encourage

verb

en·​cour·​age in-ˈkər-ij 

-ˈkə-rij,

en-

encouraged; encouraging

transitive verb

1

a

: to inspire with courage, spirit, or hope : hearten

she was encouraged to continue by her early success

b

: to attempt to persuade : urge

they encouraged him to go back to school

2

: to spur on : stimulate

warm weather encourages plant growth

3

: to give help or patronage to : foster

government grants designed to encourage conservation

encourager noun

Synonyms of encourage

• inspire

Choose the Right Synonym for encourage

encourage, inspirit, hearten, embolden mean to fill with courage or strength of purpose.

encourage suggests the raising of one's confidence especially by an external agency.

the teacher's praise encouraged the students to greater efforts

inspirit, somewhat literary, implies instilling life, energy, courage, or vigor into something.

patriots inspirited the people to resist

hearten implies the lifting of dispiritedness or despondency by an infusion of fresh courage or zeal.

a hospital patient heartened by good news

embolden implies the giving of courage sufficient to overcome timidity or reluctance.

emboldened by her first success, she tried an even more difficult climb

Examples of encourage in a Sentence

They encouraged us in our work.

Encourage each other with kind words.

The program is meant to encourage savings.

Warm weather encourages plant growth.

He claims the new regulations will encourage investment.

He claims the new regulations will encourage people to invest.

We want to encourage students to read more.

My parents encouraged me to go back to college.

They encouraged her to go.

Recent Examples on the Web

There was a lot to like about Jovic’s performance on Saturday, with Heat veteran guard Norman Powell pushing and encouraging him along the way. —Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 9 Nov. 2025

Over the last century, research has repeatedly shown that that building new roads or new lanes encourages more people to drive, and therefore does not relieve congestion in the long-term. —Ariane Lange, Sacbee.com, 9 Nov. 2025

The city’s emergency overflow shelter is available to adults over 18, with capacity for dogs in kennels, but the office encouraged people who need a warm place to sleep to seek primary shelters as a first option. —Austin Hornbostel, Nashville Tennessean, 9 Nov. 2025

During the end of the latter track, Lauper encouraged audience members to sing along and brought Salt-n-Pepa onstage to join in. —Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 9 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English encoragen, from Anglo-French encorager, from en- + curage courage

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for encourage

• demurrage
• discourage
• burrage
• courage

Kids Definition

encourage

verb

en·​cour·​age in-ˈkər-ij 

-ˈkə-rij

encouraged; encouraging

1

a

: to cause to feel courage, spirit, or hope

encouraged by her kind words

b

: to try to persuade

encouraged him to go back to school

2

: to spur on : stimulate

3

: to give help to : foster

government grants to encourage young artists

warm weather encourages plant growth

encouragement

-mənt

noun

encouragingly

-ij-iŋ-lē

-rij-

adverb