inviting
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of inviting
Explanation
Inviting things are very appealing. Your host's inviting smile makes you truly feel welcomed and even a little bit charmed. On a hot summer day, nothing looks quite as inviting as a cool, sparkling swimming pool, and when you come inside after walking home in the snow, a cozy fire in the wood stove is also quite inviting. Something inviting promises comfort or pleasure. The word comes from invitation, from the Latin invitare, "invite, treat, or entertain," which originally meant "be pleasant toward."
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.
It began inviting local high-school seniors and their parents to its Camden facility for tours.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 17, 2026
As Capp explains, "This was a sort of populist political gesture, essentially inviting the moral support of the crowd."
From Science Daily • May 7, 2026
Nedelman has assembled the book club over the decades, inviting women from different parts of her life, including investment clubs and Planned Parenthood organizing along with high school classmates.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 28, 2026
Millions of streams later, Drake sent a DM, punctuated with exploding-head emojis, inviting Wolf to record the opening verse of his recent single, Dog House.
From BBC • Apr. 28, 2026
“We were hoping to attract even more people by inviting them to build their own boats,” Nate says.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
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.
