Meanings
present singular third person glorifies · participle present glorifying · participle past glorified · past glorified
- transitiveTo make (something) appear to be more glorious than it is; regard something or someone as excellent baselessly.
Some movies glorify mobsters by making them seem like the cool kids around the block.
2 more examples
Historical dictators are glorified in some countries that are dictatorships and by some political radicals.
Thursday's long-awaited relocation fulfils a key pledge of the socialist government, which said Spain should not continue to glorify a fascist who ruled the country for nearly four decades.
2019 October 24, “Franco exhumation: Spanish dictator's remains moved”, in BBC NewsAntonyms: deify, flatter, idolize, mythify, promote, avile, blacken, slander
Synonyms & antonyms
verbTo exalt, or give glory or praise to (something or someone).
verbTo make (something) appear to be more glorious than it is; regard something or someone as excellent baselessly.
More synonyms by meaning
verbelevate or idealize, in allusion to Christ's transfiguration
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Latinglōria
- Late Latinglōrificō
- Old Frenchglorifier
- Middle Englishglorifien
- Englishglorify
From Middle English glorifien, from Anglo-Norman and Old French glorifier, from Late Latin glōrificō, from Latin glōria + -ficō (“to make”). By surface analysis, glory + -fy. Displaced native Middle English wuldrien (“to glorify”), from Old English wuldrian as well as Middle English stellifien (“to glorify, make stellar”), from Old French stellifier (Medieval Latin stellificāre); see stellify.
More words from Middle English, Old French, Late Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek δοξάζω
- δοξάζω (doxázō)to exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
Bulgarian славя, прославям
- славя (slavja)to exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- прославям (proslavjam)to exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- превъзнасям (prevăznasjam)to worship or extol
- величая (veličaja)to worship or extol
Catalan glorificar
- glorificarto exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
Dutch verheerlijken, vereren
- verheerlijkento exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- vererento exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
Finnish ylistää, kaunistella
- ylistääto exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- kaunistellato make something appear to be more glorious than it is
- palvoato worship or extol
French glorifier
- glorifierto exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
German verherrlichen, glorifizieren
- verherrlichento exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- glorifizierento make something appear to be more glorious than it is
- verklärento make something appear to be more glorious than it is
- anbetento worship or extol
Greek δοξάζω
- δοξάζω (doxázo)to exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
Irish glóirigh, mór
- glóirighto exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- mórto exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
Italian glorificare
- glorificareto exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
Japanese 褒める, 美化する
- 褒める (homeru)to exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- 美化する (bika suru)to make something appear to be more glorious than it is
Māori whakakorōria
- whakakorōriato exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
Polish gloryfikować, wysławiać
- gloryfikowaćto exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- wysławiaćto exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- wysławićto exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- gloryfikowaćto make something appear to be more glorious than it is
Romanian glorifica
- glorificato make something appear to be more glorious than it is
Russian прославля́ть, просла́вить
- прославля́ть (proslavljátʹ)to exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- просла́вить (proslávitʹ)to exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- восхваля́ть (vosxvaljátʹ)to exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- восхвали́ть (vosxvalítʹ)to exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- превозноси́ть (prevoznosítʹ)to make something appear to be more glorious than it is
- превознести́ (prevoznestí)to make something appear to be more glorious than it is
- боготвори́ть (bogotvorítʹ)to worship or extol
- поклоня́ться (poklonjátʹsja)to worship or extol
Spanish glorificar, glorificar
- glorificarto exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- glorificarto make something appear to be more glorious than it is
Swedish prisa, ära
- prisato exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- ärato exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- glorifierato exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- förhärligato make something appear to be more glorious than it is
- glorifierato make something appear to be more glorious than it is
- prisato worship or extol
Ukrainian прославля́ти, просла́вити
- прославля́ти (proslavljáty)to exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
- просла́вити (proslávyty)to exalt, or give glory or praise to something or someone
Cite this entry
glorify. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/glorify
“glorify.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/glorify. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “glorify,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/glorify.
Source: glorify on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.