- (v.t.) To make a prayer or request to; to ask from; to solicit; to entreat; especially, to make a formal written supplication or application to, as to any branch of the government; as, to petition the court; to petition the governor.
- (n.) A formal written request addressed to an official person or to an organized body, having power to grant it; specifically (Law), a supplication to government, in either of its branches, for the granting of a particular grace or right; -- in distinction from a memorial, which calls certain facts to mind; also, the written document.
- (n.) A prayer; a supplication; an imploration; an entreaty; especially, a request of a solemn or formal kind; a prayer to the Supreme Being or to a person of superior power, rank or authority; also, a single clause in such a prayer.
- (v.i.) To make a petition or solicitation.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
| APA | Webster's. (2011). petition. Retrieved September 23, 2026, from http://smartdefine.org/petition/definitions/2044379 |
| Chicago | Webster's. 2011. "petition" http://smartdefine.org/petition/definitions/2044379 (accessed September 23, 2026). |
| Harvard | Webster's 2011, petition, Smart Define, viewed 23 September, 2026, <http://smartdefine.org/petition/definitions/2044379>. |
| MLA | Webster's. "petition" 27 May 2011. Web. 23 September 2026. <http://smartdefine.org/petition/definitions/2044379> |