invitation

American  

[in-vi-tey-shuhn] / ˌɪn vɪˈteɪ ʃən /

noun

invitations plural

1. the act of inviting.

2. the written or spoken form with which a person is invited.

3. something offered as a suggestion.

   an invitation to consider a business merger.

4. attraction or incentive; allurement.

5. a provocation.

   The speech was an invitation to rebellion.

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adjective

1. invitational.

invitation British  

/ ˌɪnvɪˈteɪʃən /

noun

1. 1. the act of inviting, such as an offer of entertainment or hospitality

   2. ( as modifier )

      an invitation dance

      an invitation race

2. the act of enticing or attracting; allurement

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• preinvitation
  noun
• reinvitation
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• invitations
  plural

Etymology

Origin of invitation

1590–1600; < Latin invītātiōn- (stem of invītātiō ), equivalent to invītāt ( us ) (past participle of invītāre to invite ) + -iōn- -ion

Explanation

An invitation is a request, a solicitation, or an attempt to get another person to join you at a specific event. You need an invitation to go to the Academy Awards, even if you're George Clooney. When you ask people to attend a party, visit your beach house, or witness your marriage, you invite them — using the verb — and you've given them an invitation. An invitation can be delivered as a verbal request, a beautifully engraved card, or even puffs of smoke behind an airplane. If you give invitations to two hundred of your closest friends to attend your Mardi Gras party, you’d better make a lot of jambalaya.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

invitation invitations

“Like I’ve always said, my company line, my personal line is I hope that we get this invitation every year,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said before the visit.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026

“Emmanuel’s invitation to our defenders is a sign of respect and recognition of the strength of Ukraine, our people, and our armed forces,” Zelensky said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026

Part of this, I think, can be attributed to social media and its relentless invitation to aestheticize even the most mundane corners of domestic life, kitchen cabinets included.

From Salon ● Jul. 11, 2026

"There was an open invitation to get up onto the stage and dance while the DJ was on, so I did."

From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026

He notified the Rosenwald Committee that he’d accept their invitation to compete for the United States Championship—the prelude, he hoped, to eventually capturing the World Championship as well.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

The first offers to sign up for the card are being sent this week to the highest-spending Gold cardholders, the company said, with more invitations to follow over the coming months.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026

Some Americans who are getting married have even joked on Reddit that they may purchase 500 stamps before the price increase to cut down the cost of mailing out save-the-dates, wedding invitations and thank-you cards.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 8, 2026

"We mentioned money on our invitations and also created print-out QR codes for people to scan at the bar," she says.

From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026

After Nixon’s election, Greenspan declined several invitations to join the new president’s staff but finally agreed to sign on in 1974, just before Nixon resigned as the Watergate scandal erupted.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 22, 2026

Consulting contracts were tendered by Eastman Kodak, General Electric, and the American Cyanamid Company, and invitations flowed in to serve on government committees, to lecture, to testify before Congress.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

Related Words

• appeal
• bid
• challenge
• date
• encouragement
• overture
• petition
• proposition
• request
• solicitation
• suggestion
• summons