praise
Americannoun
-
the act of expressing approval or admiration; commendation; laudation.
- Synonyms:
- compliment, approbation, applause, plaudit, acclamation
- Antonyms:
- condemnation
-
the offering of grateful homage in words or song, as an act of worship.
a hymn of praise to God.
-
the state of being approved or admired.
The king lived in praise for many years.
-
Archaic. a ground for praise, or a merit.
verb (used with object)
idioms
noun
-
the act of expressing commendation, admiration, etc
-
the extolling of a deity or the rendering of homage and gratitude to a deity
-
the condition of being commended, admired, etc
-
archaic the reason for praise
-
to commend someone highly
verb
-
to express commendation, admiration, etc, for
-
to proclaim or describe the glorious attributes of (a deity) with homage and thanksgiving
Related Words
See approve.
Other Word Forms
- half-praised adjective
- half-praising adjective
- outpraise verb (used with object)
- praiseful adjective
- praisefully adverb
- praiseless adjective
- praiser noun
- repraise verb (used with object)
- self-praise noun
- self-praising adjective
- superpraise noun
- unpraised adjective
- unpraiseful adjective
- unpraising adjective
Etymology
Origin of praise
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English verb preisen, from Old French preisier “to value, prize,” from Late Latin pretiāre, derivative of Latin pretium “worth, reward” ( price ); noun derivative of the verb
Explanation
Praise means "admiration or approval," and when you're on the receiving end of it, you feel great. Whether it's used as a verb or a noun, praise means "approval." If you enthusiastically praise your dog, he's likely to wag his tail and expect a treat. What you've given him (in addition to the treat) is praise, the noun. In a religious context, the verb praise is interchangeable with worship, as when a minister says, "Praise God."
Vocabulary lists containing praise
"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act I
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Beowulf vocabulary
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"The Tragedy of Macbeth," Vocabulary from Act 1
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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.
His remix of John Summit’s “Crystallized feat. Inéz” has garnered praise, while “Fibonacci Pt. 2,” his latest in a set of math-inspired releases, interweaves the melodic with the heavy.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 11, 2026
Lori Glaze, acting associate administrator at Nasa, was full of praise for the astronauts.
From BBC • Apr. 11, 2026
Perhaps the highest praise comes in acknowledging just how difficult it is to convey its effervescent perfection.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 10, 2026
She’s made headlines for lavishing praise on Clarence Thomas in the past.
From Slate • Apr. 10, 2026
We smiled at one another that day in the White House as the speakers on the program lavished us with praise for our courage in surviving that school year in Central High School.
From "March Forward, Girl" by Melba Pattillo Beals
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.
