awarding

verb

present participle of award
1
as in rewarding
to give something as a token of gratitude or admiration for a service or achievement we will award the top three contestants in the essay competition

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in granting
to give the ownership or benefit of (something) formally or publicly custody of the boy was awarded to the grandparents

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of awarding SpaceX would be awarding nearly half of its future earnings to Tesla’s selling shareholders. — Jim Edwards, Fortune, 22 Oct. 2026 The state began awarding grants in 2021, with additional funding rounds in 2022, 2024 and 2027. — Lizzie Kane, Sacbee.com, 14 Oct. 2026 To mitigate this risk, Washington should continue awarding government contracts to more companies. — Kathleen Curlee, Foreign Affairs, 14 Oct. 2026 Wright spoke in front of a crowd of steelworkers at Cleveland-Cliffs Butler Works in Butler Township, Butler County, celebrating the government awarding $75 million to the plant. — Ricky Sayer, CBS News, 7 Oct. 2026 Nobel laureates are chosen by expert committees appointed by the prize-awarding institutions. — Reuters, NBC news, 5 Oct. 2026 Baseball has a way of recognizing new or renovated stadiums by awarding an All-Star Game. — Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 5 Oct. 2026 Plus, the audience also took to Devens, awarding him the title of America’s Favorite Houseguest, which fans vote upon at the end of each season. — Mckinley Franklin, HollywoodReporter, 2 Oct. 2026 Thank you for awarding Tender Loving Care, our film, but not least and especially for The Golden Shell. — Zac Ntim, Deadline, 26 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for awarding
  1. rewarding
  2. granting
  3. honoring
  4. conferring
  5. commending
Verb
  • Our current administration is focused more on rewarding the 1% with tax breaks than supporting our middle class.
    — WCCO Staff, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026
  • The president threatens Ukraine with the loss of American weapons while rewarding Russia with sanctions relief.
    — Editorial Board, Washington Post, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of rewarding
Verb
  • How the tax credit will work Beginning in January, qualifying taxpayers will be able to donate up to $1,700 to a scholarship-granting organization, or SGO.
    — Cory Turner, NPR, 20 Oct. 2026
  • In fact, Newsom recently signed legislation essentially granting a CEQA exemption in San Diego for a 16,000-seat sports arena and housing project led by Los Angeles Rams owner Stan Kroenke.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of granting
Verb
  • That is a big burden, which was understandably interpreted by Albertsons as a clear signal that Kroger was committed to honoring its contract and was all in on the deal.
    — Shubha Ghosh, Fortune, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Now, however, a number of fans are frustrated with how the team has gone about honoring the terms.
    — Eben Novy-Williams, Sportico.com, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of honoring
Verb
  • But after conferring, officials determined there was one second left on the clock.
    — Ryan Gaydos OutKick, FOXNews.com, 6 Sep. 2026
  • By the end of the season, Flores was conferring with Smith on preferences before games.
    — Alec Lewis, New York Times, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of conferring
Verb
  • The Textile-to-Textile Ecosystem Award went to the Circulose Recycling Ecosystem, commending the brand commitments and fiber-producer partnerships supporting the Swedish company’s industrial restart.
    — Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 15 Oct. 2026
  • When the actual resolution commending Biss came before the council, Ald.
    — Shun Graves, Chicago Tribune, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of commending

Browse Nearby Words

awardees
awarding
awards
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Awarding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/awarding. Accessed 23 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of asunder

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Can' vs. 'May'

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Oct. 23

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All