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)
-
praises,
present (3rd person singular)
-
praised,
past participle, past
-
praising
present participle
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
Synonym Usage
See approve.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
praisernoun
-
self-praisenoun
-
superpraisenoun
-
outpraiseverb (used with object)
-
repraiseverb (used with object)
-
half-praisedadjective
-
half-praisingadjective
-
praisefuladjective
-
praiselessadjective
-
self-praisingadjective
-
unpraisedadjective
-
unpraisefuladjective
-
unpraisingadjective
-
praisefullyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
praisesimple
-
praisessimple
-
have praisedperfect
-
has praisedperfect
-
am praisingprogressive
-
are praisingprogressive
-
is praisingprogressive
-
have been praisingperfect progressive
-
has been praisingperfect progressive
Past
-
praisedsimple
-
had praisedperfect
-
was praisingprogressive
-
were praisingprogressive
-
had been praisingperfect progressive
Future
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” ( see 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.
See Examples For:
“I thought it was remarkable,” Stephen Blackwood says in an email after the secretary of state has spoken in praise of “the Western mind” and classical traits that define the West.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026
But the praise and pity produced resentment among many Americans who did not want an admissions system that elevated foreigners to a higher pedestal.
From Salon ● Oct. 30, 2026
They are under no obligation to do so, and they deserve full praise if they do.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 26, 2026
Last week Melania Trump unveiled a women's health program in a press conference in the White House Rose Garden alongside her husband, who lavished praise on her.
From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2026
“I’m telling Grace about the way I try to handle praise, so we’re on the same page,” she explains.
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
Toby Lichtig praises Ben Eastham’s “ambitious debut” for its “dazzling disquisitions” on art, money and the creative impulse.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026
Semisch wishes that May had fact-checked some of the misleading claims by the right, but she praises the series’ subtlety.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
Today, Martin praises the "really nice community" with "more young families moving in", although soaring rents have pushed out some lower-income residents.
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
Allegedly, somewhere out there De Palma’s original three-hour cut exists, one that so impressed Ellroy that he devoted an entire essay to singing its praises called “The Hillikers.”
From Salon ● Sep. 18, 2026
There are empty well-wishes and hollow praises of her father’s talents.
From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern
Also present were Luis Rosa and Luisa Collin, a couple who praised De La Cruz for her constituent services.
From Slate ● Nov. 2, 2026
Our critic praised the movie, calling it “Simmering and subtly cumulative . . . full of overwhelming anguish, buried beneath a masculine stoicism forever threatening to come undone.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026
The congresswoman, who narrowly lost Michigan’s August Democratic primary to El-Sayed, praised Rogers’ support for investment in Black-owned businesses.
From Salon ● Nov. 1, 2026
Efa Akutekha, a 35-year-old digital marketing producer with about 20,000 followers on TikTok, praised Raman’s work strengthening the city’s tenant protections and pushing for an expansion of L.A.’s unarmed crisis response teams.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026
Melanchthon’s introduction praised astronomy as the study of God’s handiwork, but it also went on to provide an elaborate defence of astrology.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
A former police chief himself, he said it was clear from Raman’s debate remarks that she was praising Special Order 40 and not Gates.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026
And while his supporters described him ahead of the 2022 election as the "saviour of the Amazon", praising his commitment to protecting the rainforest, some environmentalists have been critical of some of his recent actions.
From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2026
Russia and Ukraine both said they would cooperate on the truce, with the Kremlin praising Melania Trump's role.
From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2026
“Sensible cat books,” Spark once said, “are devoted to praising the cat for its catness.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
He stood proudly, extravagantly praising our nation's army.
From "The Boy on the Wooden Box" by Leon Leyson
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
