call on

1. Make a request, ask for, choose, as in We are calling upon you to run for chairman , or The teacher called on Joe to answer . [c. 1400]

2. Pay a brief visit, as in The salesman said he'd call on me in the morning . Shakespeare had this usage in Antony and Cleopatra (1:4): “I'll call upon you ere you go to bed.” [Late 1500s]

Idioms and Phrases

Also, call upon .

Example Sentences

Later that same year, the Supreme Court overturned its own precedent that had called on courts to defer to an agency's interpretation of ambiguous laws.

From Salon

Helmuth, a former member of Science’s news staff, deleted the posts and apologized, but she faced growing calls on social media for her resignation.

From Science Magazine

The commission called on the Ingram-Moores, who have already been disqualified from being charity trustees, to make a "suitable donation" to the charity in response.

From BBC

Carr recently said on X that he will ensure the FCC “will enforce” laws that call on broadcasters “to operate in the public interest.”

From Los Angeles Times

It also called on countries around the world to enforce the warrants and work to stop what it called “the crimes of genocide against defenceless civilians in the Gaza Strip”.

From BBC

Related Words

• ban
• contradict
• oppose
• rebuff
• refuse
• refute
• reject
• revoke
• turn down
• withhold