glorificare

Glorificare is an Italian transitive verb meaning to praise highly, extol, or present as glorious. It can refer to praising a person, a deity, an achievement, or an idea, as well as to the act of elevating someone or something in status or reputation. In religious contexts it is common to glorificare Dio or saints in hymns and prayers; in secular use it might describe media or political rhetoric that praises or idealizes a figure or nation.

It derives from Latin glorificare, from gloria "glory," via Old Italian; the suffix -ficare marks a causative action. The noun form is glorificazione; the adjective form is glorificante (glorifying).

Glorificare carries positive connotations when praising or commemorating, but it can be neutral or critical when used ironically or to indicate excess, as in accusations of propaganda or exaggerated praise. Grammatically it is a regular -are verb: present tense io glorifico, tu glorifichi, lui/lei glorifica, noi glorifichiamo, voi glorificate, loro glorificano; passato prossimo ho glorificato; gerundio glorificando; participio glorificato.

English translations include "to glorify" and "to extol." Related terms include elogiare, lodare, esaltare, celebrare; noun forms include glorificazione, and the concept may be applied to the glorification of persons, ideals, or heroes.