promotion

American  

[pruh-moh-shuhn] / prəˈmoʊ ʃən /

noun

1. advancement in rank or position.

2. furtherance or encouragement.

3. the act of promoting.

4. the state of being promoted.

5. something devised to publicize or advertise a product, cause, institution, etc., as a brochure, free sample, poster, television or radio commercial, or personal appearance.

6. Also called queening.  Chess. the replacement of a pawn that has reached the enemy's first rank by a more powerful piece of the same color, usually a queen.

---

Other Word Forms

• nonpromotion
  noun
• prepromotion
  noun
• promotional
  adjective
• self-promotion
  noun
• unpromotional
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of promotion

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Late Latin prōmōtiōn-, stem of prōmōtiō “movement forward, advancement”; equivalent to promote + -ion

Explanation

A promotion is a raise in pay or stature, or it's a way to raise the profile or attention of something. If you create an advertising promotion that increases sales of spray jeans in a can, for example, you might get a promotion to company vice-president. Words that start with pro- usually hint at something positive or forward moving, and a promotion is a moving up or a motion forward. A product promotion pushes the item out in front so it gets more exposure, and a work or school promotion raises your salary or moves you up a grade. If you’re in the military a promotion means a higher rank, with more people under your command, and the same happens if you earn a promotion in a club or organization like the scouts.

Example Sentences

It was a huge promotion, even for such a tenured executive.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 25, 2026

They were then hit with a three-window transfer embargo, which was later reduced to two after a successful appeal, and few had them down as promotion contenders.

From BBC • May 22, 2026

The menu helped beef up repeat visits at Burger King in January even after the promotion ended, Kobza said.

From Los Angeles Times • May 22, 2026

Bradley quickly became Pierce’s star teacher; in turn, Pierce’s promotion established and spread Bradley’s reputation.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 20, 2026

But while he waited for his promotion, he kept the job of principal at Camillo Junior High and tested out his dictator-of-a-small-country techniques on us.

From "The Wednesday Wars" by Gary D. Schmidt