noun
cheer
cheer
noun
1
A shout of approval, encouragement, or celebration.
"The crowd let out a huge cheer when the home team scored."
"She gave a little cheer when she opened the acceptance letter."
2
A feeling of happiness or good spirits.
"His visit brought some cheer to an otherwise gloomy week."
verb
1
To shout in support or approval of someone.
"Thousands of fans cheered as the runners crossed the finish line."
2
To make someone happier, often with "up".
"A funny video cheered her up after a bad day."
How to Use Cheer
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishEither a shout of support, or a general sense of happiness — and as a verb, to encourage loudly or lift someone's mood.
Common pairings
cheer someone up
cheer for the team
words of cheer
Word Forms
cheered past tense, cheers plural, cheers singular
Study it as flashcards or scroll it in Flow — saved to your collection.
Test yourself on “cheer”
A quick quiz — meaning, synonyms & usage
→
Fill the Gap
Can you complete this real example?
The crowd let out a huge _____ when the home team scored.
Etymology
From Old French chiere, meaning "face" or "expression", which came to mean a person's mood and later shifted to mean encouragement and good spirits.