promote
Americanverb (used with object)
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promotes,
present (3rd person singular)
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promoted,
past participle, past
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promoting
present participle
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to help or encourage to exist or flourish; further.
to promote world peace.
- Antonyms:
- obstruct, discourage
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to advance in rank, dignity, position, etc. (opposed to demote).
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Education. to put ahead to the next higher stage or grade of a course or series of classes.
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to aid in organizing (business undertakings).
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to encourage the sales, acceptance, etc., of (a product), especially through advertising or other publicity.
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Informal. to obtain (something) by cunning or trickery; wangle.
verb
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to further or encourage the progress or existence of
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to raise to a higher rank, status, degree, etc
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to advance (a pupil or student) to a higher course, class, etc
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to urge the adoption of; work for
to promote reform
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to encourage the sale of (a product) by advertising or securing financial support
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chess to exchange (a pawn) for any piece other than a king when the pawn reaches the 8th rank
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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promotabilitynoun
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promotionnoun
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prepromoteverb (used with object)
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promotableadjective
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promotionaladjective
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self-promotingadjective
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unpromotableadjective
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unpromotedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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promotesimple
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promotessimple
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have promotedperfect
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has promotedperfect
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am promotingprogressive
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are promotingprogressive
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is promotingprogressive
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have been promotingperfect progressive
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has been promotingperfect progressive
Past
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promotedsimple
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had promotedperfect
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was promotingprogressive
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were promotingprogressive
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had been promotingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of promote
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English promoten, from Latin prōmōtus, past participle of prōmovēre “to move forward, advance”; see pro- 1, motive
Explanation
If you work for a marketing firm, your job is to promote new products — to publicize them and to try to get the public to buy them. The verb promote can also mean to advance to a higher position. Because of your hard work, your boss might decide to promote you. In school, passing students are promoted each year when they enter a higher grade. In chess, the verb promote is used when a pawn is exchanged for a higher ranking piece. Make sure you promote your pawn to a queen, giving you two queens on the board and a strong advantage in the game.
Vocabulary lists containing promote
Preamble to the U.S. Constitution (1787)
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Words for Father's Day: What Fathers Do
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Unit 3: Compelling Evidence
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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:
Mahmoud Ali Youssouf also stressed the urgent need to "address the root causes of irregular migration, combat migrant smuggling and trafficking in persons, and promote safe, orderly and regular migration".
From Barron's ● Oct. 11, 2026
To investigate the possible health effects of polyethylene, Joshi and his colleagues examined whether exposure to this common plastic could promote fatty liver disease.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 11, 2026
Lidegaard and his Nordic counterparts just announced a Nordic Growth Alliance to promote cooperation in sectors such as quantum technology, data centers and space, while reducing red tape.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026
The South African judge was recognised "for her efforts to promote peace and international law", which paved the way for a "more comprehensive global legal order", the Nobel committee said.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
What he wanted to promote above all else was Seattle.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
Life Surge currently promotes its roster as “influential voices in faith & finance alongside leading worship artists.”
From Salon ● Sep. 26, 2026
"That trend really promotes blankness and this kind of sameness and erasure of culture and identity that is so important to black and brown communities," beauty journalist Kristina Rodulfo tells the BBC.
From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2026
And so he promotes the show to a choice primetime slot.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
"I think the great significance of these findings, and the tantalizing picture that it promotes, is a great motivation and reason to further examine solid-state nitrogen physics at very low temperatures," Umurhan said.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 17, 2026
This approach must go beyond the rhetoric of “community policing” to a method of engagement between and among people in the community that promotes trust, healing, restorative justice, and reparations.
From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander
Sharma, who was promoted to CEO of Xbox in February, has been looking to transform the business quickly, The Wall Street Journal has previously reported.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
The Wellness Company brand promoted in many of the videos saw a subsequent spike in online searches, according to Google Trends data.
From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026
Companies based around the San Francisco Bay Area, including OpenAI and Meta, have promoted AI assistants as friendly, cute helpers for tackling tedious tasks.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026
While the ketogenic diet promoted tumor development in the small intestine, it suppressed tumor formation in the colon.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 6, 2026
And that’s what this popular app often promoted on CountDowners provides.
From "They Both Die at the End" by Adam Silvera
But Tillis, in promoting his new book, has described his deciding vote to confirm Pete Hegseth as Defense secretary as his “biggest regret.”
From Slate ● Oct. 10, 2026
Broadcasters also lost interest in promoting the show as its ratings and their Emmy hauls declined amid the rise of HBO, cable channels AMC and FX, and streamers, including Netflix.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026
"The government has only started promoting ube in the past two to three years as demand spiked," Samson explained.
From Barron's ● Oct. 6, 2026
"We're really clear that acting on AI is not the same thing as advocating for it or promoting it," he says.
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
And oh yes, we will be getting “little presents” now and then— ballpoint pens, coffee mugs, T-shirts promoting seasonal items.
From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich
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.
