praise

[preyz]

noun

1. the act of expressing approval or admiration; commendation; laudation.

   Synonyms: compliment, approbation, applause, plaudit, acclamation
   Antonyms: condemnation

2. the offering of grateful homage in words or song, as an act of worship.

   a hymn of praise to God.

   Synonyms: panegyric, eulogy, encomium

3. the state of being approved or admired.

   The king lived in praise for many years.

4. Archaic.,  a ground for praise, or a merit.

verb (used with object)

praised, praising 

1. to express approval or admiration of; commend; extol.

   Synonyms: eulogize, applaud, laud
   Antonyms: depreciate

2. to offer grateful homage to (God or a deity), as in words or song.

   Synonyms: honor, exalt, glorify

praise

/ preɪz /

noun

1. the act of expressing commendation, admiration, etc

2. the extolling of a deity or the rendering of homage and gratitude to a deity

3. the condition of being commended, admired, etc

4. archaic,  the reason for praise

5. to commend someone highly

verb

1. to express commendation, admiration, etc, for

2. to proclaim or describe the glorious attributes of (a deity) with homage and thanksgiving

Other Word Forms

• praiser noun
• praiseful adjective
• praisefully adverb
• praiseless adjective
• half-praised adjective
• half-praising adjective
• outpraise verb (used with object)
• repraise verb (used with object)
• self-praise noun
• self-praising adjective
• superpraise noun
• unpraised adjective
• unpraiseful adjective
• unpraising adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of praise¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of praise¹

C13: from Old French preisier, from Late Latin pretiāre to esteem highly, from Latin pretium prize; compare _prize ², _precious

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. sing someone's praises, to praise someone publicly and enthusiastically.

   He is always singing his wife's praises.

More idioms and phrases containing praise

• damn with faint praise
• sing someone's praises

Synonym Study

See approve.

Example Sentences

President Duma Boko hailed the gold medal as a "historic African win", in an online address praising the team for their performance.

From BBC

Yet, the long-standing H-1B programme - criticised for undercutting American workers but praised for attracting global talent - still faces an uncertain future.

From BBC

He praised Kirk’s example of Christian fatherhood and traditional theology of family.

From Salon

Shortly after, he posted again to praise Bondi who he said was "doing a great job".

From BBC

The president this summer praised CBS’s decision to cancel “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” after this season, writing on Truth Social on July 18: “I absolutely love that Colbert’ got fired.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• acclaim 
• accolade 
• applause 
• appreciation 
• approval 
• cheer 
• commendation 
• compliment 
• cry 
• devotion 
• esteem 
• glory 
• kudos 
• ovation 
• plaudit 
• rave 
• recognition 
• recommendation 
• thanks 
• tribute