buird quhairever he pleisseit to eit. a1625 W. Shakespeare & J. Fletcher Two Noble Kinsmen (1634) ii. ii. 59 I see two comforts rysing, two meere blessings, If the gods please . View more context for this quotation 1638 T. Herbert Some Yeares Trav. (rev. ed.) 140 They..single what beast they please to fight with. 1660 F. Brooke tr. V. Le Blanc World Surveyed 21 He travels a foot with his whole Court, yet his Courtiers go as they please. 1665 R. Boyle Occas. Refl. iv. xvii. sig. Hh1 I can make her speak to me, just what I please. 1684 J. Bunyan Pilgrim's Progress 2nd Pt. 79 That he will please to let me know all therein. View more context for this quotation 1713 J. Addison in Guardian 14 Sept. 2/1 You may make what Use of it you please. 1774 J. Wesley Let. 26 Feb. (1931) VI. 75 You will please to send the Essays and Equal Check to London unstitched. 1810 W. B. Rhodes Bombastes Furioso i. 7 What will your Majesty please to wear? 1885 Law Rep.: Chancery Div. 29 488 The plaintiff..has a right to have the trial where he pleases. 1908 K. Grahame Wind in Willows iv. 77 And take your time tomorrow morning—breakfast at any hour you please! 1947 P. Larkin Girl in Winter ii. v. 138 She had resolved that morning to let Robin handle the outing as he pleased, and to attend not to her own wishes but to his suggestions. 2003 C. Mendelson Daughters of Jerusalem 177 She can do as she pleases. c. if (also †and) you please. (a) intransitive. Used as a courteous qualification to a polite request, or as an acceptance of an offer, etc.: if it be your will or pleasure, with your permission, if you like. ΘΚΠ the mind > attention and judgement > importance > [interjection] > emphasizing a following statement whatOE loOE lookOE aha1225 loura1225 halec1300 why1545 if (also and) you pleasec1563 ahem1606 I say1613 ahey1696 sithee1828 please it you1881 lookit1907 the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > courtesy > courteous act or expression > courteous formulae [phrase] > qualifying a request or statement if (also and) you pleasec1563 c1563 Jyl of Breyntfords Test. sig. B.ii But tary I pray you all if ye please. 1598 W. Shakespeare Love's Labour's Lost i. i. 50 Let me say no my liedge, and yf you please. a1616 W. Shakespeare Twelfth Night (1623) iii. iv. 314 Pray sir, put your sword vp if you please . View more context for this quotation 1621 H. Elsynge Notes Deb. House of Lords (1870) 58 I wyll goe, and you please. a1653 H. Binning Serm. (1845) 419 Ye need not be made miserable, but if you please. 1749 H. Fielding Tom Jones IV. x. iii. 28 ‘I think, I have sufficiently warmed myself,’ answered the Lady, ‘so if you please I will go now.’ View more context for this quotation 1800 J. T. Allingham 'Tis All Farce i. 18 Serj. Now, Sir, follow me, if you please. Num. But I do not please, Sir. 1873 A. Trollope Eustace Diamonds I. vi. 75 I'll sit down, if you please. 1906 O. Wester Lady Baltimore vii. 89 I'll have to-day, if you please, another slice of that Lady Baltimore. 1992 H. Mitchell One Man's Garden xi. 227 Concentrate if you please on some favorite flower, but avoid monoculture. (b) intransitive. Used sarcastically to express surprise and indignation at something unreasonable (as if asking leave to report such a thing). ΚΠ 1816 J. Austen Emma I. xii. 214 South End is prohibited, if you please . View more context for this quotation 1848 W. M. Thackeray Let. in Scribner's Mag. (1887) Apr. 391/1 I heard of the father and son in the other regiment.., the Slashers if you please, being carried up drunk to bed. 1879 Cornhill Mag. 40 558 He wants to pay his addresses, if you please, to Ursula! 1951 J. Cornish Provincials 57 In the winter the heating system was always going on the blink and then the headmistress would scurry round opening windows, if you please. 1973 Math. Teacher May 479/1 To a monotonous degree, then, each aspect of the operation of the Council is in the hands of the mathematics educators—the teachers, if you please. 1996 Neon Dec. 92/4 Brando wears a kaftan apparently borrowed from Claire Rayner and rides around in a popemobile, if you please. d. intransitive. Originally Scottish. In imperative or optative use: ‘may it (or let it) please you’, used chiefly to introduce a respectful request. Formerly with bare infinitive, that-clause, or and followed by imperative. Now only with to-infinitive (chiefly regional).Examples with bare infinitive complement are now usually analysed as please adv. followed by an imperative. This change probably dates from the development of the adverb, which may stand at the beginning of a clause modifying a main verb in the imperative. ΚΠ 1543 in A. I. Cameron Sc. Corr. Mary of Lorraine (1927) 8 Mademe..pleis wit I have spokin with my lord governour. 1568 ( D. Lindsay Satyre (Bannatyne) l. 2953 in Wks. (1931) II. 330 Schir, pleiss ȝe that we twa invaid thame, And ȝe sell se ws sone degraid thame. 1617 in L. B. Taylor Aberdeen Council Lett. (1942) I. 144 Pleis ressave the contract. 1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost v. 397 Heav'nly stranger, please to taste These bounties which our Nourisher,..To us for food and for delight hath caus'd The Earth to yeild. View more context for this quotation 1688 J. Bloome Let. 7 Mar. in R. Law Eng. in W. Afr. (2001) II. 149 Please to procure mee weights, scales, blow panns and sifters. 1716 J. Steuart Let.-bk. (1915) 36 Please and forward the inclosed for Hamburg. 1757 W. Provoost Let. 25 Aug. in Beekman Mercantile Papers (1956) II. 659 Please to send me the following things Vizt. 1 Dozen of Black mitts. 1 piece of Black Durant fine. 1798 T. Holcroft Inquisitor iv. viii. 49 Please, Sir, to read, and be convinced. 1805 E. Cavanagh Let. 20 Aug. in M. Wilmot & C. Wilmot Russ. Jrnls. (1934) ii. 183 Will you plaise to tell them down below that I never makes free with any Body. 1871 B. Jowett tr. Plato Dialogues I. 88 Please then to take my place. 1926 N.E.D. at Way sb.¹ There lies your way, please to go away. 1973 Punch 3 Oct. Please to shut up! 1997 P. Melville Ventriloquist's Tale (1998) ii. 140 Please to keep quiet and mime the songs, chile. e. intransitive. as you please: (in comparative phrases) as you like, as you could wish for; as it is possible to be. Now usually used to emphasize the manner in which someone does something, esp. when this is seen as surprising. ΚΠ 1559 W. Cuningham Cosmogr. Glasse 15 There may be..as many as you please in a sphere. 1594 Knacke to knowe Knaue sig. C4 Your Honor shall repose you here to night, And earlie as you please, begin your taske. 1607 G. Markham Cavelarice v. 27 If your horses maine be too thick..you may with a tasler made of Iron with three or foure teeth, make it..as thinne as you please. 1693 Humours & Conversat. Town 31 By all means Sir, Object and Return, as often as you please. 1712 R. Steele Spectator No. 533. ⁋1 Well, well, you may banter as long as you please. 1770 J. Armstrong Forced Marriage ii. iv. 53 He knew The art of speaking to the palm; and was A docile boy, as stupid as you please, And not too apt to rouse much jealousy. 1824 P. Hawker Instr. Young Sportsmen (ed. 3) 42 The solid cock..will admit of mainsprings as strong as you please. 1886 W. Carleton City Ballads 160 An' he led me 'cross the fallow, underneath some picnic trees, Where my gal an' that wheel fellow sat as cosy as you please. 1928 ‘Brent of Bin Bin’ Up Country xvi. 273 The native-born maids were as pretty and perky as you please. 1989 B. Roche Handful of Stars ii. ii, in K. Harwood First Run 242 I'd come in here to find them all lookin' as innocent as you please. †7. transitive. Scottish and Irish English. To be pleased with, take pleasure in; to like. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > pleasure > be pleased with [verb (transitive)] belovec1275 likea1393 agreec1450 pleasea1522 belike1547 a1522 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid (1957) iii. ix. 143 Quhat deith ye ples, the lyfe fra me gar taik. a1540 (c1460) G. Hay tr. Bk. King Alexander (1974) 4141 The fortoun followit him sa halely That euery man plesit his cumpaney Quhan thai hade of him knawlege. 1578 Psalm li, in J. G. Dalyell Scotish Poems 16th Cent. (1801) II. 119 Gif thou had pleased sacrifice I suld have offered thee. 1616 J. Haig in J. Russell Haigs of Bemersyde (1881) vi. 139 Gif they pleasit not his wark when they saw it, he should correct it. 1716 West-Country Intelligence (Glasgow) 21 Jan. 12 The Highland Men did not please his Aspect, which is but Meagre and grim. 1719 R. Wodrow Corr. (1843) II. 470 I please what you term the demy [paper], but I think it's thin. 1865 J. S. Le Fanu Guy Deverell I. i. 3 ‘More than two dozen left, Sir Jekyl; would you please some?’ ‘You've hit it, you wicked little conjurer—a bottle.’ This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2006; most recently modified version published online June 2022). pleaseadv.int. Brit. /pliːz/, U.S. /pliz/ Origin: Formed within English, by conversion. Etymon: please v. Etymology: < please v.As a request for the attention or indulgence of the hearer, probably originally short for please you (your honour, etc.) (see please v. 3b(b)), but subsequently understood as short for if you please (see please v. 6c). As a request for action, in immediate proximity to a verb in the imperative, probably shortened from the imperative or optative please followed by the to -infinitive (see please v. 6d). Now able to occupy any adverbial position in the sentence (see, e.g., quots. 1948 at sense A. and 1970 at sense A., and the note at please v. 6d). A. adv. Used in polite request or agreement, or to add a polite emphasis or urgency: kindly, if you please. ΘΚΠ the mind > language > speech > request > [interjection] > expressions of request aha1225 prithee?c1560 I pritheea1591 please1771 bambi2012 1771 P. Davies Let. 26 Sept. in F. Mason John Norton & Sons (1968) 192 Please send the inclosed to the Port office. 1787 R. Burns Let. 17 Apr. in Pearson's Catal. (1888) May 8 In making up the accounts of my copies, please mind that I am paid for the following number of copies, which money I retain in my own hands. 1818 R. B. Peake Amateurs & Actors ii. i. 44 O! please, Sir, there's a lot of folks below axing for—are you a Manager, Sir? 1833 C. Dance Beulah Spa i. iii. 2 Steady now, please, sir; I'm just coming to your throat. 1836 C. Dickens Sketches by Boz 1st Ser. II. 27 ‘Please sir, missis has made tea,’ said a middle-aged female servant, bobbing into the room. 1843 C. Dickens Martin Chuzzlewit (1844) xxvii. 333 ‘Not the truth?’ cried Tigg... ‘Don't use that Sunday School expression, please!’ 1891 R. Kipling Light that Failed xiii. 264 ‘Then I'll tell the boys..’ ‘Please not, old man.’ 1928 H. Williamson Pathway xvii. 376 ‘I..thought I would look in, Aunt Connie.’ ‘Please don't call me Aunt Connie.’ 1948 Times 24 Mar. 6/1 (advt.) Cheques, please, to ‘Operation Oxfam’, Barclays Old Bank, 92., High St., Oxford. 1970 A. Lurie Real People vi. 101 She warned him..to please wash out his sink and tub with the tub cloth and the can of Bab-O after each use. 1998 R. Ray Certain Age 123 If you must wash, please don't use more than two wipes. 2002 I. Knight Don't you want Me? iii. 36 ‘Shall I take you with me next time?’..‘Yes, please.’ B. int. Expressing incredulity or exasperation: ‘for goodness' sake’, ‘come off it’. Cf. puh-leeze int. ΚΠ 1908 E. M. Forster Room with View ii. 25 ‘I see, I see. And now you have gone over to the enemy.’ ‘Oh, please—! If my father was alive, I am sure he would vote Radical again now that Ireland is all right.’ 1919 G. B. Shaw Heartbreak House i, in Heartbreak House, Great Catherine, & Playlets of War 11 Mrs Hushabye. She is going to marry a perfect hog of a millionaire for the sake of her father, who is as poor as a church mouse; and you must help me stop her. Ellie. Oh please, Hesione. 1953 C. Beaton Diary in Self Portrait with Friends (1979) xix. 283 Oh please! I so much dislike a picture of a man trying to look as if he were taking a picture. 1981 Off our Backs 28 Feb. 23/2 ‘Did you get together because you liked each other or you couldn't find anyone else to play with?’ Oh please! not again. 1999 S. Rushdie Ground beneath her Feet (2000) x. 299 What, they should let the kids decide what they put on the air? Please. 2003 D. Brown Da Vinci Code lxvii. 283 ‘Sorry to get you involved in this, Leigh.’ ‘Oh, please, I've waited my entire life to be involved.’ This is a new entry (OED Third Edition, June 2006; most recently modified version published online March 2022). < n.c1475v.c1350adv.int.1771
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† pleasen.

pleasev.

pleaseadv.int.