encouraged

Encouraged is the past tense of encourage and can also function as an adjective. As a verb, encouraged means to give someone support, confidence, or motivation to do something. As an adjective, it describes someone who has received encouragement or something that fosters confidence, progress, or positive action.

Etymology and related forms: encourage comes from Old French enco(u)rager, itself from en- “in” plus couer or courage, reflecting the sense of placing heart or spirit into someone. The word has been used in English since the Middle Ages. Related forms include encouragement, encouraging, and the noun form encouragement.

Usage and nuance: Encouraged implies that supportive actions or words helped shape a probability of action or decision. It commonly appears in education, workplace communication, and policy language. It contrasts with discouraged, which denotes a reduction in motivation or confidence. In formal contexts, phrases such as “strongly encouraged” or “encouraged to participate” convey guidance rather than compulsion.

Examples: The teacher encouraged the students to participate in the discussion. The mentor encouraged him to pursue the project by offering feedback and resources. Participation in the survey is encouraged to improve community services.

See also: Encourage, encouragement, encouraging, discouragement.