gratis
Americanadverb
adjective
adverb
Etymology
Origin of gratis
1400–50; late Middle English < Latin grātīs freely, contraction of grātiīs with favors, graces (ablative plural of grātia grace )
Explanation
When there’s a concert you want to go to and your best friend gets tickets and takes you gratis, be grateful: that means you’re going for free. You can use gratis as a synonym for "free" or "without payment." It can be either an adjective or an adverb. For example, you buy a new smart phone and immediately download several free apps. You get your first bill, and see you’ve been charged for all those apps. When you call the phone company, you can say, “Those apps were labeled as gratis. I downloaded them gratis. Why are you charging me?”
Vocabulary lists containing gratis
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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Vocabulary from the Magna Carta on its 800th Anniversary
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The Merchant of Venice
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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.
The Aero theater will offer moviegoers popcorn and soda — gratis.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 30, 2026
Some publish gratis, some require a paid subscription and many others offer a combination of free and paid content.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 6, 2025
Inside the Palais, bleary-eyed attendees are treated to gratis espresso.
From Seattle Times • May 14, 2024
"We cannot allow others to simply use it free, gratis and for nothing. That would be unfair."
From BBC • Oct. 3, 2023
She smelled the thick bit of punk which was given gratis with each purchase and which, when lit, smoldered for hours and was used to set off the firecrackers.
From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith
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.
