endear

verb

Definition of endearnext
as in to commend
to cause (someone) to be loved or admired by (someone or something) They endeared themselves to the whole town.

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

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 endear That term is used frequently by fans of endearing male celebrities or characters who come across as sensitive, caring or vulnerable. — ABC News, 11 July 2026 Newcastle United defender Dan Burn’s first appearance of the tournament as a substitute against Mexico endeared him to the whole nation back home. — George Edwards, New York Times, 11 July 2026 His willingness to move to Rio de Janeiro upon taking the job endeared him to the cynical public, as did his decision to call up Neymar to his squad to quieten the noise the forward’s potential exclusion would have brought with it. — Chris Evans, Forbes.com, 5 July 2026 Phones came out when Lil Sobe did his endearing online bit IRL, rapping with his Ethiopian mom over TrapMoneyBiggie beats. — Mano Sundaresan, Pitchfork, 1 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for endear
Recent Examples of Synonyms for endear
  1. commend
  2. massage
  3. ingratiate
  4. compliment
  5. coax
  6. congratulate
  7. cajole
  8. worship
Verb
  • Clients as well as opposing counsel routinely commend her ability to quickly identify risk, to build strategies that align with client goals and objectives, and to efficiently seek resolution or streamline to trial, as needed.
    — Malana VanTyler, USA Today, 15 July 2026
  • Leeper says the authors should be commended for those precautions, but the possibility of contamination can’t be ruled out completely.
    — Tom Gavin, EverydayHealth.com, 15 July 2026
Definition of commend
Verb
  • To experience its silky-smooth results, gently massage the serum into your scalp when your hair is dry or towel-dried post-shower—and, cue the compliments!
    — Kyra Surgent, InStyle, 14 July 2026
  • Words have been parsed over, ideas about location, production design, costume, lighting have all been carefully massaged even up to the day of photography.
    — Rachel Elspeth Gross, Forbes.com, 10 July 2026
Definition of massage
Verb
  • By dint of being more active than Harris – and others – have been, Newsom has been able to ingratiate himself with donors.
    — Douglas Schoen, Oc Register, 16 July 2026
  • What drives her attempt to use female solidarity as a way to ingratiate herself with Priscilla, a woman who is seemingly her enemy?
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 15 July 2026
Definition of ingratiate
Verb
  • All right, this is the patronizing version of complimenting the elderly.
    — Judith Martin, Mercury News, 6 July 2026
  • Just hours before the ceremony, Jason and Travis released a new episode of their podcast, New Heights, featuring Prince William, who complimented Jason on raising his four daughters.
    — Natasha Dye, PEOPLE, 4 July 2026
Definition of compliment
Verb
  • But Gannon will have to use both strategy and motivational skills to coax the unit towards improvement in this game-defining category.
    — Mike Jones, New York Times, 16 July 2026
  • The team is working on building ribosomes from genetic instructions, a process that involves synthesizing the dozens of proteins and RNA strands involved and coaxing them to assemble in the right order.
    — Lori Youmshajekian, Scientific American, 14 July 2026
Definition of coax
Verb
  • Her mother in Kearney, Francesca Gambino Brown, congratulated her on social media last week as Brown prepares for the upcoming football season.
    — Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 21 July 2026
  • The sibling duo, locked in a hug, then headed up through the stands together as others congratulated Yamal on Spain’s win.
    — Charlotte Phillipp, PEOPLE, 20 July 2026
Definition of congratulate
Verb
  • Fox’s next trick is to cajole World Cup fans to stick around for other sporting events.
    — Brian Steinberg, Variety, 22 July 2026
  • Someone there has to be gobbier and start cajoling players into their proper positions.
    — Sarah Shephard, New York Times, 4 July 2026
Definition of cajole
Verb
  • Visitors from the four corners of the soccer-worshipping earth descended upon our huge and beautifully chaotic country and a whole bunch of them seemed to fall in love with the place and its people.
    — Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 17 July 2026
  • Inside, inscriptions bearing Paser's name depict him worshipping various deities inside shrines, as well as seated with his wife before an offering table.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 12 July 2026
Definition of worship

Browse Nearby Words

endangers
endear
endeared
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Endear.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/endear. Accessed 24 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of itinerant

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

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

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 24

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List
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
thumbnail graphic with text word of the day quiz
Weekly "Word of the Day" Quiz See how well you know each Word of the Day for Ju...
See All