Greet definition
Greet a joke with laughter.
A din greeted our ears.
An example of greet is to acknowledge something; to greet the day with a smile.
An example of greet is to stand at a catering hall door and say hello to guests as they arrive.
The speech was greeted with cheers; the army was greeted by cannon shots.
A roaring sound greeted his ears.
Alternative Forms
Origin of greet
- Middle English greten from Old English grētan
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
- Old English grētan, from Proto-Germanic *grōtijaną. Cognate with Dutch groeten, German grüßen. Compare Old Saxon grotian, Old Frisian greta, Old High German gruozen.
From Wiktionary
- From a blend of two Old English verbs, grētan (cognate with Swedish gräta', Danish græde) and grēotan (of uncertain ultimate origin), both ‘weep, lament’.
From Wiktionary
- From Middle English greet, grete (“great”).
From Wiktionary