congratulations
Britishplural noun
Explanation
"Kudos," "well-done," and other words of praise are forms of congratulations, or an expression of approval and acclaim. Congratulations are expressed for good wishes on a special occasion, not just an accomplishment. For example, you wouldn't tell someone who just had a baby, "Good job on your accomplishment," but you would say, "Congratulations!" If, however, someone says "congratulations!" when you drop your ice cream cone or get a bad grade on your math test, they're probably being sarcastic.
Vocabulary lists containing congratulations
A Graduation Lexicon
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Commonly Misspelled Words, List 6
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List 3
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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.
As family, friends and colleagues dropped by his table to offer congratulations, he confessed that he was eager to get back to the office.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
But with some exceptions, these two announcements generated little beyond congratulations, remarkable only for being unremarkable.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
If your biggest fear going into retirement was that your money would run out before the end of your life, congratulations for making it to the mountaintop.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 8, 2026
King Charles has sent his "warmest congratulations" the United States as the country celebrates 250 years since the Declaration of Independence.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
The instrument was taken out of the house again and carried to Mr. Brown's, where the young concert artist really did receive very sincere applause and the most enthusiastic congratulations.
From "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
