welcome mat

noun

Definition of welcome mat

: something likened to a mat placed before an entrance as a sign of welcome put out the welcome mat for foreign investors

Examples of welcome mat in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Every Czech family’s photo album has the requisite picture of a wide-eyed, screaming child who absolutely lost it when Mom and Dad rolled out the welcome mat for Mephistopheles. — Washington Post, "I brought my kids to the Devil for Christmas. And they’re fine. Right?," 17 Dec. 2020 Trump threw down the welcome mat to anyone looking to aid his presidential profiteering. — Casey Michel, The New Republic, "How to Make Kleptocrats Fear America Again," 23 Dec. 2020 In some countries, the welcome mat stays out Some countries with significant tourism economies never really closed to outsiders, including Mexico. — Bruce Wallin, Travel, "Why some countries are opening back up to tourists during a pandemic," 30 Nov. 2020 Consider adding a door knocker or seasonal wreath to the door, and a welcome mat to greet visitors. — Melissa Rolland, courant.com, "Little things make your home stand out," 24 Nov. 2020 From the sound of the initial response, the county and Pleasanton locals aren’t ready to roll out the welcome mat. — Phil Matier, SFChronicle.com, "Oakland looks to Alameda County Fairgrounds as winter homeless shelter — idea falls flat," 28 Oct. 2020 But now the games, depending on how much more havoc the COVID-19 pandemic can wreak on the schedule, are nearly upon us, some dates have finally been announced, and that welcome mat might start to show a kink or wrinkle here and there. — Dom Amore, courant.com, "UConn men and Big East: Seton Hall coach Kevin Willard on Huskies return, says ‘It sucks for us’ ... Let the rivalries begin," 28 Oct. 2020 While some may be elated with their new Californian neighbors, the Texas GOP is not rolling out the welcome mat. — Matt Levin, SFChronicle.com, "Californians leave for Texas in numbers, making politically red state closer to purple," 10 Oct. 2020 Instead of treating the player the team calls DHC like an adversary, though, Warren put out the welcome mat. — Julie Jag, The Salt Lake Tribune, "Utah State’s Devonta’e Henry-Cole, Jaylen Warren are the odd couple at the foundation of Aggies’ ground game," 16 Oct. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'welcome mat.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.