gratify
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
-
to satisfy or please
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to yield to or indulge (a desire, whim, etc)
-
obsolete to reward
Related Words
See humor.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of gratify
1350–1400; Middle English gratifien < Latin grātificāre, equivalent to grāt ( us ) pleasing + -i- -i- + -ficāre -fy
Explanation
To gratify is to satisfy. Bringing home an A in math would gratify your math tutor. Gratify can also mean to give in. You probably shouldn't gratify your urge to scream in class. Gratify comes from the Latin gratificari, "oblige," and gratus, "pleasing." The word still carries those meanings. Gratify always takes an object, so you have to gratify something or someone. Gratifying praise will make you feel good about all the work you put in on your science project. Gratify your thirst for vocabulary by using this word correctly!
Vocabulary lists containing gratify
100 SAT Words Beginning with "G"
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Nothing But the Truth
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50 Words from Jane Austen's "Pride & Prejudice"
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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.
But it’s the houses that surprise visitors and gratify us, even if they can only be glimpsed from a street or a sidewalk.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 16, 2022
To counteract the grease, you’ll want to home in on the kale-blue cheese slaw or the watermelon-feta-mint salad, a pair of sides that will gratify the palate and settle your conscience.
From Washington Post • Jul. 5, 2022
Too often, ads are written to gratify sellers rather than bring in buyers, according to Saatchi.
From Seattle Times • May 24, 2022
In his place, Lewis Cass captured the Democratic nomination by equivocating about the meaning of popular sovereignty to gratify voters in both sections.
From Textbooks • Jan. 18, 2018
“Such attentions as Mrs. Elton’s, I should have imagined, would rather disgust than gratify Miss Fairfax. Mrs. Elton’s invitations I should have imagined any thing but inviting.”
From "Emma" by Jane Austen
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.
