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:
Under the U.K. government’s proposal, the SFO would award whistleblowers who provide information that is “both significant and original” and that leads to a successful enforcement action against a company, including a deferred prosecution agreement.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026
Their marriage followed a rare public appearance together at the César Awards in Paris in February, when Carrey accepted an honorary award and offered a sweet tribute to his partner from the stage.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026
Annual events such as the Oscars and the Emmys gave viewers a front-row seat to their favorite stars in designer clothes, while music award shows featured the hottest artists performing live.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026
Palestinian freelancer Mahmoud Abu Hamda on Saturday won the photography category in the prestigious Bayeux award for war correspondents for his work from Gaza.
From Barron's ● Oct. 10, 2026
That they were giving an award named after a beloved prime minister who had been tragically murdered by a deranged man to someone who represented people on death row revealed a lot about their values.
From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson
Funding was provided by the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, through awards R21AR071588 and R01AR080711.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 14, 2026
Veteran BBC war correspondent Lyse Doucet was the president of the Bayeux awards jury.
From Barron's ● Oct. 10, 2026
Musk holds a 48.4% equity stake in SpaceX, which represents approximately 6.42 billion shares across common stock, options and unvested performance awards, according to an August SEC filing.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 9, 2026
His three national awards for Parinda, Krantiveer and Agni Sakshi are a testament to his career.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
After serving in the air force during the Korean War, he entered the field of advertising, where he won many awards for the radio and television ads he created.
From "Shipwrecked!" by Martin W. Sandler
Magill Estate Restaurant in Adelaide was the only venue to receive two stars, while 10 others were awarded one star each.
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026
The importance of these materials was highlighted by the 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, awarded to Susumu Kitagawa, Richard Robson, and Omar Yaghi for their work in this field.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 13, 2026
It looked as if he had picked off Hernández to end the fourth inning, but Hernández instead was awarded second base.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026
The Nobel committee said the prize was awarded for “demonstrating how economic models could be reconstructed to revitalise stabilisation policy.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 12, 2026
Like they should be awarded the Nobel Prize for a simple greeting?
From "I'll Give You the Sun" by Jandy Nelson
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
Crystal Palace's Marc Guehi was pulled down by Bournemouth's Bafode Diakite, with the referee awarding a spot-kick.
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026
Late last year, American stopped awarding frequent-flier miles to basic-economy ticket buyers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 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.
