# requested (for) something



## AskLang

I requested a morning delivery with Vilma.
I requested *for *a morning delivery with Vilma.

Can _for _be omitted without a change in meaning?

Thanks.


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## FrenglyGirl

Yes it can.


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## AskLang

Thank you.


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## boozer

FrenglyGirl said:


> Yes it can.


It can or it must?

I always thought the use of "for" was wrong in such cases.


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## AskLang

But,

_I requested Vilma *of *a morning delivery._

Is this also right? Or should I maintain the 'for'?


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## FrenglyGirl

boozer said:


> It can or it must?
> 
> I always thought the use of "for" was wrong in such cases.


 

To use "for" in this way is perfectly acceptable


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## FrenglyGirl

AskLang said:


> But,
> 
> _I requested Vilma *of *a morning delivery._
> 
> Is this also right? Or should I maintain the 'for'?


 

No it's more grammatically correct to say "I requested a morning delivery *from* Vilma"


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## Nunty

I strongly disagree. It is not correct or idiomatic to say _I requested *for* a morning delivery. _We do say, _I *made a request for*_a morning delivery. In the first sentence, _requested _is a verb; in the second, it is a noun.


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## boozer

Nunty said:


> I strongly disagree. It is not correct or idiomatic to say _I requested *for* a morning delivery. _We do say, _I *made a request for*_a morning delivery. In the first sentence, _requested _is a verb; in the second, it is a noun.


Thanks a lot for saying that, Nunty  I thought I was wrong as usual 

PS. I could still be wrong, but at least I am not alone


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## Hermione Golightly

( Is Vilma a person?)

I asked Vilma to make the delivery in the morning.
I asked Vilma for a morning delivery/delivery in the morning

_I requested Vilma *of *a morning delivery.

_I think we could say_request__ something of somebody_ but it is a very old fashioned way of talking, ridiculously formal in my opinion. Maybe _from _is an option to _of_ but it sounds even weirder to me.

Hermione


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## FrenglyGirl

Each to their own, but it is very common to say "I requested for" something.


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## AskLang

So, it should be 'make for' and not 'request for'?


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## Nunty

FrenglyGirl said:


> Each to their own, but it is very common to say "i requested for" something.



Can you tell us in what variety of English "requested for [something]" is common?

(By the way, please remember that we need to use standard forms here, including capitalizing the word _*I*_.)


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## FrenglyGirl

Nunty said:


> Can you tell us in what variety of English "requested for [something]" is common?
> 
> (By the way, please remember that we need to use standard forms here, including capitalizing the word _*I*_.)


 
Yes that was a typo on my part. Just a few examples:

"I requested for some information"
"I requested for an extension on my paper"
"I requested for a new credit card after mine was stolen"


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## Nunty

None of those sound idiomatic to me. Which variety of English do you speak or in which variety of English have you heard this formula? (By "variety" I mean English from what region.)


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## timpeac

I've never heard "to request for something" in Britain. It sounds like someone mixing up "to ask for" and "to request" to my ear.


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## FrenglyGirl

Nunty said:


> None of those sound idiomatic to me. Which variety of English do you speak or in which variety of English have you heard this formula? (By "variety" I mean English from what region.)


 
Born and bred in good old London  It may have to be a case of agree to disagree as I've certainly heard it used before.


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## Nunty

Maybe it's one of those familial expressions.  Is any other Londoner familiar with this usage?


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## Loob

Not a Londoner, though I lived and worked there for nearly twenty years.

I have never heard "to request for something". "To ask for something", yes; "to make a request for something", yes. But not "to request for something"; it sounds completely wrong to me, as it clearly does to others.


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## timpeac

I've lived all my life _near _London, although not in it - and as I say above it sounds wrong to me. It sounds like a believable native-speaker error to me where someone has got mixed up between "to ask for" and "to request" either in speech or in writing if they haven't reread what they have put.


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## panjandrum

Request is not like ask.

I can ask Bill for a spade.
I can ask for a spade.
I can request a spade from Bill.
I can request that Bill provide me with a spade.

But according to all usage that I am familiar with and the definitions and examples in the OED, "I requested for a spade..." is not standard English.

The examples of _requested for_ in the BNC are passive voice - _Samples have been requested for appraisal..._


Looking in the COCA, there are some examples that are equivalent to "I requested for a spade...", so this may be used in some variants of AE.
MensHealth  ...the most popular doctors in the hospital, and consequently, one of the most *requested* *for* intricate procedures requiring lots of anesthesia.
NPR_Sunday  ...lot of meats and vegetables, but pretty much basically bread, rice. We *requested* *for* Coca-Cola and we received that for lunch and dinner

I leave it for AE-speakers to comment on the very few examples available.
But on the basis of all the available evidence, I advise AskLang not to use _I requested for..._.

BNC - British National Corpus
COCA - Corpus of Contemporary American English
COHA - Corpus of Historical American English


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## FrenglyGirl

Ok, I'm clearly alone here, but I just ran a google search on this to prove that I'm not actually going crazy , and I found this example:

_"Recently, I requested for change of option from dividend payout to reinvestment option in one of the mutual fund schemes that I had invested. I was surprised to note that they had deducted STT @ 0.25% from my account, mentioning that it is a switch from one option to other and STT is payable" -_ The Financial Express, 2008

I'm happy to admit defeat and say that it may be _grammatically_ wrong , but it is definitely used.


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## Parla

FrenglyGirl said:


> Each to their own, but it is very common to say "I requested for" something.



Certainly not in the US, and not in the UK or in any other English-speaking country, to the best of my knowledge.

One might well say *asked for*--but not "requested for." The latter is just plain wrong.


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## timpeac

Looking through the Google results I will agree with Frengly Girl that it does occur (although I think we're all in agreement that it's not correct grammar). I think that if it is not a simple mix up like I suggest above between "to ask for" and "to request" it might be a type of hypercorrection.

I think that the quote Frengly Girl gives in post 22 could be an example of this. Here we have someone writing about formal matters in a formal publication and I think that they are trying to give their words a weightier impact by using a more "refined" word such as "request" instead of "ask", but really they do mean "ask" in their mind as they are writing and so they stick with the usual grammar of "ask" and continue with a "for". In other words people trying to sound "posher" than they are, but making errors in the process.


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## Loob

FrenglyGirl said:


> Ok, I'm clearly alone here, but I just ran a google search on this to prove that I'm not actually going crazy , and I found this example:
> 
> _"Recently, I requested for change of option from dividend payout to reinvestment option in one of the mutual fund schemes that I had invested. I was surprised to note that they had deducted STT @ 0.25% from my account, mentioning that it is a switch from one option to other and STT is payable" -_ The Financial Express, 2008
> 
> I'm happy to admit defeat and say that it may be _grammatically_ wrong , but it is definitely used.


I see that your example comes from an Indian publication, Frengly. It seems to me to be eminently possible that "request for" is standard in Indian English: we quite often come across similar differences between Indian English and AmE/BrE. 

I wonder if you have heard it in London from Indian English speakers?


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## boozer

In full honesty, guys, I have also heard and seen "to request for" millions of times. But that is because I once worked for 5 years with Indians. And the ones I worked with used it continuously and without moderation.  So I've looked it up in dictionaries time and again (never brought myself to like it). And that is why it struck me as odd that it should be suggested as an option here.

And yes, it has always sounded to me like a mix-up between "ask for" and "request"...

PS. And yes, Loob, I totally agree


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## ewie

Just dropping by to add my name to the pile: I have _never in all my born years_ heard someone say 'request for'.  Mind you, I've never lived in London ... or India ... or amongst Indians in London.

Incidentally, *both* the examples from the COCA that Panjo gave _[post #21]_ sound to me like what Tim _[# 24] _calls "people trying to sound "posher" than they are, but making errors in the process": _We received Coca-Cola for lunch and dinner?_  Do me a favour.


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## Elle Paris

AskLang said:


> So, it should be 'make for' and not 'request for'?


Make a request for something
request something
ask for something


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## panjandrum

I've been looking for support for the Indian English theory, starting close to home.

WordReference EO forum
"I requested for approval"
A native Tamil-speaker asking about this structure.
Request [for] a room
A member from India asking about "I requested (for) a room..."

Google News
Patnaik has sought Prime Minister’s intervention and requested for  allocating the 100-million tonne Piplimal coal mines to Aditya Birla  firm Hindalco's Hirakud project.
New Delhi TV

Roger Lamb, general manager of JT International Philippines Inc., in his  letter to Mandanas, also requested for more time to submit their  company’s position paper to the committee on ways and means.
Philippines

Music man Ogie is guaranteeing a fantastic show, despite an unfortunate  experience its producers, Pilita Uy and Elaine Endriga, had at a public  hearing in Pasay City when they requested for a tax exemption and was  denied. 
Malaya

GJM president Bimal Gurung, who led a delegation, told reporters that  they had requested for her help in the inclusion of Dooars and Terai in  the proposed interim set-up. 
Hindustan Times

The petition reportedly requested for a rescheduling citing the Prime  Minister’s engagements. 
Pakistan

Interesting.
Another example of something that seems really odd to many of us but turns out to be routine, and correct, usage in an unfamiliar version of English.


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## Loob

Interesting, panj - so the usage goes well beyond Indian English.... 

Noting that the OP in this thread is from the Philippines, I wonder if our answer should be (1) that in his variety of English, "request for" may well be standard, but in AmE and BrE it isn't (2) the inclusion or omission of "for" appears to make no difference to the sense.


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## Imber Ranae

panjandrum said:


> Looking in the COCA, there are some examples that are equivalent to "I requested for a spade...", so this may be used in some variants of AE.
> MensHealth  ...the most popular doctors in the hospital, and consequently, one of the most *requested* *for* intricate procedures requiring lots of anesthesia.
> NPR_Sunday  ...lot of meats and vegetables, but pretty much basically bread, rice. We *requested* *for* Coca-Cola and we received that for lunch and dinner
> 
> I leave it for AE-speakers to comment on the very few examples available.
> But on the basis of all the available evidence, I advise AskLang not to use _I requested for..._.
> 
> BNC - British National Corpus
> COCA - Corpus of Contemporary American English
> COHA - Corpus of Historical American English




Hi, Panjandrum.

The second example looks genuine, though I'd stress that it's a radio transcript of an interview with a U.S. Navy officer who was involved in the Hainan Island incident. I tend to see it as an instance of timpeac's hyper-correction hypothesis, i.e. a non-standard construction used by someone in a formal context who is under the mistaken impression that it makes him/her sound more refined simply because it's not how he/she would normally speak. Service members try to present themselves well to the media but are often unused to such situations.

Your first example, however, has been misconstrued. Here's a better view of the context:Dr. Junig would be caught quickly if he stole too much fentanyl at once, but ironically, his stellar touch with patients gave him many chances to siphon off a little at a time. He was one of the most popular doctors in the hospital, and consequently, one of the most requested for intricate procedures requiring lots of anesthesia.​"Intricate procedures" are not what is being requested; rather, the physician himself is. The word "for" here simply introduces a prepositional phrase that explains the purpose for which patients are requesting him.


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## panjandrum

Thank you Imber Ranae - I didn't read enough of the quote to spot this.


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## Elle Paris

totally agree with #19 and 20.


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## Elle Paris

panjandrum said:


> I've been looking for support for the Indian English theory, starting close to home.
> 
> WordReference EO forum
> "I requested for approval"
> A native Tamil-speaker asking about this structure.
> Request [for] a room
> A member from India asking about "I requested (for) a room..."
> 
> Google News
> Patnaik has sought Prime Minister’s intervention and requested for allocating the 100-million tonne Piplimal coal mines to Aditya Birla firm Hindalco's Hirakud project.
> New Delhi TV
> 
> Roger Lamb, general manager of JT International Philippines Inc., in his letter to Mandanas, also requested for more time to submit their company’s position paper to the committee on ways and means.
> Philippines
> 
> Music man Ogie is guaranteeing a fantastic show, despite an unfortunate experience its producers, Pilita Uy and Elaine Endriga, had at a public hearing in Pasay City when they requested for a tax exemption and was denied.
> Malaya
> 
> GJM president Bimal Gurung, who led a delegation, told reporters that they had requested for her help in the inclusion of Dooars and Terai in the proposed interim set-up.
> Hindustan Times
> 
> The petition reportedly requested for a rescheduling citing the Prime Minister’s engagements.
> Pakistan
> 
> Interesting.
> Another example of something that seems really odd to many of us but turns out to be routine, and correct, usage in an unfamiliar version of English.


 
All the same, it is not correct despite the fact that it is widespread in those regions. It is a common mistake there, as are others in other parts of the world.


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## timpeac

Elle Paris said:


> All the same, it is not correct despite the fact that it is widespread in those regions. It is a common mistake there, as are others in other parts of the world.


How do you know? Indian English has proved itself many times in these forums to have a different standard from many other varieties.


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## Elle Paris

I am not sure what you mean. If a great number of people speak one way that makes it right, is that it?


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## Imber Ranae

Elle Paris said:


> I am not sure what you mean. If a great number of people speak one way that makes it right, is that it?



I think he means that it may be considered quite proper in India, where English is an official language, so just because it happens to be wrong in the standard English of Anglophone countries doesn't mean it's necessarily substandard in all official varieties of the language.


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## timpeac

Elle Paris said:


> I am not sure what you mean. If a great number of people speak one way that makes it right, is that it?


Different varieties of English have different standards, yes. As an American you write "color" "aluminum" and "go to the hopital". As an Englishman I write "colour" "aluminium" and "go to hospital". Standard Indian English, as used in respected learned publications there, has often proved itself to be very different from English English and American English.


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## Loob

Elle Paris said:


> I am not sure what you mean. If a great number of people speak one way that makes it right, is that it?


Yes, in a word. (Imber and Tim put it better!)


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## Elle Paris

timpeac said:


> Different varieties of English have different standards, yes. As an American you write "color" "aluminum" and "go to the hopital". As an Englishman I write "colour" "aluminium" and "go to hospital". Standard Indian English, as used in respected learned publications there, has often proved itself to be very different from English English and American English.


 
Very well, I didn't know that. Thank you, that saves me from correcting someone speaking Standard Indian English! 
So, for example, is the French spoken in all second language francophone countries considered as admissible also, or is it because we don't have an English Academy comparable to the acadamie Francaise?


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## Nunty

Elle Paris said:


> Very well, I didn't know that. Thank you, that saves me from correcting someone speaking Standard Indian English!
> So, for example, is the French spoken in all second language francophone countries considered as admissible also, or is it because we don't have an English Academy comparable to the acadamie Francaise?



Exactly. There is no academy of the English language. That makes matters a little more difficult and (in my opinion) a lot more interesting.


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## timpeac

Elle Paris said:


> Very well, I didn't know that. Thank you, that saves me from correcting someone speaking Standard Indian English!
> So, for example, is the French spoken in all second language francophone countries considered as admissible also, or is it because we don't have an English Academy comparable to the acadamie Francaise?



Admissible where?

English is an official language in India with over 90 million speakers.  

As to correcting someone or not it depends on who is speaking and what they are aiming to speak. If a foreign speaker uses grammar acceptable in Indian English when they aim to use standard British English then they should be corrected. If an Indian native speaker uses Indian English grammar I think you'd be hard pushed to "correct" them.


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## panjandrum

This thread is not the place to discuss varieties of French, or even varieties of English.


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## EdisonBhola

I just looked through five dictionaries: Oxford, Cambridge, Macmillan, Collins, Longman. All say that "request" is a transitive verb, meaning we should say "people request something" and not "people request for something".

I also browsed some trustworthy websites:
'Request Something' or 'Request for Something'?
Is 'request for' correct? - English Grammar - English - The Free Dictionary Language Forums


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## Elle Paris

There is "to ask for" and "to request" implying the bigger possiblity of a "no" answer, but not "to request for" (but not as groveling as "to beg for" or "to plead for"). However, there is "to put in/placing a request for" as a more formal way of "asking for" (more possibly in written form ) without demanding or ordering, the latter two implying a smaller possibility of a "no" answer -although debatable.


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## Loob

EdisonBhola said:


> I just looked through five dictionaries: Oxford, Cambridge, Macmillan, Collins, Longman. All say that "request" is a transitive verb, meaning we should say "people request something" and not "people request for something".
> 
> I also browsed some trustworthy websites:
> 'Request Something' or 'Request for Something'?
> Is 'request for' correct? - English Grammar - English - The Free Dictionary Language Forums


That's not surprising, Edison. Nor does it conflict with what's said in the earlier part of the thread. Did you have a question about it?


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## EdisonBhola

Loob said:


> That's not surprising, Edison. Nor does it conflict with what's said in the earlier part of the thread. Did you have a question about it?


Not anymore.  I was trying to look for a definitive answer to this question before, and I think I've made up my mind to follow standard English and use "request" as a transitive verb.


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## MrMadrid

FrenglyGirl said:


> Each to their own, but it is very common to say "I requested for" something.



No, it is not very common. 
In fact, it is completely incorrect. 
I have never heard that, or seen that, ever, and I am a native speaker and professional translator.


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## MrMadrid

panjandrum said:


> I've been looking for support for the Indian English theory, starting close to home.
> 
> WordReference EO forum
> "I requested for approval"
> A native Tamil-speaker asking about this structure.
> Request [for] a room
> A member from India asking about "I requested (for) a room..."
> 
> Google News
> Patnaik has sought Prime Minister’s intervention and requested for  allocating the 100-million tonne Piplimal coal mines to Aditya Birla  firm Hindalco's Hirakud project.
> New Delhi TV
> 
> Roger Lamb, general manager of JT International Philippines Inc., in his  letter to Mandanas, also requested for more time to submit their  company’s position paper to the committee on ways and means.
> Philippines
> 
> Music man Ogie is guaranteeing a fantastic show, despite an unfortunate  experience its producers, Pilita Uy and Elaine Endriga, had at a public  hearing in Pasay City when they requested for a tax exemption and was  denied.
> Malaya
> 
> GJM president Bimal Gurung, who led a delegation, told reporters that  they had requested for her help in the inclusion of Dooars and Terai in  the proposed interim set-up.
> Hindustan Times
> 
> The petition reportedly requested for a rescheduling citing the Prime  Minister’s engagements.
> Pakistan
> 
> Interesting.
> Another example of something that seems really odd to many of us but turns out to be routine, and correct, usage in an unfamiliar version of English.



  This is NOT standard international English
  It is a regional variation, apparently unique to India. 
  In fact, outside of India it is completely incorrect and jarring to the ear. 
  So ... user beware.
  I have never seen or heard it, ever, and I am a professional translator.
  I would avoid it - unless you are in India.


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## Elle Paris

AskLang said:


> I requested a morning delivery with Vilma.
> I requested *for *a morning delivery with Vilma.
> 
> Can _for _be omitted without a change in meaning?
> 
> Thanks.


I would consider "request for" incorrect.  We request something, ask for something, put in a request for something, order something, place an order for something.


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## MrMadrid

I understand. I thought it was totally incorrect as well, but, apparently, it is used in India.

Thus, anyone using it should be aware that in the USA, and the UK, it will be jarring to the native ear.



Elle Paris said:


> I would consider "request for" incorrect.  We request something, ask for something, put in a request for something, order something, place an order for something.


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