reward
Americannoun
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rewards
plural
verb (used with object)
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rewards,
present (3rd person singular)
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rewarded,
past participle, past
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rewarding
present participle
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to recompense or requite (a person or animal) for service, merit, achievement, etc.
- Synonyms:
- remunerate, pay, compensate
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to make return for or requite (service, merit, etc.); recompense.
noun
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something given or received in return for a deed or service rendered
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a sum of money offered, esp for help in finding a criminal or for the return of lost or stolen property
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profit or return
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something received in return for good or evil; deserts
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psychol any pleasant event that follows a response and therefore increases the likelihood of the response recurring in the future
verb
Synonym Usage
Reward, prize, recompense imply something given in return for good. A reward is something given or done in return for good (or, more rarely, evil) received; it may refer to something abstract or concrete: a $50 reward; Virtue is its own reward. Prize refers to something concrete offered as a reward of merit, or to be contested for and given to the winner: to win a prize for an essay. A recompense is something given or done, whether as reward or punishment, for acts performed, services rendered, etc.; or it may be something given in compensation for loss or injury suffered, etc.: Renown was his principal recompense for years of hard work.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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rewardablenessnoun
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rewardernoun
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overrewardverb
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misrewardverb (used with object)
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superrewardverb (used with object)
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rewardableadjective
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rewardlessadjective
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unrewardableadjective
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unrewardedadjective
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well-rewardedadjective
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rewardablyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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rewardsimple
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rewardssimple
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have rewardedperfect
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has rewardedperfect
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am rewardingprogressive
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are rewardingprogressive
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is rewardingprogressive
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have been rewardingperfect progressive
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has been rewardingperfect progressive
Past
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rewardedsimple
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had rewardedperfect
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was rewardingprogressive
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were rewardingprogressive
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had been rewardingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of reward
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English (verb) rewarden originally, “to regard,” from Old North French rewarder “to look at,” variant of Old French reguarder; see origin at regard
Explanation
A reward is something you get for a job well done. If you study hard for that vocabulary test, an "A" might be the reward in your future. You can use reward as a verb, as when the mayor rewards a firefighter who saves a family from a terrible blaze, or as a noun, to talk about the actual payment or item that's given to the firefighter. People often offer a reward for the return of lost or stolen things, like bicycles or jewelry or dogs. Reward meant "a regarding" or "an observation" in the 1300's, but it soon came to mean "repayment for some service."
Vocabulary lists containing reward
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:
“That’s the biggest reward in your whole life. I had so many people pour into me, and I get to just pour it right out. That’s the torch.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
But from a team perspective, it was all risk and no reward.
From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026
“He waited until the last moment to take any action, and the court should not reward that behavior,” the filing stated, adding that Seaver “already has lawyers who appear to be anxious to represent him.”
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 12, 2026
PhillyUnsolvedMurders.com, where the fake tip was sent in, is a Philadelphia police website that lists unsolved homicides, takes tips on cases and offers a $20,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
Following the swearing-in of Andrew Johnson as the seventeenth president, Stanton had issued a reward for Jefferson Davis and other Confederate officials, naming them as assassination conspirators.
From "Chasing Lincoln's Killer" by James L. Swanson
This is the difference between an information ecosystem that rewards accuracy and one that rewards attention.
From Salon ● Oct. 15, 2026
The first few songs sketch out the record’s themes, in which individual dreams are cheapened in a world that rewards artificiality.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026
Still, consumer advocates warn that introducing probabilistic rewards into daily retail purchases normalizes speculative risk in everyday life.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026
He said the goal was to create an experience that rewards both casual visitors and longtime fans.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026
Each of these, on some level, triggers tiny rewards.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
For the last several years, the market has rewarded companies when they announce a new, larger model, a larger data center, or a bigger AI-infrastructure commitment.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
Patient travelers are rewarded with some of the most dramatic scenery anywhere in Iceland, all frothing waterfalls and muscular peaks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
Two innings later, the Dodgers took the lead again, rewarded for hard contact as the Brewers’ defense showed its first signs of sloppy play.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026
They were rewarded with fish for the right answers.
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
Father reminded her that once the obelisk is completed, he will be rewarded with his freedom, and we will be able to live the life we choose.
From "The (Mostly) True Story of Cleopatra's Needle" by Dan Gutman
I found the second act less rewarding, and inconclusive, as the play becomes more fantastical and stylized.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
Instead, the market begins rewarding stable profit margins, free cash flow, operating efficiency and raised earnings forecasts, Wilson explained.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026
A thematic cousin, “Black Coral” by Mr. Stills, centers on how scuba diving becomes more spiritually rewarding the deeper you go.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026
Dunn, who graduated this year, said the research project had been "rewarding and positive".
From BBC ● Sep. 26, 2026
It would be more rewarding if it didn’t have the overtones of a circus sideshow.
From "A Mango-Shaped Space" by Wendy Mass
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