woo
verb

- try to gain the love of (a woman), especially with a view to marriage

- to seek the favour, support, or custom of

(Oxford English Dictionary)

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When people hear the name Shakespeare, most think about the famous line from Hamlet, "To be or not to be, that is the question." Since OWAD is an English language service, we won't try to answer this deeply philosophical question. Instead, let us look at another one of Shakespeare's important subjects: to woo or not to woo.

Shakespeare obviously loved this concept, if not the word itself. He recognized the value of wooing as a tool of seduction, a topic that comes up time and again in his works:

The Earl of Suffolk in Henry VI:
"She's beautiful, and therefore to be WOOED.
She is a woman, therefore to be won."

In King Richard III, the mad King takes cruel pleasure in having won the beautiful Anne after murdering her husband Edward:
"Was ever woman in this humour WOOED?
Was ever woman in this humour won?"

In A Midsummer Night's Dream, Helena captures the true feminine spirit:
"We cannot fight for love as men may do.
We should be WOOED, and were not made to woo."

In the Taming of the Shrew, Petruchio explains the macho perspective:
"For I am rough, and WOO not like a babe."
"I will attend her here and woo her with some spirit when she comes."

Finally, in Much Ado About Nothing, Benedick takes a practical view because he and Beatrice have been pushed together as a result of a social conspiracy:
"Thou and I are too wise to WOO peaceably."

Etymology: Woo stems from the Old English "wogian," which is of uncertain origin and with no known cognates. It could be related to woh, wog- "bent, inclined," as with affection.

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SYNONYMS

court, curry favour, entice, make overtures to, pursue, run after, seek

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Practice OWAD in a conversation today, say something like:

"Skilled sales professionals know how to effectively WOO customers."