pleasure

[ plezh-er ]

/ ˈplɛʒ ər /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: pleasure / pleasured / pleasures / pleasuring on Thesaurus.com

noun

the state or feeling of being pleased.

enjoyment or satisfaction derived from what is to one's liking; gratification; delight.

worldly or frivolous enjoyment: the pursuit of pleasure.

recreation or amusement; diversion; enjoyment: Are you traveling on business or for pleasure?

sensual gratification.

a cause or source of enjoyment or delight: It was a pleasure to see you.

pleasurable quality: the pleasure of his company.

one's will, desire, or choice: to make known one's pleasure.

verb (used with object), pleas·ured, pleas·ur·ing.

to give pleasure to, especially sexually; gratify; please.

verb (used without object), pleas·ured, pleas·ur·ing.

to take pleasure; delight: I pleasure in your company.

to seek pleasure, as by taking a holiday.

OTHER WORDS FOR pleasure

1 happiness, gladness, delectation.

5 voluptuousness.

8 preference, wish, inclination, predilection.

See synonyms for pleasure on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of pleasure

First recorded in1325–75; late Middle English (see please, -ure); replacing Middle English plaisir, from Middle French (noun use of infinitive), from Latin placēre “to please”

synonym study for pleasure

1. Pleasure, enjoyment, delight, joy refer to the feeling of being pleased and happy. Pleasure is the general term: to take pleasure in beautiful scenery. Enjoyment is a quiet sense of well-being and pleasurable satisfaction: enjoyment at sitting in the shade on a warm day. Delight is a high degree of pleasure, usually leading to active expression of it: delight at receiving a hoped-for letter. Joy is a feeling of delight so deep and so lasting that one radiates happiness and expresses it spontaneously: joy at unexpected good news.

OTHER WORDS FROM pleasure

pleas·ure·ful, adjectivepleas·ure·less, adjectivepleas·ure·less·ly, adverban·ti·pleas·ure, noun, adjective

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

How to use pleasure in a sentence

Slowly, slowly, dance classes may cease to be such secret and guilty pleasures in Iran.
Iran’s Becoming a Footloose Nation as Dance Lessons Spread|IranWire|January 2, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Watching novelists insult one another is one of the primary pleasures of his biography.
The Birth of the Novel|Nick Romeo|November 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Because the music here is so free, so joyous, so relaxed that all its pleasures are instantly communicable.
Digging the Gold in Dylan’s ‘Basement’|Malcolm Jones|November 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Its pleasures are undoubtedly visual, but also more cerebral than many of the other performing arts.
How High Fashion Saved the Ballet|Raquel Laneri|October 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST

One of the many pleasures of the book is to see the lyricist frolic in another form.
Well, La Ti Da: Stephin Merritt’s Winning Little Words of Scrabble|David Bukszpan|October 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She grants the enjoyment of sedentary pursuits to those to whom she has denied hardier pleasures.
Fifty Years of Railway Life in England, Scotland and Ireland|Joseph Tatlow
But Yung Pak was not allowed to share the pleasures and the trials of the boys in the public school.
Our Little Korean Cousin|H. Lee M. Pike
One of Yung Pak's greatest pleasures was to listen to the stories which his father used to tell him about these journeys.
Our Little Korean Cousin|H. Lee M. Pike
The king smiled, and remembering his past pleasures, ordered a thousand crowns to the peasant.
The Book of Anecdotes and Budget of Fun;|Various
The pleasures of life (the rational pleasures I hope) had always an attraction for me.
Fifty Years of Railway Life in England, Scotland and Ireland|Joseph Tatlow

British Dictionary definitions for pleasure

pleasure

/ (ˈplɛʒə) /

noun

an agreeable or enjoyable sensation or emotionthe pleasure of hearing good music

something that gives or affords enjoyment or delighthis garden was his only pleasure

amusement, recreation, or enjoyment
(as modifier)a pleasure boat; pleasure ground

euphemistic sexual gratification or enjoymenthe took his pleasure of her

a person's preference or choice

verb

(when intr, often foll by in) to give pleasure to or take pleasure (in)

Derived forms of pleasure

pleasureful, adjectivepleasureless, adjective

Word Origin for pleasure

C14 plesir, from Old French; related to Old French plaisir to please

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

pleasure

OTHER WORDS FOR pleasure

Origin of pleasure

synonym study for pleasure

OTHER WORDS FROM pleasure

Words related to pleasure

How to use pleasure in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for pleasure

Derived forms of pleasure

Word Origin for pleasure