ennoble

American  

[en-noh-buhl] / ɛnˈnoʊ bəl /

verb (used with object)

ennobled, ennobling

1. to elevate in degree, excellence, or respect; dignify; exalt.

   a personality ennobled by true generosity.

2. to confer a title of nobility on.

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ennoble British  

/ ɪˈnəʊbəl /

verb

1. to make noble, honourable, or excellent; dignify; exalt

2. to raise to a noble rank; confer a title of nobility upon

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Other Word Forms

• ennoblement noun
• ennobler noun
• ennobling adjective
• ennoblingly adverb
• unennobled adjective
• unennobling adjective

Etymology

Origin of ennoble

1425–75; late Middle English ennobelen < Middle French, Old French ennoblir. See en- ¹, noble

Explanation

To ennoble someone is to make them a Lord or a Baroness — to bestow a noble title upon them. The Queen of England has the power to ennoble people, turning Paul McCartney into Sir Paul McCartney, for example. One way to use the verb ennoble is to mean, literally, "make someone a noble or a member of the nobility." It can also mean "bestow or lend dignity to" or "make dignified." You could say, "Reading great books ennobles the mind," or "Treating others with kindness ennobles a person." Ennoble comes from the Old French ennoblir, from the prefix en-, "put in," and the Latin root nobilis, "excellent, superior, or splendid."

Example Sentences

One of U2’s enduring strengths has been the way its songs ennoble yearning and turbulence.

From New York Times • Mar. 17, 2023

The number of people who, out of civic generosity, think that they can enlarge or ennoble their selves by giving their energies to a good larger than themselves?

From Salon • May 27, 2019

The Greek terms ennoble the ailments, even if they don’t make them go away.

From The New Yorker • Jan. 7, 2019

“I think I know who Virginians are — I think they want somebody who will ennoble and uplift and motivate rather than divide.”

From Washington Times • Nov. 5, 2018

The title of Inchiquin dates from the year 1543, but no title was required to ennoble those who were of the blood of kings, and were "nobler than the royalty that first ennobled them."

From The South Isles of Aran by Burke, Oliver J.