gratify
Americanverb (used with object)
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gratifies,
present (3rd person singular)
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gratified,
past participle, past
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gratifying
present participle
verb
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to satisfy or please
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to yield to or indulge (a desire, whim, etc)
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obsolete to reward
Synonym Usage
See humor.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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gratifiernoun
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overgratifyverb (used with object)
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pregratifyverb (used with object)
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supergratifyverb (used with object)
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gratifiableadjective
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ungratifiableadjective
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ungratifiedadjective
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well-gratifiedadjective
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gratifiedlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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gratifysimple
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gratifiessimple
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have gratifiedperfect
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has gratifiedperfect
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am gratifyingprogressive
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are gratifyingprogressive
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is gratifyingprogressive
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have been gratifyingperfect progressive
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has been gratifyingperfect progressive
Past
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gratifiedsimple
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had gratifiedperfect
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was gratifyingprogressive
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were gratifyingprogressive
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had been gratifyingperfect progressive
Future
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.
See Examples For:
The pangram from yesterday’s Spelling Bee was gratify.
From New York Times ● Aug. 9, 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
She has a tendency to say things that can get her in trouble, and, from a fan perspective, a somewhat maddening willingness to walk away from professional situations that don’t immediately gratify her.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 5, 2022
Levy's Lodge—that was what the sign at the coast road said—was a Xanadu of the senses; within its insulated walls there was something that could gratify anything.
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
This outcome is rare in the contemporary dating scene, but “Heated Rivalry” gratifies the hope that such a future is possible.
From Salon ● Feb. 13, 2026
Eating gratifies all the senses: We take in the aroma of a handsome dish, delight at the sound of a sizzling steak or crave the crunch of a crusty baguette.
From New York Times ● Nov. 9, 2023
We're not in the same sport exactly, but it's the same milieu, and the fact that tour players know who I am and respect what I do gratifies me to no end.
From Golf Digest ● Nov. 13, 2018
The appeal of superhero movies derives from a primal mythological power that taps into similar nerve centers to those that religion gratifies.
From The New Yorker ● May 14, 2015
For it not only gratifies our curiosity about the mother and the babe, but it also moves us.
From Lectures on Russian Literature Pushkin, Gogol, Turgenef, Tolstoy by Ivan Panin
Yet many frustrated and alarmed American parents are probably gratified that at least their leaders are finally trying something.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
"We are gratified by the jury's verdict in our favor," a Boeing spokesperson said in a statement to AFP.
From Barron's ● May 23, 2026
“The same group of people, the same kind of night, 30 years later. I feel incredibly gratified by that.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 7, 2025
Korean palace cuisine, also known as Korean royal court cuisine, is in danger of being lost, which is why Park is gratified to see it depicted in shows popular with global audiences.
From Salon ● Oct. 26, 2025
As the husky voice scraped inexorably on, she ventured to raise her head a little, and was gratified to see that Judith too was peeking.
From "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" by Elizabeth George Speare
“I mean, it’s amazing, and it’s really gratifying too. It’s nice to know that you’re doing a business that’s really helping people.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 6, 2026
He added: "It's so wonderful to see the world's love affair with the United States of America over our 250th birthday. It's been very gratifying."
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
It was gratifying to get to build to that with everybody.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026
It’s gratifying to see empty fridges at more hotels so you can store your water, soft drinks and leftovers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 15, 2026
I answered, “It was a most gratifying time.”
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
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.
