encouragement
Americannoun
-
encouragements
plural
-
the act of encouraging.
-
the state of being encouraged.
-
something that encourages.
Praise is the greatest encouragement.
- Synonyms:
- endorsement, lift, boost, support, praise
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of encouragement
Explanation
When you help someone by offering positive words of support and approval, that's encouragement. It must have been the words of encouragement you gave in the airport lounge that helped your friend board the plane. Within the word encouragement we see the word "courage," which means the ability to face danger and deal with it. To encourage, then, is to help develop that ability in someone, while the "ment" at the end makes that development into a noun, the act of giving courage or support to another. You needed a little encouragement to try horse riding again, after your injuries healed.
Vocabulary lists containing encouragement
Catching Fire
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
"Refugees Find New Lives"
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Taste of Salt
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
American drone-tech startups like HavocAI are swarming into Taiwan and—with the encouragement of U.S. government matchmakers—finding partners who can help them turn blueprints into reality.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026
Moura says the findings could still offer encouragement to people who have recently started exercising but have not yet noticed changes on the scale.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 8, 2026
“So that gives us great encouragement and being long-term in an environment like this is really hard because of the fast movements and the 24-hour news flow and just so much speed.”
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 7, 2026
Though the new teammates wanted to keep the specifics of their conversations between them, Snell’s advice and encouragement made an impression — “It’s like putting fuel in a rocket,” De Paula said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 22, 2026
More than anything, I hoped this was what they’d carry forward into the future—the ease, the sense of community, the encouragement to speak and be heard.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
I wonder how well and efficiently he would have written it with frequent and intermittent shouts being thrown his way, regardless of whether they were insults or encouragements.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2025
A group of men were using their bare hands to try and free her as an anxious crowd stood outside, calling out encouragements to the rescuers.
From Reuters ● Nov. 7, 2023
They grunted and hooted un-self-consciously, razzing one another and shouting encouragements, using nicknames generated by the group.
From New York Times ● Sep. 24, 2022
The chat and commenters on Twitter were screaming encouragements, hyped as all hell to have the privilege of watching Malenia fall for the 1,000th time.
From The Verge ● May 11, 2022
You wouldn’t budge, though the boys whispered encouragements.
From "The Bridge Home" by Padma Venkatraman
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
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.
