Ask.com was originally known as Ask Jeeves,<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://www.searchenginewatch.com/1997/08/04/the-search-engine-report-august-5-1997-number-9/|title=The Search Engine Report - August 5, 1997 Number 9|last=Engine Report|first=The Search|date=August 5, 1997|website=[[Search Engine Watch]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19980706221359/http://www.searchenginewatch.com/sereport/9708-askjeeves.html|archive-date=July 6, 1998|url-status=live|access-date=January 15, 2019}}</ref> "Jeeves" being the name of a "gentleman's personal gentleman", or [[valet]], fetching answers to any question asked. The character was named after [[Jeeves]], [[Bertie Wooster]]'s valet in the fictional works of [[P. G. Wodehouse]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://searchenginewatch.com/sew/news/2063925/whats-in-a-search-engines-name|title=What's In A (Search Engine's) Name?|last=Sherman|first=Chris|date=2003-10-08|website=Search Engine Watch|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150103053032/http://searchenginewatch.com/sew/news/2063925/whats-in-a-search-engines-name|archive-date=2015-01-03|access-date=2019-02-13}}</ref>
url=https://web.archive.org/web/19980706221359/http://www.searchenginewatch.com/sereport/9708-askjeeves.html|archive-date=July 6, 1998|url-status=live|access-date=January 15, 2019}}</ref> "Jeeves" being the name of a "gentleman's personal gentleman", or [[valet]], fetching answers to any question asked. The character was named after [[Jeeves]], [[Bertie Wooster]]'s valet in the fictional works of [[P. G. Wodehouse]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://searchenginewatch.com/sew/news/2063925/whats-in-a-search-engines-name|title=What's In A (Search Engine's) Name?|last=Sherman|first=Chris|date=2003-10-08|website=Search Engine Watch|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150103053032/http://searchenginewatch.com/sew/news/2063925/whats-in-a-search-engines-name|archive-date=2015-01-03|access-date=2019-02-13}}</ref>
The original idea behind Ask Jeeves was to allow users to get answers to questions in everyday, [[natural language]], and traditional keyword searching. The current Ask.com still supports this for math, dictionary, and conversion questions.