glorify
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
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to make glorious
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to make more splendid; adorn
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to worship, exalt, or adore
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to extol
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to cause to seem more splendid or imposing than reality
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of glorify
1300–50; Middle English < Old French glorifier < Late Latin glōrificāre. See glory, -fy
Explanation
To glorify is to praise or honor something or someone to an extreme degree. If you like someone, you might compliment or praise them, but glorifying takes that a step further. When something is glorified, it is praised to the highest degree possible. It seems right that great people like Martin Luther King and Gandhi are glorified. It can seem odd when athletes are glorified just for playing a game. Often this word is used in a negative sense. For example, a movie with lots of explosions could be said "to glorify violence."
Vocabulary lists containing glorify
Purple Hibiscus
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Shiloh
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
His latest epic, “Mount Olympus: To Glorify the Cult of Tragedy,” is a 24-hour performance, an “attack on time,” as he has called it.
From New York Times • Nov. 8, 2018
"Glorify or vilify them. The one thing you can't do is ignore them."
From The Verge • Mar. 25, 2015
"Glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are his."
From The Destiny of the Soul A Critical History of the Doctrine of a Future Life by Alger, William Rounseville
Throughout, her declaration is that her sole aim in life has invariably been, "Glorify Thyself in Me!"
From The Letters of the Duke of Wellington to Miss J. 1834-1851 Edited by Extracts from the Diary of the Latter by Wellington, Duke of
Glorify thy Son so that thy Son may also glorify thee, as you have given Him power over all flesh so He could give eternal life to as many as you have given Him.
From All Four Gospels for Readers by Anonymous
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
