award
Americanverb (used with object)
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awards,
present (3rd person singular)
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awarded,
past participle, past
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awarding
present participle
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to give as due or merited; assign or bestow.
to award prizes.
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to bestow by judicial decree; assign or appoint by deliberate judgment, as in arbitration.
The plaintiff was awarded damages of $100,000.
noun
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awards
plural
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something awarded, as a payment or medal.
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Law.
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a decision after consideration; a judicial sentence.
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the decision of arbitrators on a matter submitted to them.
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verb
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to give (something due), esp as a reward for merit
to award prizes
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law to declare to be entitled, as by decision of a court of law or an arbitrator
noun
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something awarded, such as a prize or medal
an award for bravery
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(in Australia and New Zealand) the amount of an award wage (esp in the phrase above award )
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law
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the decision of an arbitrator
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a grant made by a court of law, esp of damages in a civil action
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Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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awardabilitynoun
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awardeenoun
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awardernoun
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superawardnoun
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misawardverb (used with object)
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awardableadjective
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unawardableadjective
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unawardedadjective
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well-awardedadjective
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awardableadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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awardsimple
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awardssimple
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have awardedperfect
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has awardedperfect
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am awardingprogressive
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are awardingprogressive
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is awardingprogressive
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have been awardingperfect progressive
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has been awardingperfect progressive
Past
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awardedsimple
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had awardedperfect
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was awardingprogressive
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were awardingprogressive
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had been awardingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of award
First recorded in 1250–1300; (for the verb) Middle English awarden, from Anglo-French awarder; equivalent to a- 4 + ward; (for the noun) Middle English, from Anglo-French, derivative of awarder
Explanation
The noun award refers to a prize of some kind that indicates you’ve done well and achieved an honor. The verb form of award describes giving out one of these honors. So your teacher may award you the Math Genius award. Award can be something given out by a court of law. For example, a judge might give you a monetary award when you win a lawsuit. Award can also be something you get when you're the big winner. The state lottery commission might award you $35 when you hit the lottery. Award comes from the Old English word weardian, meaning “guard” — which is exactly what you should do with that $35.
Vocabulary lists containing award
Common Five-letter Words for Wordle, List 1
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Academy Awards, List 1
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"Dr. Seuss" by Jill Foran
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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:
Perhaps the most keenly anticipated award is that due on Friday, the peace prize -- the only Nobel to be awarded in Oslo.
From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026
And in the meantime, I had met her at a little award show in Nashville.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026
At the final game of the 6U tournament near Los Angeles, Andrea Solis fought back tears as her 6-year-old collected an award for Most Valuable Player.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
Evans ended up winning the award for Best Casting saying she was "incredibly proud" to represent Welsh voices at the 2026 ceremony.
From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026
Her old college, Hillsdale, wanted to award her an honorary degree.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
"I believe an awards ceremony should be an occasion for celebration," said captain Lee Gi-hyuk, according to Yonhap News Agency.
From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026
Seventeen have already reported granting more than $600 million in special awards to more than 40 executives during fiscal years that ended in 2026, Equilar data show.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
Stray Kids had previously refrained from giving a direct answer to questions about the awards.
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026
Rodgers also earned two of his four NFL MVP awards during McCarthy’s tenure.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
The MTV Movie and TV Awards become the first major acting awards to eliminate gendered categories for performance.
From "The 57 Bus" by Dashka Slater
A trio of researchers were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their work on optogenetics and discoveries on how nerve cells shape memories, feelings and behaviors in the living brain.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026
Perhaps the most keenly anticipated award is that due on Friday, the peace prize -- the only Nobel to be awarded in Oslo.
From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026
It’s about time, former gang members say of Homeboy Industries’ Father Greg Boyle being awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026
Zimbabwe's anti-corruption commission investigated allegations surrounding contracts awarded to South African company Ren-Form but closed the inquiry in 2025, saying it had found no evidence linking Chivayo or the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission to wrongdoing.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
He finished fifteenth, and was awarded a ballpoint pen, perhaps because he was the youngest player.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
That same month, a Los Angeles jury found Meta and Google's YouTube negligent in the case of a 20-year-old woman who said she became hooked on social media as a child, awarding her $6 million.
From Barron's ● Sep. 25, 2026
He’s never settled into a particular genre and, perhaps due to that wide-ranging restlessness, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will be awarding him an honorary Oscar in November.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
A State Department official who declined to be named stressed that the process for awarding grants was ongoing and that multiple offices provide input.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026
Prosecutors had alleged that Deepak Jain, chief executive of AiNET, misled the SEC into awarding him $10.7 million for providing it with the use of his firm’s data center.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026
Nevertheless, no ancient Greek struck a medal with the word Eureka on it and started awarding it to successful scientists as we award the Fields Medal to successful mathematicians.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
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.
