hospitable
Americanadjective
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receiving or treating guests or strangers warmly and generously.
a hospitable family.
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characterized by or betokening warmth and generosity toward guests or strangers.
a hospitable smile.
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favorably receptive or open (usually followed byto ).
to be hospitable to new ideas; a climate hospitable to the raising of corn.
adjective
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welcoming to guests or strangers
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fond of entertaining
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receptive
hospitable to new ideas
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of hospitable
First recorded in 1560–70; from Latin hospitā(re) “to receive as guest” (compare Latin hospitārī “to be a guest”; see hospitium) + -ble
Explanation
When someone makes you feel comfortable and at home, that person is being hospitable, providing a warm, friendly environment. Anything hospitable is welcoming and open. A Greek proverb suggested that in being hospitable, the main feeling should be good will. The basis for the word hospitable is the Latin hospes, which refers to welcoming a guest, a word that evolved into meaning "to entertain." Consider that being hospitable means, as someone once said, “making your guests feel at home, even though you wish they were.” In other words, entertaining them. (You can also “entertain” new ideas with an open, hospitable mind.)
Vocabulary lists containing hospitable
100 SAT Words Beginning with "H"
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You're Too Kind! Synonyms for "Generous"
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Selection Vocabulary 3, Unit 5
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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.
Many are leaving the corporate world, in part, because it has become less hospitable.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 18, 2026
"The Irish golf fans are some of the best in the world. They are so passionate about the game, so hospitable and so down to earth," he said.
From BBC • Mar. 4, 2026
The movement is continuing to fare well in some American cities, including those hospitable to progressive politics more generally.
From Slate • Nov. 7, 2025
There are many obstacles to making campuses more hospitable.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 29, 2025
We resumed our walk to the riverbank and found shade under a hospitable tree in the pecan bottom.
From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly
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.
