greet

[ greet ]

See synonyms for greet on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

to address with some form of salutation; welcome.
to meet or receive: to be greeted by cheering crowds; to greet a proposal with boos and hisses.

to manifest itself to: Music greeted his ear as he entered the salon.

verb (used without object)

Obsolete. to give salutations on meeting.

Origin of greet

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

Other words for greet

1	hail, accost

See synonyms for greet on Thesaurus.com

Other words from greet

greeter, noun

Other definitions for greet (2 of 2)

greet²

[ greet ]

verb (used without object)

to grieve; lament; cry.

verb (used with object)

to lament; bewail.

Origin of greet

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

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use greet in a sentence

He greets Zalwar Khan like an old friend and jokes with the driver.
Heart of Darkness: Into Afghanistan’s Taliban Valley | Matt Trevithick, Daniel Seckman | November 15, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Maira Kalman greets me in her Manhattan apartment wearing a white, waffle-knit bathrobe.
The Singular Artist of New Yorkistan | Lizzie Crocker | November 14, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Martin Amis asks as he greets me in the invitingly elegant hallway of his Brooklyn brownstone.
Martin Amis Talks About Nazis, Novels, and Cute Babies | Ronald K. Fried | October 9, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Gosta Peterson sits on the porch of his Long Island home and greets passersby.
Gosta Peterson's Bohemian Rhapsody: Unpacking a Photographer's '60s Secrets | Lizzie Crocker | September 10, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
They will travel to Scotland on Thursday 29 May for a day of meet and greets.
William and Kate To Visit Scotland | Tom Sykes | May 16, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST

It is doubtful whether the huge commercial premium that greets success to-day does good or harm.
The Unsolved Riddle of Social Justice | Stephen Leacock
Yet my irritation is strangely dispelled by the beautiful picture that greets my eye as I step from the train.
Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist | Alexander Berkman
With a grace and a gentleness beyond compare, he closes the door of night and greets the waking world with a smile.
The Whale and the Grasshopper | Seumas O'Brien
Ever since, he has been specially attentive and greets me with a face of really heavenly brightness.
The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson - Swanston Edition Vol. 25 (of 25) | Robert Louis Stevenson
I greet you as friend greets friend, nay, more, as brother greets brother.
Autobiographical Reminiscences with Family Letters and Notes on Music | Charles Gounod

British Dictionary definitions for greet (1 of 2)

greet¹

/ (ɡriːt) /

verb(tr)

to meet or receive with expressions of gladness or welcome
to send a message of friendship to

to receive in a specified manner: her remarks were greeted by silence
to become apparent to: the smell of bread greeted him

Origin of greet

Old English grētan; related to Old High German gruozzen to address

British Dictionary definitions for greet (2 of 2)

greet²

/ (ɡriːt) Scot /

verb

(intr) to weep; lament

noun

weeping; lamentation

Origin of greet

from Old English grētan, northern dialect variant of grætan; compare Old Norse grāta, Middle High German grazen

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

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