SYNONYMS AND RELATED EXPRESSIONS
gracious
adjective
Showing kindness, courtesy, and generous consideration for others.
Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.
Kind and courteous
Closest synonyms
Related words and expressions
These extend or explain the idea and may require a different sentence structure.
Usage distinction
Return to topGracious combines courtesy with generosity of manner, particularly when a person could have acted less kindly.
CHECK THE MEANING IN CONTEXT
See gracious in use
The host gave a gracious welcome to the late arrivals.
One housemate gave a gracious response when Elise apologized for the abrupt message, thanking her for explaining instead of dwelling on the awkwardness.
Compare an alternative with the original word in each passage. Shared meanings do not make every pair interchangeable.
Synonym reference scope and sources
The groups distinguish the senses selected for this study entry. Closest synonyms and broader related expressions have separate labels. The listed sources support lexical selection; not every phrase is a direct quotation from a source.
How the synonym reference was prepared / WordNet 3.0 license