What does "welcome" mean?
The act of greeting someone’s arrival, especially by saying "Welcome!"; reception.
Welcome
/ˈwɛl.kəm/ adj, intj, name, noun, verb
adj, intj, name, noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The act of greeting someone’s arrival, especially by saying "Welcome!"; reception.
- Grammar: welcome is listed as adj, intj, name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: abide by, accede, accept, accept.
- Useful contrasts: dreaded, repulsive conduct, unpleasant mood.
- Usage evidence: You are welcome to do anything you like.
How to use "welcome"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "welcome" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "welcome" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "welcome" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "welcome" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "welcome" is acting as adj, intj, name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "abide by" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "welcome", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The act of greeting someone’s arrival, especially by saying "Welcome!"; reception.
- 2 a greeting or reception wordnet
- 3 The utterance of such a greeting.
- 4 the state of being welcome wordnet
- 5 Kind reception of a guest or newcomer.
"We entered the house and found a ready welcome."
Show 1 more definition
- 6 The state of being a welcome guest.
"The townspeople crossed freely from bank to bank, and it stayed that way until breakup in March or April or, in years when winter outstayed its welcome, maybe even May."
Verb
- 1 To affirm or greet the arrival of someone, especially by saying "Welcome!".
"But Miss Thorn relieved the situation by laughing aloud,[…]. By the time we reached the house we were thanking our stars she had come. Mrs. Cooke came out from under the port-cochere to welcome her."
- 2 bid welcome to; greet upon arrival wordnet
- 3 To accept something willingly or gladly.
"We welcome suggestions for improvement."
- 4 receive someone, as into one's house wordnet
- 5 accept gladly wordnet
Adjective
- 1 Whose arrival is a cause of joy; received with gladness; admitted willingly to the house, entertainment, or company.
"a welcome visitor"
- 2 Producing gladness.
"a welcome turn of events; welcome news"
- 3 Followed by to: free to have or enjoy gratuitously.
"You are welcome to the use of my library."
Adjective
- 1 giving pleasure or satisfaction or received with pleasure or freely granted wordnet
Intj
- 1 Greeting given upon someone's arrival.
"Welcome to the life of Electra Heart!"
- 2 Ellipsis of you're welcome.. Southern-US, abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis, especially, nonstandard
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"You are welcome to do anything you like."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "welcome"?
Common synonyms include: abide by, accede, accept, accept, accept original value, acceptable.
How do you use "welcome" in a sentence?
You are welcome to do anything you like.
How do you pronounce "welcome"?
Pronounced /ˈwɛl.kəm/.
Etymology
From Middle English welcome, wolcume, wulcume, wilcume, from Old English wilcuma (“a wished-for guest”; compare also wilcume (“welcome!”, interjection)), from Proto-West Germanic *willjakwemō, from Proto-Germanic *wiljakwemô (“a wished-for arrival or guest”), possibly from *wiljakwemaną (“to be welcome”), equivalent to will (“desire”) + come (“comer, arrival”). The component wil- was replaced by wel- when the sense “guest” of the second component was no longer understood, likely under influence from the adverb well. Cognates Cognate with Scots walcome, Yola welcome, welkome, North Frisian welkimen, Saterland Frisian wilkemen, wäilkeemen, wülkemen, West Frisian wolkom, Alemannic German wol chomne, wolgcheemen, woul chemne, wéllkòmm, Cimbrian bóolkhèmm, Dutch welkom (earlier willecome), German willkommen, German Low German willkamen, Limburgish welkom, wéllekemm, Luxembourgish wëllkomm, Danish and Norwegian Bokmål velkommen, Elfdalian welkumin, Faroese vælkomin, Icelandic velkominn, Norwegian Nynorsk velkomen, Swedish välkommen, and Old French wilecome (whence Middle French willecomme (“welcome”)), from Germanic. The verb is from Middle English welcomen, wolcumen, wilcumen, from Old English wellcumian, wylcumian, wilcumian (“to welcome, receive gladly”). Similar constructions are found in Modern Greek καλώς ορίσατε (kalós orísate), South Slavic languages, such as Bulgarian добре́ дошъ́л (dobré došǎ́l), Serbo-Croatian dobrodošao, and also in Romance languages, such as Italian benvenuto, Spanish bienvenido, French bienvenu, Catalan benvingut, Portuguese bem-vindo and Romanian bun venit, meaning “[may you have fared] well [in] coming [here]”. These Romance terms do not derive from a Classical Latin root, as no similar construction in Latin is found to exist, but are instead presumed (considering the ruling elite of the Germanic kingdoms which succeeded the Western Roman Empire) to be the result of a calque from a Germanic language into Proto-Romance (Vulgar Latin; see Latin *bene venūtus, and compare perdōnō and compāniō for similar historical calques).