gracious
Americanadjective
-
pleasantly kind, benevolent, and courteous.
- Antonyms:
- churlish
-
characterized by good taste, comfort, ease, or luxury: a gracious home.
gracious suburban living;
a gracious home.
-
indulgent or beneficent in a pleasantly condescending way, especially to inferiors.
-
merciful or compassionate.
our gracious king.
- Antonyms:
- cruel
-
Obsolete. fortunate or happy.
interjection
adjective
-
characterized by or showing kindness and courtesy
-
condescendingly courteous, benevolent, or indulgent
-
characterized by or suitable for a life of elegance, ease, and indulgence
gracious living
gracious furnishings
-
merciful or compassionate
-
obsolete fortunate, prosperous, or happy
interjection
Related Words
See kind 1.
Other Word Forms
- graciosity noun
- graciously adverb
- graciousness noun
- nongraciosity noun
- nongracious adjective
- overgracious adjective
- quasi-gracious adjective
Etymology
Origin of gracious
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English gracious, from Old French, from Latin grātiōsus “amiable,” equivalent to grāti(a) “favor, kindness, esteem” + -ōsus adjective suffix; grace, -ous
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.
A thrifty sort, then—he acts as his own camera operator and prefers hardware-store lightbulbs to specialized equipment—and one gracious in acknowledging his co-workers of many years.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 13, 2026
And though the primary was frequently ugly, Crockett was gracious enough to quickly concede and endorse Talarico.
From Slate • Mar. 7, 2026
Accepting the award, Byrne half-joked, “This character of Linda really could only exist in an independent film — she’s fierce and she’s gracious and she’s a middle-aged woman.”
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 16, 2026
Watts’ take on Jackie O doesn’t hit such heights, but the actor does, in some scenes, achieve a gracious splendor that does justice to her subject’s memory.
From Salon • Feb. 12, 2026
“Thank you. This is so thoughtful,” I said, hoping I sounded gracious.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
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.
