promotion

American  

[pruh-moh-shuhn] / prəˈmoʊ ʃən /

noun

• promotions
  plural

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.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

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

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• promotions
  plural

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

See Examples For:

promotion promotions

Now AI has put promotion, and occasionally outright deception, into overdrive.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026

As Kennedy looks forward to the next three months of book promotion she says that everyone "should give anything they fancy a lash".

From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026

“Maintaining a sleep duration of 6-8 hours can effectively reduce the risk of multiple diseases, providing new insights for health promotion and preventive practice.”

From Science Daily ● Sep. 24, 2026

In addition to the initial $40 million Amazon MGM Studios paid to license the project, the marketing and promotion budget was reportedly another $35 million.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026

“I wasn’t trying to get a promotion before. And now I am. Which would mean a big pay increase that will help all of us.”

From "A Soft Place to Land" by Janae Marks

McDonald’s last month said too many promotions at once — along with changes to its McValue discount platform — led to complications for restaurant workers and questions from customers.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026

The higher promotions “largely offset Apple’s higher pricing this year,” Bank of America analysts said in a note last week.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026

That’s creating a bottleneck at some firms, stifling not just promotions but preventing younger ambitious partners from getting bigger cases and juicier work.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026

They began life in the Crawley & District League and, 25 years, 12 promotions and just one relegation later, they now play in National League South.

From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026

There were no play areas, no sweepstakes or “Happy Meals,” no giveaways or promotions.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides