laureate

1 of 3

noun

lau·​re·​ate ˈlȯr-ē-ət 

ˈlär-

: the recipient of honor or recognition for achievement in an art or science

a Nobel laureate

specifically : poet laureate

laureateship

ˈlȯr-ē-ət-ˌship 

ˈlär-

noun

laureate

2 of 3

verb

lau·​re·​ate ˈlȯr-ē-ˌāt 

ˈlär-

laureated; laureating

transitive verb

1

: to crown with or as if with a laurel wreath for excellence or achievement

2

: to appoint to the office of poet laureate

laureation

ˌlȯr-ē-ˈā-shən 

ˌlär-

noun

laureate

3 of 3

adjective

lau·​re·​ate ˈlȯr-ē-ət 

ˈlär-

1

: honored for outstanding achievement in an art or science

This was a term coined in the 1950s by Nobel laureate chemist Irving Langmuir …

—Gary Taubes

see also poet laureate

2

: crowned with laurel

Minted in France in 1807, the front of the medal shows the laureate head of Emperor Napoleon and, on the reverse, an eagle clutching a thunderbolt, part of the emperor's imperial seal.

—Brice Stump

Examples of laureate in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The Nobel Peace Prize laureate is serving a sentence of 13 years and nine months on charges including collusion against national security and propaganda against Iran’s government. —Yarden Segev, NBC news, 16 Apr. 2026

Nobel laureate Ardem Patapoutian at Scripps Research will lead a team that will help with the discovery and engineering of ultrasound-sensitive proteins. —Paul Sisson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Apr. 2026

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wazed fled to India, and an interim government, led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, took over. —Nick Tabor, Encyclopedia Britannica, 13 Apr. 2026

Raczynski noted that Soviet physicist and human rights advocate Andrei Sakharov, a 1975 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, was its first chairman. —Dasha Litvinova, Los Angeles Times, 9 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Middle English, crowned with laurel as a distinction, from Latin laureatus, from laurea laurel wreath, from feminine of laureus of laurel, from laurus

First Known Use

Noun

circa 1529, in the meaning defined above

Verb

circa 1610, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1508, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing laureate

• poet laureate

Rhymes for laureate

• baccalaureate

Kids Definition

laureate

noun

lau·​re·​ate

ˈlȯr-ē-ət, 

ˈlär-

: a person honored for achievement in an art or science

especially : poet laureate

laureate adjective