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Gratifying   /grˈætəfˌaɪɪŋ/   Listen
Gratifying

adjective
1.
Pleasing to the mind or feeling.  Synonym: sweet.
2.
Affording satisfaction or pleasure.  Synonyms: enjoyable, pleasurable.  "Found her praise gratifying" , "Full of happiness and pleasurable excitement" , "Good printing makes a book more pleasurable to read"






WordNet 3.0 © 2010 Princeton University








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"Gratifying" Quotes from Famous Books



... native custom of Tabatinga than on that of the garrison. Doubtless the soldiers' wives would not have wished better than to have been put under his hands, but the husbands scarcely cared to part with a few reis for the sake of gratifying the ...
— Eight Hundred Leagues on the Amazon • Jules Verne

... But gratifying as it was to me to contemplate this sacred edifice, yet we were anxious not to lose time in reaching the valleys, so we left by the afternoon train for Pinerolo, a town of ominous memories as regards its past connection with its Protestant neighbours. Missionaries, monks, and soldiers ...
— The Vaudois of Piedmont - A Visit to their Valleys • John Napper Worsfold

... be more gratifying to the Representatives of a free people than the reflection that their labors are rewarded by the approbation of their fellow-citizens. Under this impression we shall make every exertion to realize their expectations, and to secure to them those blessings which Providence ...
— A Compilation of the Messages and Papers of the Presidents - Section 1 (of 4) of Volume 1: George Washington • James D. Richardson

... as ridiculous as to say that I can modify the curvature of the lenses of my eyes. I know, because I have often tried to change it, and always failed. Nevertheless, it has changed. I am not the same man I was in the last century. But the gratifying improvements so plainly visible are surely not to be credited to me. All of them came from without—or from ...
— Damn! - A Book of Calumny • Henry Louis Mencken

... to a little house off by itself, and Jimmy Jocks invites me in. "This is their trophy-room," he says, "where they keep their prizes. Mine," he says, rather grand-like, "are on the sideboard." Not knowing what a sideboard might be, I said, "Indeed, sir, that must be very gratifying." But he only wrinkled up his chops as much as to say, "It ...
— The Boy Scout and Other Stories for Boys • Richard Harding Davis

... of rendering the present publication more complete, and of gratifying in a certain degree that reasonable curiosity, which will naturally be felt by many readers of this Journal and the former Travels, it has been thought advisable to add a biographical Memoir of the Author. But as the events of Mr. Park's life, with the exception of those ...
— The Journal Of A Mission To The Interior Of Africa, In The Year 1805 • Mungo Park

... discipline of a man-of-war would control; but many also who had entered the merchant service with the view and the prospect of rising in it, some of whom were not inferior in connections and education to the young gentlemen on the quarter-deck. Nothing could be more gratifying to a commander than to promote these, as opportunity offered, to higher stations. Some thousands of them became petty and warrant officers in the course of the war, and not a few were placed on the quarter-deck, and ...
— The Life of Admiral Viscount Exmouth • Edward Osler

... his daughter in marriage. But Bellerophon having attained the summit of earthly prosperity became intoxicated with pride and vanity, and incurred the displeasure of the gods by endeavouring to mount to heaven on his winged horse, for the purpose of gratifying his idle curiosity. Zeus punished him for his impiety by sending {259} a gadfly to sting the horse, who became so restive that he threw his rider, who was precipitated to the earth. Filled with remorse at having offended the gods Bellerophon fell a prey to the deepest melancholy, and wandered ...
— Myths and Legends of Ancient Greece and Rome • E.M. Berens

... present at Qu'Appelle, the previous year. They met, the Indians, at Qu'Appelle (where six Chiefs who had been absent, accepted the terms of the treaty) and at Fort Pelly and at Shoal River, where two other Chiefs, with their bands, came into the treaty stipulations. A gratifying feature connected with the making of this, and the other, North-Western Treaties, has been the readiness, with which the Indians, who were absent, afterwards accepted the terms which had been settled for them, by those, who were able to attend. I close these observations, ...
— The Treaties of Canada with The Indians of Manitoba - and the North-West Territories • Alexander Morris

... thrown open and we formed into little parties of six, each having a table, nobly served with plate, a lackey in attendance, and a gratifying ice-pail or two of champagne to egayer the supper. It was no small cost to serve five hundred people on silver, and the repast was certainly ...
— The Fitz-Boodle Papers • William Makepeace Thackeray

... 1799, he remained with Dr. Holyoke as a student, a period which he has spoken of as a most interesting and most gratifying part of his life. After this he passed eight months in London, and on his return, in October, 1800, ...
— Medical Essays • Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

... mean?" said Meekin. "Mean!" cries Frere, with a smile at his own acuteness. "This precious composition contains a very gratifying piece of intelligence for Mr. Blicks, whoever he is. Some receiver, I've no doubt. Look here, Mr. Meekin. Take the letter and this pencil, and begin at the first text. The 102nd Psalm, from the 4th verse ...
— For the Term of His Natural Life • Marcus Clarke

... need to be waited upon her small feet and hands never wearied in his service but as he grew better, it was he who served her. There never were such stories as he could tell, such games as he could play, and he took her cat to his heart with gratifying promptness. When they walked out together the world seemed turned into a fairyland as with her hand held fast in his he told her wonderful secrets about the clouds, the trees, the flowers, the birds and even about the stones under her feet. It was fascinating to her too, ...
— The Dreamer - A Romantic Rendering of the Life-Story of Edgar Allan Poe • Mary Newton Stanard

... size! Wall-flowers perfuming every street, and even every passage; while pinks and single carnations grow beside them, with no more soil than they require themselves; and from the tops of houses, where you least expect it, an aromatic flavour highly gratifying is diffused. The jessamine is large, broad-leaved, and beautiful as an orange-flower; but I have seen no roses equal to those at Lichfield, where on one tree I recollect counting eighty-four within my own reach; it grew against the house of Doctor Darwin. Such a profusion ...
— Observations and Reflections Made in the Course of a Journey through France, Italy, and Germany, Vol. I • Hester Lynch Piozzi

... general desire on the part of the public to see and to hear literary men, and Thackeray, to increase his income, gave two remarkable courses of lectures, the first being English Humorists of the Eighteenth Century, and the second The Four Georges,—both courses being delivered with gratifying success in England and especially in America. Dickens, as we have seen, was disappointed in America and vented his displeasure in outrageous criticism; but Thackeray, with his usual good breeding, saw only the best side of his ...
— English Literature - Its History and Its Significance for the Life of the English Speaking World • William J. Long

... very gratifying to Mary Ellen, but she made no reply to it. She set down the empty bucket on the ground and rubbed her hands slowly on the sides of her skirt Moriarty probably felt that he had done as much as could be expected of him in the way of pretty speeches. ...
— General John Regan - 1913 • George A. Birmingham

... were relieved next day by the 74th Brigade, and returned to bivouac at Bouzincourt. The 48th Division, every unit of which had been engaged at least thrice, was to enjoy a well-earned rest. They received gratifying tributes to the value of the work achieved. The Army Commander wrote as follows: 'The Division has fought with only very short periods of rest since July 1st. Since then it has met and defeated many different units of the German Army, and has fully maintained the best traditions of British infantry. ...
— The War Service of the 1/4 Royal Berkshire Regiment (T. F.) • Charles Robert Mowbray Fraser Cruttwell

... averted; and also that their presence would be a mark of interest felt in the happiness of the newly-married pair. The delight of the Missionaries may be imagined when, as they approached the house, they not only found all to be peace and good order, but what was more gratifying, the bridegroom was reading a Chapter of the New Testament, and Daniel was commenting, at proper intervals, upon what was read, endeavouring to explain and apply the words. The Missionaries sat down in the temporary verandah, where they spent a happy half-hour ...
— Old Daniel • Thomas Hodson

... three principles of explanation. "The first of these principles is, that movements which are serviceable in gratifying some desire, or in relieving some sensation, if often repeated, become so habitual that they are performed, whether or not of any service, whenever the same desire or sensation is felt, even in a very weak degree."[168] ...
— Evolution in Modern Thought • Ernst Haeckel

... when the news was brought to him. He seldom smiled at anything, but there was a kindling light in his eyes, and his voice shook a little as he thanked the committee who waited upon him. To be known as "Col. Crompton of Crompton" was exceedingly gratifying to his vanity, and seemed in a way to lift the malarious cloud from him for ...
— The Cromptons • Mary J. Holmes

... doubtless true. Attachment to his religion, a desire to atone for his sins against it, the insidious temptings of his evil spirit, York, who was the chief organizer of the conspiracy, and the prospect of gratifying a wild and wicked ambition—these were the springs that moved him. Sums—varying from L30,000 to a pension of 1500 pistolets a year—were mentioned, as the stipulated price of his treason, by Norris, Wilkes, Conway, ...
— The Rise of the Dutch Republic, 1555-1566 • John Lothrop Motley

... precepts were duly printed, framed, and placed against the wall of the family sitting-room. After paying only fifteen of the thirty visits to the house directed by the judge, the results could not have been more gratifying. Mr. and Mrs. Quan were delighted, and presented the guide to martial bliss with a handsome token of their gratitude in the form of a ...
— Law and Laughter • George Alexander Morton

... the enlargement of the Journal are already coming in. It is a great disappointment to the editor to be compelled each month to exclude so much of interesting matter, important to human welfare, which would be gratifying to its readers. The second volume therefore will be enlarged to 64 pages at $2 ...
— Buchanan's Journal of Man, May 1887 - Volume 1, Number 4 • Various

... your communications, Abimelech, concerning our money matters. My daughter gave me a hint about the last mortgage, which I did not half like. Children think they have a right to pry into a father's expences; and to curb and brow-beat him, if the money be not all spent in gratifying their whims. Be more close, Abimelech, ...
— Anna St. Ives • Thomas Holcroft

... right there in full view of the travelling public, that the Genoese thought a lot of Columbus; relied upon him, in fact, as their biggest attraction. Momma examined him from the carriage. She said it was most gratifying to see him there in his own home, so to speak; but her enthusiasm did not induce her to get out. Momma's patriotism has always to be considered in connection with ...
— A Voyage of Consolation - (being in the nature of a sequel to the experiences of 'An - American girl in London') • Sara Jeannette Duncan

... drawback to these flutes was that the reed dried very quickly and became useless for musical purposes; so I was kept pretty busy, more especially as I did not want to create jealousy by refusing some and gratifying others. ...
— The Adventures of Louis de Rougemont - as told by Himself • Louis de Rougemont

... reference to this proposal of yours. It's very gratifying and agreeable to me, I am sure; but don't you think you could do better? You achieved distinction, you know, when you were with us. You are qualified for many good things. You have laid a foundation that any edifice may be raised upon; and is it not a pity that you should devote ...
— David Copperfield • Charles Dickens

... the account of acres,[55] and so tried to make a difficulty by telling strange tales. But there was a great deal of manliness and fairness shown, with a degree of patience and foresight that was very gratifying. ...
— Letters from Port Royal - Written at the Time of the Civil War (1862-1868) • Various

... able report upon it, was one of the encouraging features of our Annual Meeting. The report of the Treasurer announced the gratifying fact that the books closed with all obligations and indebtedness paid, and with a balance on hand of over $4,000. The able Finance Committee gave a careful examination of the Treasurer's books and papers, and made very commendatory report as to methods ...
— American Missionary, Volume 43, No. 12, December, 1889 • Various

... the land where they are no longer to have a patrimony, nor to be remembered as good men who have passed away. We are ashamed of not relinquishing our little property, too; but comfort ourselves because we still keep our principles, without gratifying the rebels with our plunder. Plunder, indeed, they are seizing everywhere,—by the strong hand at sea, as well as by legal forms oil shore. Here are prize-vessels for sale; no French nor Spanish merchantmen, whose wealth is the birthright of British subjects, ...
— Old News - (From: "The Snow Image and Other Twice-Told Tales") • Nathaniel Hawthorne

... One gratifying result of the evening party came in the fact that Bulpert decreased his visits. For two or three weeks he absented himself from Praed Street; and Mrs. Mills approved this, mentioning as one of the reasons, ...
— Love at Paddington • W. Pett Ridge

... was an infidel and the rebels were Christians, the conscience of the most pious Legitimist might well recoil from the perilous task of deciding between the divine rights of the Crown and the divine rights of the Church, and choose, in so painful an emergency, the simpler course of gratifying the national love of action. There existed, both among Liberals and among Ultramontanes, a real sympathy for Greece, and this interest was almost the only one in which all French political sections felt that they had something in common. Liberals rejoiced in the prospect of ...
— History of Modern Europe 1792-1878 • C. A. Fyffe

... who were stirring up rebellion and acted quickly. He called for volunteers, announcing that he would lead in person the Union forces against the Germans, and the immediate response he received was gratifying. The conspirators remained quiet for some weeks, but General Beyers and De Wet were secretly at work against the Government of ...
— The Story of the Great War, Volume III (of VIII) - History of the European War from Official Sources • Various

... reputation?—And how watchful ought they to be over themselves!—She was hardly out of her weeds, and yet must go to a masquerade, and tempt her fate, with all her passions about her, with an independence, and an affluence of fortune, that made her able to think of nothing but gratifying them. ...
— Pamela (Vol. II.) • Samuel Richardson

... way. In this way too he was enabled, with more propriety and grace, to introduce allusions, political or courtly, to subjects with which his readers were familiar; thus agreeably diversifying his allegory, and gratifying his affection for his friends and patrons, without ...
— English Critical Essays - Nineteenth Century • Various

... It is gratifying, also, to record another fact. During the third week in July the Old South lectures for young people, illustrative of "The War for the Union," were inaugurated in Boston. The ancient "meeting-house" was crowded ...
— The Bay State Monthly, Volume 3, No. 3 • Various

... bedroom corresponding, with its old satin-wood furniture and cream-coloured chairs with large, pale-blue cushions, and a pale carpet with reddish wreaths. Very nice, lovely, awfully nice, I do like that, isn't that beautiful, I've never seen anything like that! came the gratifying fireworks of admiration from Alvina. And he smiled and gloated. But in her mind she was thinking of Manchester House, and how dark and horrible it was, how she hated it, but how it had impressed Ciccio and Geoffrey, how ...
— The Lost Girl • D. H. Lawrence

... civil murmur, "That's very gratifying, to be sure?" Well, yes, it is gratifying—thank you. It is at least as gratifying to be certified sober as to be certified romantic, though such certificates would not qualify one for the secretaryship of a temperance association or for ...
— A Personal Record • Joseph Conrad

... such men as yourself is very gratifying to me. I cannot recall any incident in recent years which has afforded me such keen pleasure. It is such confirmation of one's hopes that he acts for the welfare of his fellow-countrymen which purifies and exalts political life. And in another ...
— The Sins of Severac Bablon • Sax Rohmer

... encouragement. It must be most gratifying to his father to see his son endeavouring to raise himself from a comparatively humble occupation and surroundings into something demanding ability and education, from a ...
— Catharine Furze • Mark Rutherford

... the Professor. "I am endeavouring to ascertain the exact state of your mental balance. Your anger is, in itself, a most gratifying feature. A thousand pardons if you feel that I have insulted you," he added with the ...
— The Stretton Street Affair • William Le Queux

... last number of THE MISSIONARY we gave the gratifying report of 34 shares taken for this fund, and in the present number we have the pleasure of adding 75 more. We are fully aware of the difficulties under which we send forth the call for responses to this much-needed fund. Other appeals have been ...
— The American Missionary - Volume 50, No. 6, June 1896 • Various

... on West Point as an acquisition which would give value to treason and inflict a mortal wound on his former friends, he sought the command of that fortress for the purpose of gratifying both his avarice ...
— Life And Times Of Washington, Volume 2 • John Frederick Schroeder and Benson John Lossing

... letters in his presence. At last the officer, after some minutes' delay, and having sung sundry snatches of martial airs, gave Dumiger a contemptuous, indignant glance, and stalked out of the cell, taking care to rattle the bolts and bars as a punishment to Dumiger for not gratifying his curiosity. Poor devil, it was his only amusement to pry ...
— International Weekly Miscellany, Vol. 1, No. 2, July 8, 1850 • Various

... scheme, not only the most inflexible firmness on his part, but a vigorous declaration from the princes of the empire in behalf of his title, were requisite, was willing to purchase their favor by gratifying them in every point that ...
— The Great Events by Famous Historians, Volume 9 • Various

... her, and found that she was one of the good women to whom pilgrimage was an annual dissipation, consecrated and meritorious as they fondly believed, and gratifying their desire for change and variety. She was a kindly person of good reputation, trustworthy, and kind to the poor, and stout John Hall, her husband, could manage the business alone, and was thought not to regret a little reprieve from ...
— Grisly Grisell • Charlotte M. Yonge

... which alarmed me was a rumour in the village, that Paul Pattison intended, in some little space, to undertake a voyage to the Continent—on account of his health, as was pretended, but, as the same report averred, much more with the view of gratifying the curiosity which his perusal of the classics had impressed upon him, than for any other purpose. I was, I say, rather alarmed at this susurrus, and began to reflect that the retirement of Mr. Pattison, unless his loss could be supplied in good time, was like ...
— Waverley Volume XII • Sir Walter Scott

... can be feared, is the necessity of engaging a greater number of hands than on former occasions; and it will be no disagreeable method to the publick, if we employ some of the clerks which have been retained only for the sake of gratifying the leaders of boroughs, or advancing the distant relations of the defenders of the ministry, in unravelling those proceedings which they have been hitherto hired only to embarrass, and in detecting some of those abuses to which the ...
— The Works of Samuel Johnson, Vol. 11. - Parlimentary Debates II. • Samuel Johnson

... reach of the enemy's guns, and a council of war summoned—on which it was agreed, nem con, that no more was to be done. The despatches were sent home— they certainly differed a little, but that was of no consequence. The sum total of killed and wounded was excessively gratifying to the nation, as it proved that there had been hard fighting. By-the-bye, John Bull is rather annoying in this respect: he imagines that no action can be well fought unless there is a considerable loss. Having no other method of judging ...
— The King's Own • Captain Frederick Marryat

... over, our temperate captain went aft himself, glorifying that, in all the ship's company, there was only one instance of intoxication on Christmas-day; and thus he delivered himself; hiccupping on the gratifying occasion: ...
— Rattlin the Reefer • Edward Howard

... after all, something rather pleasant for John in knowing, KNOWING, that Mary isn't cleaving unto him simply because she can't shift for herself? Something exquisitely gratifying in being certain, CERTAIN, that it isn't just necessity that keeps her a ...
— Stories from Everybody's Magazine • 1910 issues of Everybody's Magazine

... rank, vast domains, extensive feudal rights, and almost boundless patriarchal authority. To him, as to his cousin Breadalbane, the intelligence that the tribe of Glencoe was out of the protection of the law was most gratifying; and the Master of Stair more than sympathized ...
— The History of England from the Accession of James II. - Volume 4 (of 5) • Thomas Babington Macaulay

... Thrupp and Gutch, he looked like a stumpy skittle-ball between two attenuated skittles. The plump little Colonel received me with vast cordiality, and I speedily became a prime favorite with himself and the other officers of the corps. Jowler was the most hospitable of men; and gratifying my appetite and my love together, I continually partook of his dinners, and feasted on the sweet presence ...
— Burlesques • William Makepeace Thackeray

... you count the behaviour of the dog—of which I will say more presently. At any rate I had no longer that cool godlike sense of mastery over the man which had sustained me in the boat. It may sound incredible: but whereas, cooped in that narrow shell of boards, I had found his presence gratifying, here on an island of wide prospects, where we could have parcelled out a kingdom apiece and lived by the year without sight of one another, I found it irritating and at times even intolerably so. He had found power, through her dead body, to give me a grievance against him, when I had supposed ...
— Foe-Farrell • Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch

... to permit us to dispose of about eighty Testaments, which were purchased entirely by the very poor people, those in easier circumstances paying no attention to the Word of God, but rather turning it to scoff and ridicule. One circumstance was very gratifying and cheering to me, namely, the ocular proof which I possessed that the books which I disposed of were read, and with attention, by those to whom I disposed of them, and that many others participated in ...
— Letters of George Borrow - to the British and Foreign Bible Society • George Borrow

... department has developed a fact that is very gratifying, and that is that boys and girls throughout the country are interested in making collections of minerals, pressed flowers and ferns, ocean curiosities, and other specimens of nature's beautiful and perfect handiwork. It affords ...
— Harper's Young People, October 26, 1880 - An Illustrated Weekly • Various

... satisfied; madam; the slave shall die, since you will have it so: but I shall be sorry that any one but myself should kill him. When she had given him the sabre, Come, follow me, said he; make no noise, lest we wake him. They went into the chamber, where Amgrad, instead of gratifying the lady's desire, struck at her with the weapon, and severing her head with the blow, it ...
— The Arabian Nights Entertainments Volume 1 • Anonymous

... and serve the coffee; and at half-past twelve or one, With a pleasure that's emphatic; Then we seek our little attic With the gratifying feeling that our duty has been done. Oh, philosophers may sing Of the troubles of a King, But of pleasures there are many and of troubles there are none; And the culminating pleasure That we treasure beyond measure Is the gratifying ...
— Songs of a Savoyard • W. S. Gilbert

... occurred near the beginning of the melee, which was very gratifying to my companion the padre, and at once restored the equanimity of his temper. The herd of guanacos succeeded in making their escape, and without compromising the success of the hunt. This, however, was brought about by a skilful manoeuvre on the part of my old friend ...
— The Hunters' Feast - Conversations Around the Camp Fire • Mayne Reid

... money. Before the fatal advent of Amy, I had supplied him freely with the means of gratifying his tastes; but when I found that he expended his allowance in presents for his fair cousin, on the plea of hard necessity I restricted his supplies, and finally limited him to a pittance, which only a feeble regard for the memory of our indulgent ...
— The Three Brides, Love in a Cottage, and Other Tales • Francis A. Durivage

... practiced from eight to ten hours a day, studying with Sabathiel, the leader of the Royal Orchestra in Budapest, where I was born, though England, the land of my adoption, in which I have lived these last twenty-six years, is the land where I have found all my happiness, and much gratifying honor, and of which I have been a devoted, ardent and loyal naturalized citizen for more than a quarter of a century. Sabathiel was an excellent routine teacher, and grounded me well in the fundamentals—good tone production and technical control. Later I had far greater teachers, and they ...
— Violin Mastery - Talks with Master Violinists and Teachers • Frederick H. Martens

... eyes fixed with pleased satisfaction on the girl's beautiful face, with its changing colour and expression. He felt he could well afford to be criticised or rebuked by her, if the result was so gratifying to his sight. The young rector of St Blank's lived very much more in his senses than in ...
— An Ambitious Man • Ella Wheeler Wilcox

... Affects you not, remember your own Reputation in the World: You have lived in Credit and Repute among your Neighbours: and will you Sacrifice that, and Entail Shame and Dishonour upon your Self and Family, for gratifying the Lusts of a filthy and Lascivious Strumpet? If you go on in this Course, you must Morgage your Lands to pay your Debts; and what a shame will that be? Your Father left you an Estate, but you are like to leave an Heir ...
— The London-Bawd: With Her Character and Life - Discovering the Various and Subtle Intrigues of Lewd Women • Anonymous

... your remarks to be more gratifying than I feel them to be. In reply, I thank you, and hope that the amicable feelings which have hitherto existed between the several countries you represent and my own, may never be impaired. For my part I shall lose ...
— Speeches of His Majesty Kamehameha IV. To the Hawaiian Legislature • Kamehameha IV

... his listeners only once—with the attempted repetition of the bell song after Lakme has recognized her lover. The odor of the poppy invites to drowsy enjoyment in the beginning, and the first act is far and away the most gratifying in the opera, musically as well as scenically. It would be so if it contained only Lakme's song "Pourquoi dans les grands bois," the exquisite barcarole—a veritable treasure trove for the composer, who used its melody dramatically throughout the work—and Gerald's air, "Fantaisie aux divins ...
— A Second Book of Operas • Henry Edward Krehbiel

... surprising pastimes, the books of Anaitis revealed to Jurgen, without disguise or reticence, every other far-fetched frolic of heathenry. Hitherto unheard-of forms of diversion were unveiled to him, and every recreation which ingenuity had been able to contrive, for the gratifying of the most subtle and the most strong-stomached tastes. No possible sort of amusement would seem to have been omitted, in running the quaint gamut of refinements upon nature which Anaitis and her cousins had at odd moments invented, to satiate their desire for some ...
— Jurgen - A Comedy of Justice • James Branch Cabell

... Tennyson, though among the writers of song to arise were the Brownings, Rossetti, Matthew Arnold, and Swinburne. Critical appreciation of the volume of 1842 was happily encouraging to the poet; indeed, it was most gratifying, for its many remarkable beauties were now justly and adequately appraised, particularly such fine new themes as the volume contained—'Ulysses,' 'Godiva,' 'The Two Voices,' 'The Talking Oak,' 'Oenone,' 'Locksley ...
— Beacon Lights of History, Volume XIII • John Lord

... his cunning achieved. I had read a great number of his short stories, but none that had made me feel as though I, if I were a writer, mightn't have written it myself. Maupassant had an European reputation. It was pleasing, it was soothing and gratifying, to feel that one could at any time win an equal fame if one chose to set pen to paper. And now, suddenly, the spring had been touched in me, the time was come. I was grateful for the fluke by which I had witnessed on the terrace that evocative ...
— And Even Now - Essays • Max Beerbohm

... to be of the number, hinted that the Duke had his reasons why Lille should not be taken, and that he was paid to that end by the French King. If this was so, and I believe it, General Webb had now a remarkable opportunity of gratifying his hatred of the Commander-in-Chief, of balking that shameful avarice, which was one of the basest and most notorious qualities of the famous Duke, and of showing his own consummate skill as a commander. And when I consider ...
— The History of Henry Esmond, Esq. • W. M. Thackeray

... our tour in the line, which occurred about May 4, the IV Corps directed all Infantry observers to take sound bearings of enemy guns and to wire them at once to the Counter-Battery Office. This was gratifying, as we had made a special effort to report these sound bearings, a system of which I had ...
— Q.6.a and Other places - Recollections of 1916, 1917 and 1918 • Francis Buckley

... steamer ploughs Atlantic surges; and for him, when she gains her port, two hundred miles of wire are put into galvanic tremor, bidding him prepare his covers, and rally his compositors. It is there that Reprint, with a grateful sense (perhaps) of all that has been done for him, and a still more gratifying sense of the very little that remains for him to do, finds himself called to bestir from a fortnight's nap, and proceed to do that little. With railway speed, and thunder step, the Express of Harnden brings to ...
— Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine - Volume 62, No. 384, October 1847 • Various

... twice to his master, telling him with what gratifying patience Hermon was beginning to submit to his great misfortune, when the notary Melampus returned from Alexandria with news which produced the most delightful transformation in the ...
— Uarda • Georg Ebers

... may have lived here, and we sometimes think that someone must. The cocoa palms grow all round the island, which is scarce like nature's planting. We found besides, when we landed, an unmistakable cairn upon the beach; use unknown; but probably erected in the hope of gratifying some mumbo jumbo whose very name is forgotten, by some thick-witted gentry whose very bones are lost. Then the island (witness the Directory) has been twice reported; and since my tenancy, we have had two wrecks, both derelict. The ...
— The Ebb-Tide - A Trio And Quartette • Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne

... pleasure," returned the youth, with an air of such eager enthusiasm that he felt constrained to add,—"you see, the acquisition of new and rare plants has been a sort of passion with me for many years, and I am quite delighted to find that there is a possibility of not only gratifying it here, but of being able at the same time to contribute ...
— The Eagle Cliff • R.M. Ballantyne

... infested by flies and nearly closed with ophthalmia; and all, sick and well, in truly "vile raiment," lamentably dirty and swarming with vermin, the sick asking for medicine, and the well either bringing the sick or gratifying an apathetic curiosity. Sadly I told them that I did not understand their manifold "diseases and torments," and that, if I did, I had no stock of medicines, and that in my own country the constant washing of clothes, and the constant application of water to the skin, accompanied ...
— Unbeaten Tracks in Japan • Isabella L. Bird

... pension and the chance of preferment on the score of contumacy. Another tradition asserts that the king promised him the bishopric, but that he died before the appointment was made. The place of his burial is not known, and it is hoped that his tomb will escape desecration for the sake of gratifying mere ...
— Bell's Cathedrals: The Cathedral Church of Gloucester [2nd ed.] • H. J. L. J. Masse

... "wherever Lincoln went, he was met by vast assemblages of people." The population of this agricultural State was hardly in a condition to furnish "vast assemblages" at numerous points, but doubtless the visitor received gratifying assurance that upon this battle-ground of slavery and anti-slavery the winning party warmly appreciated his advocacy ...
— Abraham Lincoln, Vol. I. • John T. Morse

... either the body or the mind of man, very often find the most specious and pleasing theory falling under the weight of contrary experience: and instead of gratifying their vanity by inferring effects from causes, they are always reduced at last to conjecture causes from effects. That it is easy to be secret, the speculatist can demonstrate in his retreat, and therefore thinks himself justified in placing confidence: the man of the world knows, that, whether ...
— The Young Gentleman and Lady's Monitor, and English Teacher's Assistant • John Hamilton Moore

... began to work, he dashed carelessly into another stanza of his favourite ballad. I know not if you are acquainted with German; but I cannot resist the desire of gratifying my own ears with a repetition of the sounds of the thrilling consonants which produced so great an effect on me on that occasion. His ...
— Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of Scotland, Volume III • Various

... With this gratifying salute the boat darted out of sight round the bend, leaving the juniors once more to continue on ...
— The Willoughby Captains • Talbot Baines Reed

... morning, except that the grave was dug by a convict. But I was informed, that when intelligence of the death reached Arabanoo, he expressed himself with doubt whether he should bury, or burn the body; and seemed solicitous to ascertain which ceremony would be most gratifying ...
— A Complete Account of the Settlement at Port Jackson • Watkin Tench

... incensed at this, that he {189} ordered her to be immediately led to the public brothel, with liberty to all persons to abuse her person at pleasure. Many young profligates ran thither, full of the wicked desire of gratifying their lust; but were seized with such awe at the sight of the saint, that they durst not approach her; one only excepted, who, attempting to be rude to her, was that very instant, by a flash, as it were, of lightning from heaven, struck ...
— The Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, and Principal Saints - January, February, March • Alban Butler

... of Venice, had a commercial house at Constantinople. Thence, in 1260, the brothers Nicolo and Maffeo Polo started on a trading journey to the Crimea, whence one opportunity after another for making money and gratifying their curiosity with new sights led them northward and eastward to the Volga, thence into Bokhara, and so on until they reached the court of the Great Khan, in one of the northwestern provinces of Cathay. The reigning sovereign was ...
— The Discovery of America Vol. 1 (of 2) - with some account of Ancient America and the Spanish Conquest • John Fiske

... representative elders of the several churches. It calls for our hearty gratitude to the great Head of the Church that the missionaries of different Churches and different countries have been enabled, through Divine grace, to work together in such harmony. It is also gratifying to us that these churches and this Classis have been organized according to the polity of our Church, inasmuch as the Synod of the English Presbyterian Church has approved of the course of their missionaries in uniting for the organizing ...
— Forty Years in South China - The Life of Rev. John Van Nest Talmage, D.D. • Rev. John Gerardus Fagg

... as a woman and a mother, were outraged by the look of pity for Alexander which she observed on Florence's face. Therefore, Mrs MacStinger asserting those finest emotions of our nature, in preference to weakly gratifying her curiosity, shook and buffeted Alexander both before and during the application of the paving-stone, and took no further notice of ...
— Dombey and Son • Charles Dickens

... from the authorities in Washington commending his services in averting an uprising of the Indians, and the capture of the white renegades, but while this was gratifying, he felt disappointed that Shan Rhue and Sol Flatbush were not in prison, also. However, Ted believed in the motto, "I bide my time," and he felt in his bones that some time in the future his path and that of the bully, Shan Rhue, ...
— Ted Strong's Motor Car • Edward C. Taylor

... belonging to rank and fortune. They are lavish, but not liberal, often sacrificing independence to support dissipation, and betraying the dearest interests of society for the sake of personal vanity, and gratifying what is significantly termed ...
— The Cook and Housekeeper's Complete and Universal Dictionary; Including a System of Modern Cookery, in all Its Various Branches, • Mary Eaton

... adventures on its summit and its slopes which has the true charm of Arcadian simplicity. He came to England, was appointed reader to Queen Charlotte, and lived in the enjoyment of that office, and in the gratifying knowledge that Her Majesty kept his presentation hygrometer in her private apartments, to the venerable age ...
— Seeing Europe with Famous Authors, Volume VI • Various

... in the gayest spirits, enlivening the little party with many a merry jest and light, silvery laugh, enjoying the good things before her, and gratifying her hostess with praises of their excellence. Yet through it all she was furtively watching her friends, and grieved to notice the unwonted paleness of her cheek, the traces of tears about her eyes, that her cheerfulness was assumed, and ...
— Elsie's Girlhood • Martha Finley

... One gratifying feature of the fearful scene was that the warriors began flocking around to the front, though they kept well back, as if to avoid the murderous discharge. These new arrivals not only afforded additional targets to the riflemen, despite their furious efforts ...
— The Land of Mystery • Edward S. Ellis

... gratifying to have one's theories confirmed by men whose opinions carry weight in the scientific world. About seventeen years ago I first published certain theories on gold deposition, which, even then, were held by many practical men, and some scientists, ...
— Getting Gold • J. C. F. Johnson

... to discover all his tastes, in order that, while gratifying them in her own house, she might give him a feeling of well-being that nothing could replace, but she knew how to create new tastes, to arouse appetites of all kinds, material and intellectual, habits of little attentions, of affections, ...
— Strong as Death • Guy de Maupassant

... many steps before he remembered that the lecture she was giving at the Working Men's Club was on the chastity of the marriage state; moreover, she had admitted to him that the Bulgarian adventure was a spiritual one. 'I should say she was a woman with a big temperament which must have been worth gratifying when she went away with that Bulgarian; I wouldn't have minded being in his skin. She hasn't forgotten that she was once a beautiful girl, that's the worst of it, she hasn't forgotten,' and Dick remembered that at parting she was a little demonstrative, saying to him on the ...
— A Mummer's Wife • George Moore

... leading object, to make his pupils understand whatever they should study. This resolution he afterward had the opportunity of carrying into effect in five or six winter schools; and his attempt was attended with gratifying success. ...
— The History of Dartmouth College • Baxter Perry Smith

... I had no time to lose in gratifying my curiosity in the invirons of Banias. Immediately after my arrival I took a man of the village to shew me the way to the ruined castle of Banias, which bears E. by S. from it. It stands on the top of a ...
— Travels in Syria and the Holy Land • John Burckhardt

... post-mortem examination I ever attended. All my life I have been most unfortunately sensitive to the disagreeables which attend anatomical pursuits, but on this occasion my curiosity overpowered all other feelings, and I spent two or three hours in gratifying it. I did not cut myself, and none of the ordinary symptoms of dissection-poison supervened, but poisoned I was somehow, and I remember sinking into a strange state of apathy. By way of a last chance, ...
— Lectures and Essays • Thomas Henry Huxley

... It is very gratifying to observe the general interest now being manifested in the reform of our election laws. Those who have been for years calling attention to the pressing necessity of throwing about the ballot box and about the elector further safeguards, in order that our elections might not only be free ...
— A Compilation of the Messages and Papers of the Presidents, Volume IX. • Benjamin Harrison

... States. We would like to print every one of these welcome letters, but they are so numerous it would be impossible. Our young friends, however, may be sure that whether we print them or simply acknowledge them, they are alike pleasing and gratifying to us. ...
— Harper's Young People, January 20, 1880 - An Illustrated Weekly • Various

... recently the local paper had said (apropos of a gala) that, "Thanks to the efforts of our Civil Governor, the town has become enriched with a pleasaunce full of umbrageous, spaciously-branching trees. Even on the most sultry day they afford agreeable shade, and indeed gratifying was it to see the hearts of our citizens panting with an impulse of gratitude as their eyes shed tears in recognition of all that their ...
— Dead Souls • Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol

... delivered before the Glasgow Young Men's Christian Association and reported in the newspapers,—"Superstition is Scepticism," which may be legitimately paraphrased "Superstition is not believing what I believe." Although this definition may be very gratifying to the self pride of most of us, we must nevertheless reject it, and look for a more definite and instructive signification, and for this end we may very properly consult the meanings given in several standard dictionaries and lexicons, ...
— Folk Lore - Superstitious Beliefs in the West of Scotland within This Century • James Napier

... themselves commence hostilities. There was, as has been already stated, a very strong party at Carthage opposed to Hannibal, who would, of course, resist any measures tending to a war with Rome, for they would consider such a war as opening a vast field for gratifying Hannibal's ambition. The only way, therefore, was to provoke a war by aggressions on the Roman allies, to be justified by the best pretexts ...
— Hannibal - Makers of History • Jacob Abbott

... delightful society of friends here, both those he has chosen for himself and those who have chosen him. Old and young, grave and gay, join in speaking of him with a degree of affection and esteem that is most touching and gratifying. Mr. and Mrs. Stewart [Footnote: Mr. and Mrs. Dugald Stewart. As Professor at the University of Edinburgh, Mr. Stewart gave those lectures which Sir James Mackintosh said "breathed the love of virtue into whole generations of pupils."] ...
— The Life And Letters Of Maria Edgeworth, Vol. 1 • Maria Edgeworth

... storm, heavier than any of the preceding ones. Towards evening the report of the helmsman was the gratifying one, that the heart of the gale was broke; yet a yellow haze overspread the setting sun, and it continued to blow as wildly as ever. Squalls rapidly succeeding each other mingled sea and air in one sheet of spray, blinding ...
— Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXLII. Vol. LV. April, 1844 • Various

... the inception of the issue are as gratifying as they are novel, and will be hailed with acclamation by the Philatelists of the ...
— The Stamps of Canada • Bertram Poole

... architecture of the Exposition. There is Aitken, with a bust of Taft; Chester Beach, with a young girl in marble, of great charm; Solon Borglum's Washington, Mrs. Burroughs' garden figure, Stirling Calder, and Piccirilli - all well remembered. It is gratifying to meet all these men, and many others, in freer and more detached expression of their art, under conditions where no severe architectural ...
— The Galleries of the Exposition • Eugen Neuhaus

... boundaries of our one hundred and seventeen schools. A hint of it may be seen in the following to her teacher from a former colored student, now the wife of a Congregational minister in the A. M. A. church service. It represents hundreds of cases equally gratifying of those who, through the beneficent work of the American Missionary Association, to-day fill positions of influence and usefulness in the various walks of life. The writer says: "The work here I enjoy very much, nevertheless there are many discouraging things in connection ...
— The American Missionary - Volume 50, No. 1, January, 1896 • Various

... did, of course; but there were a great many people from the country who gazed at it, in passing, with the same emotion with which they would have contemplated a private carriage; which was highly gratifying to the feelings of ...
— Trumps • George William Curtis

... Gregory, gratifying the aide-de-camp with yet higher rank,—"pardon, but it is through her orders I am about to suffer. Perhaps she might have pity ...
— CELEBRATED CRIMES, COMPLETE - VANINKA • ALEXANDRE DUMAS, PERE

... dash out of college through the chill mists of a November morning to worship with "the few righteous men" of the University in the Chapel of Pusey House, which "conveyed a feeling, to me most gratifying, of catacombs, oubliettes, Jesuitry, and all the atmosphere of mystery that had ...
— Painted Windows - Studies in Religious Personality • Harold Begbie

... consequence of thy fear of sin. Thou wouldst have sunk also in terrible hell in consequence of the slaughter of thy brother. Gratify now this king of virtuous behaviour, this foremost of all practisers of virtue, this chief of Kuru's race. Even this is my wish. Gratifying the king with devotion, and after Yudhishthira will have been made happy, we two will proceed against the car of the Suta's son for fighting him. Slaying Karna today with thy keen shafts in battle, do thou, O giver of honours, give great happiness to Dharma's son. Even this, O mighty-armed ...
— The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa, Volume 3 - Books 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12 • Unknown

... proceed to bring before the reader geographical information concerning eastern and central Africa of the highest and most gratifying importance, and obtained by the researches of different voyagers and travellers within the last four years. Foremost amongst these ranks, the expedition sent by the present Viceroy of Egypt to explore the Bahr-el-Abiad, or White River, above its junction ...
— Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine - Volume 55, No. 344, June, 1844 • Various

... since Auchincloss had grown weaker and less dominating, Helen had taken many decisions upon herself, with gratifying and hopeful results. But the wonderful happiness that she had expected to find in the West still held aloof. The memory of Paradise Park seemed only a dream, sweeter and more intangible as time passed, and fuller of vague regrets. Bo was a comfort, but also a very considerable ...
— The Man of the Forest • Zane Grey

... demonstration, Mr. Thos. J. Clarke presided and said it was a gratifying thing that numbers of their fellow-countrymen were to-day swinging back to the old fighting line and taking pride in the old Fenian principles. He introduced ...
— Is Ulster Right? • Anonymous

... except Henry, and he gains strength. May you see many happy ones and may the commencing year prove as happy to you as I have every reason to believe the last was.... You are really, my dear John, the most gallant son I ever heard of to make such very flattering speeches.... It is vastly gratifying to a mother to have a son desire to hear from her so frequently, and such a request must always be attended to ...
— The Letter-Bag of Lady Elizabeth Spencer-Stanhope v. I. • A. M. W. Stirling (compiler)

... said, "I am sure we never thought you were so fond of us as all that; it is very gratifying, but it is too late now to alter our decision; the way down into our ...
— Fairy Tales from the German Forests • Margaret Arndt

... herself, after the first self-engrossed thoughts were past, turned to give both gentlemen the cordial reception which their many former kindnesses, not to speak of their apparent connexion with the present gratifying occurrence, deserved. From Mr. Goulding she learnt that the furniture had been bought up by a few old friends, and committed to him to be sent to her as a mark of their goodwill; he had only delayed bringing it ...
— Turns of Fortune - And Other Tales • Mrs. S. C. Hall

... into a gigantic mouth—for this was the criatin method of feeding—Barrent jammed his sword into the opening. The criatin expired with gratifying promptness, and the crowd signified its approval by showering the Arena ...
— The Status Civilization • Robert Sheckley

... wakefulness, brother. Now don't get fidgetty. I'm real satisfied to lie here and think of my blessedness and comfort. It's gratifying to recall all your possessions in the night. They say worries stand out clearest then, but with me it's the other way. My troubles just vanish and every living, breathing pleasantness comes to the fore. Now, you, for example, Levi. I was praising ...
— A Son of the Hills • Harriet T. Comstock

... entreated you to speak in his defence. I am entitled to considerable indulgence, madame, and a great deal ought to be forgiven me. My mother, unfortunately, was an honest woman, who did not furnish me with the means of gratifying ...
— The Count's Millions - Volume 1 (of 2) • Emile Gaboriau

... It was gratifying to feel that they were Monica's champions, though she might not yet be aware of what she owed them. They must be content to be misunderstood for a little while; afterwards she would appreciate what they had been doing for her, and would thank them accordingly. They often looked at her in school ...
— The Manor House School • Angela Brazil

... years of the recent burden of debt upon the Association, the energies of Dr. Powell were called into full play, and when, at our last Annual Meeting, we rejoiced in deliverance from debt, it was felt that the gratifying result was due in a large measure to his eloquence by voice and pen. At that meeting Dr. Powell was elected Corresponding Secretary ...
— The American Missionary - Volume 42, No. 2, February 1888 • Various

... disseminated through all classes of the population. The sense and appearance of unity and consequent strength which the land had enjoyed in the early days of the Revolution came back in greater completeness, and was most gratifying to all. There was still a rankling hatred toward England, and men hostile to central government on other grounds were reconciled to it as the sole condition of successful commercial or ...
— History of the United States, Volume 2 (of 6) • E. Benjamin Andrews

... consented, but Richard refused, and we remain on our former footeign (sic). The Bank has already won considerably, and would probably have done still better if money was not very scarce, as most of the punters retain their passion without the means of gratifying it. ...
— George Selwyn: His Letters and His Life • E. S. Roscoe and Helen Clergue

... and bloodshed in the colonies; but the world has too often had the severe lesson, that colonies once detaching themselves are never to be regained. England would therefore be only entailing an useless expense, however gratifying it might be to her feelings ...
— Newton Forster - The Merchant Service • Captain Frederick Marryat

... the subject, until her introduction into a larger circle led her to remark the great importance which the world attaches to mere beauty, in women, at least. But, with this reflection, came also the gratifying recollection of Harry's regard for her; and it served indeed to increase very much her attachment to him, by giving it an ...
— Elinor Wyllys - Vol. I • Susan Fenimore Cooper

... in the course of which the two parties felt an increasing satisfaction in one another's society; while Bunker had the further pleasure of enjoying a survey of the room in which they sat. Evidently it was Miss Maddison's peculiar sanctum, and it revealed at once her taste and her power of gratifying it. The tapestry that covered two sides of the room could be seen at a glance to be no mere modern imitation, but a priceless relic of the earlier middle ages. The other walls were so thickly hung with pictures that one could scarcely see the pale-green satin beneath; and among ...
— Count Bunker • J. Storer Clouston

... independence in the mode of living distinguishes all the large towns of this part of the world from our own; for I greatly question if there be any civilized people among whom the individual is as much obliged to consult the habits and tastes of all, in gratifying his own, as in free and independent America. A part of this uncomfortable feature in our domestic economy is no doubt the result of circumstances unavoidably connected with the condition of a young country; but a great deal is to be ascribed to the practice ...
— Recollections of Europe • J. Fenimore Cooper

... and gratifying instance of the wonders effected by time was that of Miss Nugent. He saw her first at the window, and with a ready recognition of the enchantment lent by distance took the first possible opportunity of a closer observation. He then realized the enchantment afforded ...
— At Sunwich Port, Complete • W.W. Jacobs



Words linked to "Gratifying" :   pleasing, sweet, pleasant, enjoyable



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