requerere

Requerere is a Latin verb whose core meaning ranges from to seek for, to require, to demand, to ask for. It is formed with the prefix re- added to quaerere, the basic verb meaning “to seek,” and it belongs to the third conjugation of Latin -ere verbs. The standard infinitive is usually given as requirere in classical Latin, while medieval Latin and some later uses occasionally spell it as requerere.

In classical contexts, requerere covers both literal acts of seeking and more figurative senses such as demanding or requiring something from someone. Over time, in Late Latin and medieval Latin, its sense broadened toward “to need” or “to claim as due,” and the verb appears in legal, administrative, and ecclesiastical language as well as in everyday prose.

The verb has the typical -ere verb morphology of Latin, and its use in Latin gave rise to several Romance-language cognates. In Spanish the descendant is requerir (to require or to need); in Italian, richiedere (to request or to require); in French, requérir (to require, often in formal or legal registers); in Portuguese, requerer (to require). These descendants generally retain the core meanings of demanding, needing, or requesting, though nuances vary by language and context.

See also: quaerere, the root verb, and other Latin prefixes used with quaerere to form related meanings.