gratify

C2+ Topic:Actions & Processes

US /ˈɡrætəˌfaɪ/ UK /ˈɡratɪfaɪ/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

verb
to give pleasure or satisfaction to

It would gratify me greatly to see the project finished.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to give pleasure or... please satisfy delight indulge content gladden

Opposites

displease frustrate disappointdissatisfy

Word family

Derived forms gratifiergratification gratifying

Related forms grateful gratitude gratis

Etymology

From Middle French gratifier, from Latin gratificari ('to do a favor, oblige'), from gratus ('pleasing') + facere ('to make, do').

gratificārī Latin gratus Latin facere Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Actions & Processes Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# gratify

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /ˈɡrætəˌfaɪ/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈɡratɪfaɪ/

## Meanings
1. to give pleasure or satisfaction to

## Examples
- It would gratify me greatly to see the project finished.

## Synonyms
- please
- satisfy
- delight
- indulge
- content
- gladden

## Antonyms
- displease
- frustrate
- disappoint
- dissatisfy

## Derived Forms
- gratifier
- gratification
- gratifying

## Related Forms
- grateful
- gratitude
- gratis

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: gratificārī
- Root: gratus
- Root: facere

## Etymology
From Middle French gratifier, from Latin gratificari ('to do a favor, oblige'), from gratus ('pleasing') + facere ('to make, do').

## AI Etymology
Gratify comes from Middle French gratifier, from Latin gratificari ('to do a favor, oblige'), from gratus ('pleasing') + facere ('to make, do'). Morphologically, the form is compositional, with the named elements combining to produce the modern spelling and sense. In present use, it is used as a verb meaning "to give pleasure or satisfaction to", so the historical material remains connected with the current sense rather than standing as bare ancestry. The wider English family includes derivatives such as gratifier, gratification, and gratifying and related forms such as grateful, gratitude, and gratis, showing how the same historical material continues to organize neighboring vocabulary. The named historical forms include Latin gratificārī, Latin gratus, and Latin facere, keeping the history tied to concrete forms rather than a loose resemblance. Its semantic neighborhood is marked by please, satisfy, delight, and indulge on one side and contrasts such as displease, frustrate, and disappoint on the other, locating the modern specialization without adding a new origin story.

## Topics
- Actions & Processes
- Word Formation & Derivatives

markdown