CHEER (UP) Synonyms: 61 Similar and Opposite Words

cheer (up)

verb

Definition of cheer (up)

as in to brighten

to become glad or hopeful cheer up—things are bound to get better

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to encourage

to fill with courage or strength of purpose the general's speech cheered up the troops tremendously

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for cheer (up)

Verb

On overcast afternoons, the sky often brightened as the evening wore on, as if the world were turning in reverse.

— Holden Frith, TheWeek, 4 Sep. 2026
Saturn, meanwhile, continues to brighten in the east during the late evening, making this an increasingly good time to point binoculars or, better still, a small telescope toward the ringed planet.

— Jamie Carter, Space.com, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of brighten

Verb

Bunch said that one of his goals in the head role was to encourage Americans to embrace ambiguity and recognize that America is a complicated, multifaceted nation.

— Brittney Melton, NPR, 9 Sep. 2026
The stated purpose would be to encourage more people to fill out the forms without fear of having their privacy violated.

— Bart Jansen, USA Today, 9 Sep. 2026

Definition of encourage

Verb

These feelings of awe inspired by sequoia trees led to a material change in environmental policy.

— Fiction Non Fiction, Literary Hub, 10 Sep. 2026
In 2000, the Millennium Prize Problems was established to inspire work towards solving these complex problems, offering a $1 million prize for the first correct solution to each problem.

— Karina Tsui, CNN Money, 9 Sep. 2026

Definition of inspire

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.

Browse Nearby Words

cheers (up)

cheer (up)

cheery

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“Cheer (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cheer%20%28up%29. Accessed 16 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of cheer (up)

verb

Example Sentences

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