appreciate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
appreciates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
appreciated,
past participle, past
-
appreciating
present participle
-
to be grateful or thankful for.
They appreciated his thoughtfulness.
-
to value or regard highly; place a high estimate on.
to appreciate good wine.
-
to be fully conscious of; be aware of; detect.
to appreciate the dangers of a situation.
-
to raise in value.
verb (used without object)
-
appreciates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
appreciated,
past participle, past
-
appreciating
present participle
verb
-
to feel thankful or grateful for
to appreciate a favour
-
(may take a clause as object) to take full or sufficient account of
to appreciate a problem
-
to value highly
to appreciate Shakespeare
-
(usually intr) to raise or increase in value
Usage
What are other ways to say appreciate? To appreciate something is to value or regard it highly. How is appreciate different from esteem, value, and prize? Learn more on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
appreciatesimple
-
appreciatessimple
-
have appreciatedperfect
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has appreciatedperfect
-
am appreciatingprogressive
-
are appreciatingprogressive
-
is appreciatingprogressive
-
have been appreciatingperfect progressive
-
has been appreciatingperfect progressive
Past
-
appreciatedsimple
-
had appreciatedperfect
-
was appreciatingprogressive
-
were appreciatingprogressive
-
had been appreciatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of appreciate
First recorded in 1645–55; from Medieval Latin appreciātus “valued, appraised,” from Late Latin appretiātus, past participle of appretiāre “to appraise” (equivalent to Latin ap- ap- 1 + preti(um) price + -ātus -ate 1 )
Explanation
If you appreciate something, you recognize its value. We can all appreciate how refreshing cold lemonade is on a sweltering summer day. The oldest meaning of appreciate is "to know the worth of something": "The parolee appreciated his newfound freedom." A related sense is "to be grateful for something," but this usage can sound wordy. Instead of "I would appreciate your sending me more information," consider: "Please send me more information." The word can also be used (without a direct object) to mean "to rise in worth": "The vintage Corvette would appreciate in value over the years."
Vocabulary lists containing appreciate
List 4
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"Icarus's Flight," Vocabulary from the poem
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Because of Winn-Dixie
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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.
See Examples For:
In her view, farmers who don’t want a data center might not appreciate that family farms become family inheritances.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
Barnard's journey has made him "appreciate the little things a lot more", he says.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
Many of those on Air Force One, including the traveling press, didn’t appreciate discovering that they had been put on a decoy plane that government officials thought Iran might blow to smithereens.
From Slate ● Aug. 15, 2026
Yet for KeyBanc Capital Markets these two perceived issues create “an opportunity for investors who appreciate the revenue and EPS implications of doubling capacity into the strongest catalyst the industry has likely ever seen.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026
Emma and I didn’t cause this mess, but I bet Melanie and Hannah would appreciate a clean home.
From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller
He clearly appreciates the value of a fearsome antagonist, though he somewhat overstates the threat Stalin personally posed to Emanuel after the revolution.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026
He acknowledges that there are some well-established societal downsides to overuse of Meta’s social-media, especially among young people, but he appreciates “at least there’s no cloud in their revenue.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 30, 2026
Of course, from the point of view of anyone who appreciates the sport and what it's about, that's not ideal.
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
"Senator McConnell appreciates the outpouring of support he's receiving while he continues his recovery in the hospital," his spokesman said in a statement.
From Barron's ● Jul. 7, 2026
While he appreciates her sentiment, Jus wonders if she notices that all those butterflies look exactly alike.
From "Dear Martin" by Nic Stone
The reaction from friends and family to Frankie's passing confirmed that her sense of grief was real, she says, and she appreciated that people took it seriously.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
Equally notable is that gold has appreciated despite a firmer U.S. dollar and a 5% rally in crude oil prices.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
Many homes in the core downtown area had appreciated significantly in the five years between being announced and finally being move-in ready, the agents said.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026
Adams appreciated the sentiment from Stafford and all of his teammates.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2026
But when I’d glanced over the program schedule, I’d appreciated that a Native businesswoman had been highlighted as our closing-night speaker.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
Here are Neill’s highlights, all worth rewatching for the sake of better appreciating a sophisticated presence often on the sidelines.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026
Grant says the two groups have been appreciating different things about the sessions, which are being run on a time-limited basis by the City of London Guides Lecturers Association.
From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026
Analysts consider higher gasoline prices a headwind for low- and middle-income consumers, but note that other car buyers in the US have benefited from stock markets records and appreciating home prices.
From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026
“I ended up loving it and really appreciating its purity.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
And I used my mom as an excuse, accusing her of not appreciating or accepting me, when I should have been saying those words into a mirror.
From "Thirteen Reasons Why" by Jay Asher
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.
