postulo

Postulo is a Latin verb meaning to demand, to ask for, or to request. It is a regular 1st-conjugation verb with principal parts postulo, postulare, postulavi, postulatus. In ordinary usage it takes a direct object in the accusative to specify what is demanded (for example, Postulo pecuniam, “I demand money”), and it can introduce a clause with ut in the present or perfect subjunctive to express a demand that something happen or should be done (Postulo ut veniat, “I demand that he come”; Postulavi ut veniret, “I demanded that he should come”). The perfect passive participle postulatus is used in compound tenses and with forms of sum to mean “having been demanded.”

Etymology and related forms: The verb derives from the Latin stem postul- with the usual -o ending for the first conjugation. Related nouns include postulatio (a demand) and postulatus (one who has been demanded or, more generally, something that has been demanded).

Usage and nuance: Postulo is common in classical Latin in legal, political, and rhetorical contexts, where it often conveys a firm assertion of necessity or entitlement. It is frequently contrasted with milder verbs for requesting and can carry a stronger sense of obligation, authority, or insistence depending on context.

See also: postulare, postulatio, postulatus.