: the recipient of honor or recognition for achievement in an art or science
a Nobel laureate
specifically
: poet laureate
lau·re·ate
ˈlȯr-ē-ˌāt 
ˈlär-
laureated; laureating
1
: to crown with or as if with a laurel wreath for excellence or achievement
2
: to appoint to the office of poet laureate
1
: honored for outstanding achievement in an art or science
This was a term coined in the 1950s by Nobel laureate chemist Irving Langmuir …—
Gary Taubes
see also poet laureate
Gary Taubes2
: crowned with laurel
Minted in France in 1807, the front of the medal shows the laureate head of Emperor Napoleon and, on the reverse, an eagle clutching a thunderbolt, part of the emperor's imperial seal.—Brice Stump
Brice StumpExamples of laureate in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Wayne Winegarden, Oc Register, 5 Apr. 2026
For Restrepo—whose work with Nobel laureate Daron Acemoglu has shaped the economics profession’s understanding of automation for more than a decade—the message is not one of despair, but of clear-eyed reckoning.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 4 Apr. 2026
Sotoudeh's arrest also comes after news that Iran’s imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi may have suffered a heart attack.
—ABC News, 2 Apr. 2026
Besides, there was the laureate committee’s vote to think about.
—Literary Hub, 1 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for laureate
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Noun
Nobel laureate Milton Friedman presciently noted that government spending is government taxation.
—Wayne Winegarden, Oc Register, 5 Apr. 2026
For Restrepo—whose work with Nobel laureate Daron Acemoglu has shaped the economics profession’s understanding of automation for more than a decade—the message is not one of despair, but of clear-eyed reckoning.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 4 Apr. 2026
Sotoudeh's arrest also comes after news that Iran’s imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi may have suffered a heart attack.
—ABC News, 2 Apr. 2026
Besides, there was the laureate committee’s vote to think about.
—Literary Hub, 1 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for laureate
Cite this Entry
“Laureate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/laureate. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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