encourage

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"The whole point of the water reform process that we're trying to encourage is to get out of the situation where (bill increases) will happen again in the future," Mr Matthews told reporters.

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Definitions (11)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (4)

  1. transitive verb To inspire with hope, courage, or confidence; hearten.
  2. transitive verb To give support to; foster: policies designed to encourage private investment.
  3. transitive verb To stimulate; spur: burning the field to encourage new plant growth.
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Examples (18)

  • "The whole point of the water reform process that we're trying to encourage is to get out of the situation where (bill increases) will happen again in the future," Mr Matthews told reporters. —  northernstar.com.au: The Northern Star
  • My prayer is that our words bless, encourage, and strengthen you, dear one. —  Spiritually Unequal Marriage
  • "What we encourage, along with law enforcement, would be a clear view of the house number that is unobstructed by trees, vegetation, and the like," said John Babcock, assistant chief of the Ruhenstroth Volunteer Fire Department. —  The Record-Courier - Top Stories
  • We relaunched to encourage, assist and inspire independent creatives to use their new digital freedoms to create great work, that adds to our understanding of ourselves and the world, and helps move things forward. —  home
  • "The more languages we encourage, the more English will prevail," he claimed, due to what he termed "the interference of reality". —  EurActiv.com
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Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

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Used in the same contextWord Family

encourage:   encouraging ·  encouraged ·  encourages
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (2)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Middle English encouragen, from Old French encoragier : en-, causative pref.; see en-1 + corage, courage; see courage.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (1)

  1. Formerly also incourage; from Old French encouragier, encoraigier, encourager, French encourager (= Provencal encorajar = Spanish Portuguese encorajar = Italian incoraggiare, incoraggire), from en, in, + courage, courage, heart: see courage, n. and v. Cf. Middle Latin incordari, encourage, inspire, from Latin in, in, + cor(d-) = English heart.
 

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/ɛnˈkərədʒ/
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