Crossword Dictionary

What's The Definition Of Praise?

\Praise\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Praised}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Praising}.] [OE. preisen, OF. preisier, prisier, F. priser, L. pretiare to prize, fr. pretium price. See {Price}, n., and cf. {Appreciate}, {Praise}, n., {Prize}, v.] 1. To commend; to applaud; to express approbation of; to laud; -- applied to a person or his acts. ``I praise well thy wit.'' --Chaucer. Let her own works praise her in the gates. --Prov. xxxi. 31. We praise not Hector, though his name, we know, Is great in arms; 't is hard to praise a foe. --Dryden. 2. To extol in words or song; to magnify; to glorify on account of perfections or excellent works; to do honor to; to display the excellence of; -- applied especially to the Divine Being. Praise ye him, all his angels; praise ye him, all his hosts! --Ps. cxlviii. 2. 3. To value; to appraise. [Obs.] --Piers Plowman. Syn: To commend; laud; eulogize; celebrate; glorify; magnify. Usage: To {Praise}, {Applaud}, {Extol}. To praise is to set at high price; to applaud is to greet with clapping; to extol is to bear aloft, to exalt. We may praise in the exercise of calm judgment; we usually applaud from impulse, and on account of some specific act; we extol under the influence of high admiration, and usually in strong, if not extravagant, language.
\Praise\, n. [OE. preis, OF. preis price, worth, value, estimation. See {Praise}, v., {Price}.] 1. Commendation for worth; approval expressed; honor rendered because of excellence or worth; laudation; approbation. There are men who always confound the praise of goodness with the practice. --Rambler. Note: Praise may be expressed by an individual, and thus differs from fame, renown, and celebrity, which are always the expression of the approbation of numbers, or public commendation. 2. Especially, the joyful tribute of gratitude or homage rendered to the Divine Being; the act of glorifying or extolling the Creator; worship, particularly worship by song, distinction from prayer and other acts of worship; as, a service of praise. 3. The object, ground, or reason of praise. He is thy praise, and he is thy God. --Deut. x.??. Syn: Encomium; honor; eulogy; panegyric; plaudit; applause; acclaim; eclat; commendation; laudation.