felicitate
/fi'lisiteit/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Verb:
- To congratulate: To express joy or praise to someone for a happy event or personal achievement. This is the primary and most common meaning.
- (Archaic) To make happy: To cause someone to be happy or joyful. This meaning is now rare and considered obsolete in modern usage.
Usage and Examples
- Verb (To congratulate):
- The committee will felicitate the award winners at the ceremony.
- I called to felicitate her on her promotion.
- They felicitated the newlyweds with a heartfelt toast.
Advanced Usage
- The verb is typically used in formal or ceremonial contexts. It is more formal than the more common verb "congratulate."
- It is almost always used transitively, followed by the person being congratulated. The reason for the congratulations is usually introduced by the preposition "on" (e.g., ).
- The past participle "felicitated" can be used as an adjective in formal contexts.
- The felicitated author gave a short speech of thanks.
Variants and Related Words
- Felicitations (noun, plural): A formal word for congratulations.
- Please accept my felicitations on your marriage.
- Felicitous (adjective): Well-chosen or suited to the circumstances; pleasing and fortunate.
- Her felicitous remark eased the tension in the room.
- Felicity (noun): 1. Great happiness. 2. The ability to find appropriate expression.
- They lived a life of domestic felicity.
- The poet is known for her felicity of phrase.
Synonyms
- Congratulate: To express pleasure and good wishes to someone for their success or good fortune. (This is the most direct synonym.)
- Compliment: To politely praise or express admiration for someone.
- Extol: To praise enthusiastically and highly.
Antonyms
- Condemn: To express complete disapproval.
- Criticize: To indicate the faults of someone or something.
- Commiserate: To express sympathy or sorrow for someone's misfortune (the opposite sentiment).
Notes on Usage
- "Felicitate" is a formal term. In everyday conversation, "congratulate" is far more common.
- The archaic meaning ("to make happy") is virtually never used in contemporary English and is primarily of historical or literary interest.
Verb
- express congratulations