Word of the Day

: March 28, 2013

laudable

adjective LAW-duh-bul

What It Means

: worthy of praise : commendable

laudable in Context

Parents, faculty, and members of the community commended the students for their laudable efforts at cleaning up the park and renovating its play structures.

"This revision of the school funding formula would align with and enable those laudable reforms to come to full fruition." - From an editorial in the Denver Post, February 23, 2013

Did You Know?

Both "laudable" and "laudatory" derive ultimately from Latin "laud-" or "laus," meaning "praise." "Laudable" and "laudatory" differ in meaning, however, and usage commentators warn against using them interchangeably. "Laudable" means "deserving praise" or "praiseworthy," as in "laudable efforts to help the disadvantaged." "Laudatory" means "giving praise" or "expressing praise," as in "a laudatory book review." People occasionally use "laudatory" in place of "laudable," but this use is not considered standard.