The verb ask has 7 senses (first 7 from tagged texts)
1. (654) ask, inquire, enquire -- (inquire about; "I asked about their special today"; "He had to ask directions several times")
2. (433) ask -- (make a request or demand for something to somebody; "She asked him for a loan")
3. (86) ask -- (direct or put; seek an answer to; "ask a question")
4. (50) ask, require, expect -- (consider obligatory; request and expect; "We require our secretary to be on time"; "Aren't we asking too much of these children?"; "I expect my students to arrive in time for their lessons")
5. (3) ask -- (require or ask for as a price or condition; "He is asking $200 for the table"; "The kidnappers are asking a million dollars in return for the release of their hostage")
6. (3) ask -- (address a question to and expect an answer from; "Ask your teacher about trigonometry"; "The children asked me about their dead grandmother")
7. (2) necessitate, ask, postulate, need, require, take, involve, call for, demand -- (require as useful, just, or proper; "It takes nerve to do what she did"; "success usually requires hard work"; "This job asks a lot of patience and skill"; "This position demands a lot of personal sacrifice"; "This dinner calls for a spectacular dessert"; "This intervention does not postulate a patient's consent")