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dignify

 - 2 dictionary results

dig⋅ni⋅fy

  [dig-nuh-fahy]
–verb (used with object), -fied, -fy⋅ing.
1. to confer honor or dignity upon; honor; ennoble.
2. to give a high-sounding title or name to; confer unmerited distinction upon: to dignify pedantry by calling it scholarship.
Use dignify in a Sentence
Origin:
1375–1425; late ME dignifien < OF dignefier < ML dignificāre, equiv. to L dign(us) worthy + -ificāre -ify
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To dignify
dig·ni·fy   (dĭg'nə-fī')   
tr.v.   dig·ni·fied, dig·ni·fy·ing, dig·ni·fies

  1. To confer dignity or honor on; give distinction to: dignified him with a title.

  2. To raise the status of (something unworthy or lowly); make honorable: would not dignify the insulting question with a response.


[Middle English dignifien, from Old French dignifier, from Late Latin dignificāre : Latin dignus, worthy; see dek- in Indo-European roots + Latin -ficāre, -fy.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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