greet1
- to address with some form of salutation; welcome.
- to meet or receive: to be greeted by cheering crowds; to greet a proposal with boos and hisses.
- to manifest itself to: Music greeted his ear as he entered the salon.
- Obsolete. to give salutations on meeting.
Origin of greet1
Synonyms
See more synonyms on Thesaurus.comgreet2
- to grieve; lament; cry.
- to lament; bewail.
Origin of greet2
Examples from the Web for greet
Contemporary Examples
"That was crazy," Lynn Jenkins of Kansas muttered to another member as she walked to greet Boehner.
Her brother Mulbah Sirleaf said Dedee could not be there to greet her child because her “heart was hurting.”
Those are the first words that slip out of my mouth when I greet Andrew Garfield at a hotel suite in Downtown Toronto.
Andrew Garfield on the Evils of Capitalism, the Hacking Scandal, and Criticism of ‘Spider-Man 2’Marlow Stern
September 10, 2014
Women parade in front of visitors, kiss them on the cheek, and greet them with “Fique à vontade” (Make yourself comfortable).
The World Cup of Prostitution: How the Soccer Tourney Is Affecting Brazil’s Sex WorkersMarlow Stern
July 12, 2014
Shaw put himself right alongside the line and took a minute to shake hands and greet each delegate.
Historical Examples
But I had no time to say another word to him, as I turned to greet Mrs. Marshall.
The Bacillus of BeautyHarriet Stark
But what dignitary is this crossing from the other side to greet the governor?
Main StreetNathaniel Hawthorne
Napoleon, indeed, was scarce able to greet his visitor pleasantly.
The Boy Life of NapoleonEugenie Foa
She did not greet him in any way, but turned her head to address commands.
The Leopard WomanStewart Edward White
He hurried home so that he might be there to greet her when she returned from her work.
The Foolish LoversSt. John G. Ervine
greet1
- to meet or receive with expressions of gladness or welcome
- to send a message of friendship to
- to receive in a specified mannerher remarks were greeted by silence
- to become apparent tothe smell of bread greeted him
Word Origin
greet2
- (intr) to weep; lament
- weeping; lamentation
Word Origin
Word Origin and History for greet
v.
Old English gretan "to come in contact with" (in sense of "attack, accost" as well as "salute, welcome," and "touch, take hold of, handle"), from West Germanic *grotjan (cf. Old Saxon grotian, Old Frisian greta, Dutch groeten, Old High German gruozen, German grüßen "to salute, greet"), perhaps originally "to resound" (via notion of "cause to speak"), causative of Proto-Germanic *grætanan, root of Old English grætan (Anglian gretan) "weep, bewail," from PIE *gher- "to call out." Greet still can mean "cry, weep" in Scottish & northern England dialect, though this might be from a different root. Grætan is probably also the source of the second element in regret. Related: Greeted; greeting.