gratify
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
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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
- gratifiable adjective
- gratifiedly adverb
- gratifier noun
- overgratify verb (used with object)
- pregratify verb (used with object)
- supergratify verb (used with object)
- ungratifiable adjective
- ungratified adjective
- well-gratified adjective
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.
Finding the least taxing way to activate your inner circle could gratify — and edify — all involved, and restore a sense of control over your own well-being.
From Washington Post • Dec. 21, 2022
The pangram from yesterday’s Spelling Bee was gratify.
From New York Times • Aug. 9, 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
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.
