advertise
Americanverb (used with object)
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advertises,
present (3rd person singular)
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advertised,
past participle, past
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advertising
present participle
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to announce or praise (a product, service, etc.) in some public medium of communication in order to induce people to buy or use it.
to advertise a new brand of toothpaste.
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to give information to the public about; announce publicly in a newspaper, on radio or television, etc..
to advertise a reward.
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to call attention to, in a boastful or ostentatious manner.
Stop advertising yourself!
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Obsolete. to give notice, advice, or information to; inform.
I advertised him of my intention.
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Obsolete. to admonish; warn.
verb (used without object)
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advertises,
present (3rd person singular)
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advertised,
past participle, past
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advertising
present participle
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to ask for something by placing a notice in a newspaper, over radio or television, etc..
to advertise for a house to rent.
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to offer goods for sale or rent, solicit funds, etc., by means of advertisements.
It pays to advertise.
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Cards.
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Poker. to bluff so as to make the bluff obvious.
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Rummy. to discard a card in order to induce an opponent to discard one of the same suit or denomination.
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verb
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to present or praise (goods, a service, etc) to the public, esp in order to encourage sales
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to make (something, such as a vacancy, article for sale, etc) publicly known, as to possible applicants, buyers, etc
to advertise a job
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to make a public request (for), esp in a newspaper, etc
she advertised for a cook
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obsolete to warn; caution
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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advertisernoun
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preadvertisernoun
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overadvertiseverb
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preadvertiseverb
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readvertiseverb
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advertisableadjective
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unadvertisedadjective
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well-advertisedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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advertisesimple
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advertisessimple
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have advertisedperfect
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has advertisedperfect
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am advertisingprogressive
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are advertisingprogressive
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is advertisingprogressive
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have been advertisingperfect progressive
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has been advertisingperfect progressive
Past
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advertisedsimple
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had advertisedperfect
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was advertisingprogressive
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were advertisingprogressive
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had been advertisingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of advertise
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English advertisen, from Middle French avertiss-, long stem of avertir, from Vulgar Latin advertire (unrecorded), Latin advertere “to pay attention,” literally, “to turn toward” ( see advert 1); the expected Middle English advertishen (unrecorded) probably conformed to advertisement or the suffix -ize
Explanation
The verb advertise means to publicize a service or product in order to try to get you to buy or use it. If you see people eating delicious-looking chocolate in a television commercial, for example, you'll probably want to buy it. You don't have to use television, radio, or print media to advertise something — or even try to sell it at all. In fact, the word advertise can also simply mean to call attention to something. Your neighbors might advertise their lottery win by parking flashy cars in the driveway and having an endless supply of packages delivered to their house.
Vocabulary lists containing advertise
If I Stay
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Media Literacy - Middle School
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Media Literacy - Introductory
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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:
The former Virginia Governor is behind Empowering America’s Parents, a group planning to advertise directly to voters in the 19 states that haven’t joined the new federal program for tax-credit scholarships.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
The way the scheme worked, authorities said, was Griffin would use social media to advertise “for holders of various bank accounts to give him access to their accounts.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
Harmont & Blaine sponsored a chalet on the edge of the Olympic slopes in the resort of Cortina and used photos of the nearby Olympic rings to advertise a collection on social media.
From Barron's ● Jul. 17, 2026
They were sufficiently fearful that they were willing to advertise their own vulnerability in the hope of diminishing the likelihood of him facing a challenge.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
They didn’t have anything to advertise, so they put up some of Reggie’s favorite philosophy quotes.
From "Millionaires for the Month" by Stacey McAnulty
The physician behind it advertises direct consultations costing as much as $18,000.
From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026
Pronto advertises hourly services ranging from window cleaning to "after-party express clean-ups", while Urban Company offers everything from repairs to salon treatments at the touch of a button.
From Barron's ● Jul. 22, 2026
On its official website, the court advertises itself to visitors as the “final arbiter of the law,” and thus the Constitution’s “guardian and interpreter.”
From Slate ● Jul. 20, 2026
Auction house Sotheby's advertises the bags for tens of thousands of dollars each.
From BBC ● May 21, 2026
He would blame the change in his life on one job—a warehouse job, working for a large corporation which today advertises its products with the smiling faces of children.
From "Hunger of Memory" by Richard Rodriguez
There have been cases where SPVs don’t work as advertised.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
Adams’ books have also been advertised for sale on FLAG’s Facebook page, with links going directly to Adams’ personal website for the books rather than FLAG’s shopify page.
From Salon ● Aug. 1, 2026
Critics of this decline note that it didn’t produce the influx of capital advertised.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026
Gleckel said Khan’s statements to media have been inconsistent, framing the May event as a one-off event even as the ranch’s website advertised “ranch-to-table halal dining from animals raised on our own land.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
They entered all the contests, availed themselves of all the discounts that were advertised and had, on two occasions, won a T-shirt and a thermos flask that Baby Kochamma kept locked away in her cupboard.
From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy
Airfare advertising is currently governed by the “full fare advertising rule,” established in 2012.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
When Reddit reported quarterly results last month, sales and earnings per share topped Wall Street’s estimates, helped by its advertising segment.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026
They have taken on 5.5% more UK 18-year-olds than last year, and many are still advertising courses in Clearing.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
Their shops down narrow alleys sit dark behind faded signs advertising "traditional fortune-telling houses".
From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026
She’s still trying to find out what we’ve done with our plates; they’re a lot closer than she thinks, since they’re packed in cardboard boxes in the attic, behind a load of Opekta advertising material.
From "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank
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.
