Word forms: 3rd person singular presenttense summons, present participle summoning, past tense, past participle summoned
1. verb
If you summon someone, you order them to come to you.
[formal]
Howe summoned a doctor and hurried over. [VERB noun]
Suddenly we were summoned to the interview room. [beVERB-ed preposition/adverb]
He has been summoned to appear in court on charges of incitement to law-breaking. [beVERB-ed to-infinitive]
Synonyms: send for, call, bid, invite More Synonyms of summon
2. verb
If you summon a quality, you make a great effort to have it. For example, if you summon the courage or strength to do something, you make a great effort to be brave or strong, so that you will be able to do it.
It took her a full month to summon the courage to tell her mother. [VERB noun]
Summon up means the same as summon.
Painfully shy, he finally summoned up courage to ask her to a game. [VERBPARTICLE noun]
We couldn't even summon up the energy to open the envelope. [VERBPARTICLE noun (not pronoun)]
Synonyms: gather, muster, draw on, invoke More Synonyms of summon
Phrasal verbs:
See summon up
summon in British English
(ˈsʌmən)
verb(transitive)
1.
to order to come; send for, esp to attend court, by issuing a summons
2.
to order or instruct (to do something) or call (to something)
the bell summoned them to their work
3.
to call upon to meet or convene
4. (often foll by up)
to muster or gather (one's strength, courage, etc)
Derived forms
summonable (ˈsummonable)
adjective
Word origin
C13: from Latin summonēre to give a discreet reminder, from monēre to advise
summon in American English
(ˈsʌmən)
verb transitive
1.
to call together; order to meet or convene
2.
to order to come or appear; call for or send for with authority or urgency
3.
to order, as by a summons, to appear in court
4.
to call upon to do something
5.
to call forth; rouse
often with up
summon up your courage
SIMILAR WORDS: call
Derived forms
summoner (ˈsummoner)
noun
Word origin
ME somonen < OFr somondre < VL *submonere, for L summonere, to remind privily < sub-, under, secretly + monere, to advise, warn: see monitor
Examples of 'summon' in a sentence
summon
It took me a long time to summon up the courage to ask her out though!
The Sun (2008)
The hope was that a team facing mass defections would summon one big effort.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
Can our heroine summon her courage and save the day?
The Sun (2014)
Can he finally summon up the courage to say what he really feels?
The Sun (2009)
He has been summoned to court for the third time in two weeks for doing this act of charity.
Christianity Today (2000)
Some of the civilian lorry drivers involved in the operation get drunk to summon the courage to make the run.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
She summoned super strength to pull a locked washing machine door open and grab a wet curtain to douse the flames.
The Sun (2007)
And in recent weeks she has taken to sitting for hours outside his house trying to summon the strength to confront him.
The Sun (2010)
Other walkers heard his friend's calls and summoned help.
The Sun (2014)
Two councillors in Birmingham have been summoned to court over their unpaid council tax.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
His first thought was to summon the Court again and ride out to war.
Kerr, Katharine A Time of War (1993)
Against dark skies, we must summon the strength to commit to a brighter future.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
It summoned the courage to try again but got the same short shrift as it tried tograb chicken necks left for the cat.
The Sun (2010)
A little miracle that we summoned the strength to fight back.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
I jumped back before summoning up the courage to look closer.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
He added that the generals had been summoned before a court martial after officers loyal to the Government turned them in.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
But once an offender was summoned to court, being in breach of his tagging conditions would not add to his punishment.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
It was unbelievable what happened - a little miracle that we summoned the strength to fight back and win from that position.
The Sun (2008)
After paying emergency tax he found himself almost a third worse off than when he was on benefits and was summoned to court for council tax arrears.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Leaving the 17th green and walking up to the next tee, he summoned one last effort.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
He has to make it plain to them, and afterwards to the wider party, that he will heed the call if summoned.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
Calls to summon help for people who had fainted had risen 30 per cent and for those with chest pain by 29 per cent.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
In other languages
summon
British English: summon VERB
If you summon someone, you order them to come to you.
He summoned a doctor and hurried over.
American English: summon
Brazilian Portuguese: convocar
Chinese: 召唤
European Spanish: llamar
French: convoquer
German: kommen lassen
Italian: convocare
Japanese: 呼びつける
Korean: 호출하다
European Portuguese: convocar
Latin American Spanish: llamar
Chinese translation of 'summon'
summon
(ˈsʌmən)
vt
[person, police, help]召唤(喚) (zhàohuàn)
(Law) 传(傳)讯(訊) (chuánxùn)
[strength, courage] (also summon up) 鼓起 (gǔqǐ)
1 (verb)
Definition
to call upon (someone) to do something
Howe summoned a doctor and hurried over.
Synonyms
send for
call
The group promised to call a meeting of shareholders.
bid
I dare say he did as he was bidden.
invite
She invited him to her birthday party.
rally
assemble
The assembled multitude cheered as the leaders arrived.
convene
He convened a meeting of all the managers.
call together
convoke (formal)
2 (verb)
Definition
to call into action (one's strength, courage, etc.)
We couldn't even summon up the energy to open the envelope.
Synonyms
gather
You must gather your strength for the journey.
muster
The general had mustered his troops north of the border.
draw on
invoke
mobilize
We must try to mobilize international support.
call into action
Additional synonyms
in the sense of assemble
Definition
to collect or gather together
The assembled multitude cheered as the leaders arrived.
Synonyms
bring together,
collect,
gather,
rally,
summon,
accumulate,
round up,
marshal,
come together,
muster,
convene,
amass,
congregate,
call together,
foregather,
convoke (formal)
in the sense of bid
Definition
to order
I dare say he did as he was bidden.
Synonyms
tell,
call,
ask,
order,
charge (formal),
require,
direct,
desire (formal),
invite,
command,
summon,
instruct,
solicit,
enjoin
in the sense of call
The group promised to call a meeting of shareholders.
Synonyms
summon,
gather,
invite,
rally,
assemble,
muster,
convene,
convoke,
collect
Synonyms of 'summon'
summon
Explore 'summon' in the dictionary
Additional synonyms
in the sense of convene
Definition
to gather or summon for a formal meeting
He convened a meeting of all the managers.
Synonyms
call,
gather,
assemble,
summon,
bring together,
muster,
convoke (formal)
in the sense of convoke
Definition
to call together
Synonyms
call together,
collect,
gather,
assemble,
summon,
muster,
convene
in the sense of invite
Definition
to ask (a person) in a friendly or polite way (to do something, attend an event, etc.)
She invited him to her birthday party.
Synonyms
ask,
bid,
summon,
request the pleasure of (someone's) company
in the sense of mobilize
Definition
to organize for a purpose
We must try to mobilize international support.
Synonyms
rally,
organize,
stimulate,
excite,
prompt,
marshal,
activate,
awaken,
animate,
muster,
foment,
put in motion
in the sense of muster
Definition
to call or be called together for duty or inspection
The general had mustered his troops north of the border.