congratuler

Congratuler is a French verb meaning to express congratulations to someone for a notable achievement, event, or milestone. It is often used in formal or written French and is generally more ceremonial than the everyday verb féliciter. The word derives from Latin con- “together” and gratulari “to express pleasure,” through Old French. The English cognate is congratulate.

Usage: Congratuler is transitive and typically takes a person as the object and a reason as a complement, for example with de or pour. In practice, it is common in formal announcements, official statements, and ceremonial speech. In ordinary speech, the verb féliciter is more common, while the loanword congrats may retain a sense of public or official praise.

Examples: On congratule les lauréats pour leur réussite. Le comité a congratulé les participants lors de la remise des prix. These constructions illustrate its use with a person and a stated reason for the praise.

See also: Féliciter, saluer, langue française.