ennoble
Americanverb (used with object)
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to elevate in degree, excellence, or respect; dignify; exalt.
a personality ennobled by true generosity.
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to confer a title of nobility on.
verb
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to make noble, honourable, or excellent; dignify; exalt
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to raise to a noble rank; confer a title of nobility upon
Other Word Forms
- ennoblement noun
- ennobler noun
- ennobling adjective
- ennoblingly adverb
- unennobled adjective
- unennobling adjective
Etymology
Origin of ennoble
1425–75; late Middle English ennobelen < Middle French, Old French ennoblir. See en- 1, noble
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.
To ennoble what could seem a shallow, idiosyncratic gesture, I call this campaign the post-nominal revolution, hoping for a future when you will never have to use anyone’s name, ever.
From New York Times • May 30, 2019
The number of people who, out of civic generosity, think that they can enlarge or ennoble their selves by giving their energies to a good larger than themselves?
From Salon • May 27, 2019
The Greek terms ennoble the ailments, even if they don’t make them go away.
From The New Yorker • Jan. 7, 2019
“I think I know who Virginians are — I think they want somebody who will ennoble and uplift and motivate rather than divide.”
From Washington Times • Nov. 5, 2018
We see the virtues which ennoble and sanctify other lives.
From The Optimist's Good Morning by Perin, Florence Hobart
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.
