glorify
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
-
to make glorious
-
to make more splendid; adorn
-
to worship, exalt, or adore
-
to extol
-
to cause to seem more splendid or imposing than reality
Other Word Forms
- deglorify verb (used with object)
- glorifiable adjective
- glorifier noun
- reglorify verb (used with object)
- self-glorified adjective
- self-glorifying adjective
- unglorified adjective
- unglorifying adjective
Etymology
Origin of glorify
1300–50; Middle English < Old French glorifier < Late Latin glōrificāre. See glory, -fy
Explanation
To glorify is to praise or honor something or someone to an extreme degree. If you like someone, you might compliment or praise them, but glorifying takes that a step further. When something is glorified, it is praised to the highest degree possible. It seems right that great people like Martin Luther King and Gandhi are glorified. It can seem odd when athletes are glorified just for playing a game. Often this word is used in a negative sense. For example, a movie with lots of explosions could be said "to glorify violence."
Vocabulary lists containing glorify
Purple Hibiscus
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Shiloh
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“The campaign to glorify him,” wrote one biographer in 1988, “has surpassed fanatic religious fervor. The North Korean ‘sun of the nation’ shines both day and night, and it is hard to escape his ubiquity.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 11, 2026
Naturally, such arches tend to glorify the emperor.
From Salon • Nov. 5, 2025
In April, the Mexican government announced a music contest to encourage Mexican artists to create music that does not glorify a violent lifestyle.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 20, 2025
US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau wrote on X: "Foreigners who glorify violence and hatred are not welcome visitors to our country."
From BBC • Jun. 30, 2025
Firs I’m a glorify broom expert, now I’m vagran.”
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
