求める
もとめる · motomeru · JLPT N3 · verb-ichidan
to seek
🔍 motomeru sounds like More to me! — what you say when you ask for something
Hear mo-to-me as more to me, the line of someone asking or searching for more. The kanji 求 is also in 要求 (demand) and 追求 (pursuit), so it covers both asking for something and seeking it out.
求 — pictograph of a fur garment
求 originally depicted a fur coat or pelt, with hairs hanging from the sides. It was later borrowed phonetically to mean 'seek' or 'request,' and the original 'fur' meaning was taken over by 裘. Today 求 almost always means to seek, beg, or pursue.