acclaim

1 of 2

verb

ac·​claim ə-ˈklām How to pronounce acclaim (audio)
acclaimed; acclaiming; acclaims
Synonyms of acclaim

transitive verb

1
: applaud, praise
Critics acclaimed her performance.
2
: to declare by acclamation
was acclaimed president of the society

intransitive verb

: to shout praise or applause
acclaimer noun

acclaim

2 of 2

noun

1
: the act of acclaiming
2
: praise, applause
She deserves acclaim for all her charitable works.

Synonyms of acclaim

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Verb

Noun

See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of acclaim in a Sentence

Verb The critics have acclaimed her performance. she has long been acclaimed by the critics for her realistic acting Noun Her performance in the ballet earned her critical acclaim. She deserves acclaim for all her charitable works.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Verb
Fellner began her career on the cult comedy series The Fast Show and would go on to appear in the likes of The Alan Clarke Diaries, My Hero, The Eustace Bros, The Line of Beauty and Disney+’s recently acclaimed A Small Light. — Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 6 Aug. 2026 Five portraits by Gordon Parks, the photographer acclaimed for documenting African American life throughout the Civil Rights Era, frame the foyer inside Usher’s gracious Atlanta home. — Jewel Wicker, Architectural Digest, 4 Aug. 2026
Noun
Danny DeVito, Lucy DeVito and Jake DeVito produced the film, which premiered at SXSW 2026 to critical acclaim. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 7 Aug. 2026 Video game programmer John Carmack discovered Luckey’s work on online forums, requested a prototype, and demonstrated the Rift to widespread acclaim at the 2012 E3 trade show. — Bydavid Schepp, Encyclopedia Britannica, 7 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for acclaim

Word History

Etymology

Verb

borrowed (with assimilation to claim entry 1) from Middle French & Latin; Middle French acclamer, borrowed from Latin acclāmāre "to shout (at or in reaction to), raise an outcry, shout approval," from ad- ad- + clāmāre "to shout" — more at claim entry 1

Noun

derivative of acclaim entry 1

First Known Use

Verb

1626, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun

1667, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of acclaim was in 1626

Rhymes for acclaim

See All Rhymes for acclaim

Browse Nearby Words

Accius
acclaim
acclaimed
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Acclaim.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/acclaim. Accessed 10 Aug. 2026.

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Kids Definition

acclaim

1 of 2 verb
ac·​claim ə-ˈklām How to pronounce acclaim (audio)
1
: to welcome with applause or great praise
a novel acclaimed by the critics
2
: to proclaim by or as if by acclamation
acclaimer noun

acclaim

2 of 2 noun
1
: the act of acclaiming
2
: applause, praise
Etymology

Verb

from Latin acclamare, literally "to shout at," from ac-, ad- "to, toward" and clamare "to shout" — related to claim, clamor

More from Merriam-Webster on acclaim

Nglish: Translation of acclaim for Spanish Speakers

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