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Synonyms

greet

1 American  
[greet] / grit /

verb (used with object)

  1. to address with some form of salutation; welcome.

    Synonyms:
    accost, hail
  2. to meet or receive.

    to be greeted by cheering crowds; to greet a proposal with boos and hisses.

  3. to manifest itself to.

    Music greeted his ear as he entered the salon.


verb (used without object)

  1. Obsolete. to give salutations on meeting.

greet 2 American  
[greet] / grit /

verb (used without object)

  1. to grieve; lament; cry.


verb (used with object)

  1. to lament; bewail.

greet 1 British  
/ ɡriːt /

verb

  1. to meet or receive with expressions of gladness or welcome

  2. to send a message of friendship to

  3. to receive in a specified manner

    her remarks were greeted by silence

  4. to become apparent to

    the smell of bread greeted him

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

greet 2 British  
/ ɡriːt /

verb

  1. (intr) to weep; lament

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. weeping; lamentation

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of greet1

before 900; Middle English greten, Old English grētan; cognate with German grüssen

Origin of greet2

before 900; Middle English grete, Old English grǣtan; cognate with ON grāta, Gothic gretan

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:

On this valuable Saturday-morning time slot a couple of weeks before the primary, we were in a small flower shop in a pedestrian-unfriendly area with few, if any, walk-in customers to meet and greet.

From Slate Jul. 30, 2026

Passengers travel through “Platform 9¾” and board the train, where four Hogwarts students belonging to each House greet them.

From Los Angeles Times Jul. 29, 2026

Spain's World Cup winners headed home on Monday to a heroes' welcome in Madrid, where a million fans are expected to greet them after a night of raucous celebrations across the country.

From Barron's Jul. 20, 2026

People greet each other in the street as if they were villagers in the countryside, not residents of Ukraine’s biggest city, said Natalia Nahorna, who lives in Lukyanivka and is determined not to leave.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 8, 2026

There’s only Tūtū and me, no parents to greet a potential friend.

From "Clairboyance" by Kristiana Kahakauwila

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