What does importune mean?
Importune means to demand or request something persistently, and as an adjective it describes a person, appeal, or demand that is insistently pressing. Its use often implies that the request has become difficult to ignore or unwelcome, especially when the person asking is applying repeated pressure. The verb can be transitive, as in “importune someone for an answer,” while the adjective commonly modifies requests, petitions, demands, or petitioners. The word is formal and has a literary or legal tone, and it is more characteristic of British English than everyday American usage. Its history is especially memorable: it comes from the Latin importunus, meaning “not opportune” or “inconvenient.” What once referred to timing was gradually applied to persistent behavior, so that an importune request became one that keeps returning regardless of the inconvenience it causes. The related adjective importunate and noun importunacy make the family of forms familiar even to readers who rarely encounter importune itself.
Persistently demanding, pressing, or unreasonably persistent; said especially of requests, appeals, and persons who make them.
"The office was overwhelmed by importune calls from people seeking refunds."
The adjective is formal and generally suggests a degree of persistence or pressure that is excessive or unwelcome.
To request or demand something persistently or insistently.
"Several neighbors importuned the landlord to repair the broken heating system."
Usually used with a person as the object, especially in formal, legal, or historical contexts.
The word began with the idea of asking at an inconvenient time: Latin importunus literally meant “not opportune.” Over time, importune came to describe the persistent pressure of someone who would not stop asking.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does importune come from?
The English word comes through French from Latin importunus, formed from the prefix in- and opportunus, with the sense “not opportune,” “inconvenient,” or “unfitting.” In early English usage it referred especially to requests or timing that was ill suited or untimely. The meaning later developed toward the modern idea of persistent or unreasonable insistence. Related forms such as importunate and importunacy continue the same Latin root, which also underlies opportune and opportunity.
Related word forms
How importune is actually used
Importune is formal and comparatively uncommon in contemporary American English, though it is used in legal, governmental, and literary contexts. The adjective often carries a negative or slightly disapproving implication, suggesting that the persistence is excessive or socially unwelcome.
Easily confused with importune
Importune can function as a verb meaning to demand something persistently, while importunate is chiefly an adjective describing someone or something as insistently demanding.