Laudable
adj.thoughtful, capableformal
What it means
Worthy of explicit praise because the purpose or conduct is genuinely good.
Reach for it when approving an aim, effort, restraint, or action in formal language
Publishing the failed trial alongside the success was laudable.
Choose between these
7- everyday
plain approval is enough
not when Good is broad and misses the earned formal praise in laudable.
- warm
the quality awakens personal respect
not when Admirable can describe skill or beauty, not just worthy conduct.
- professional
measured official praise for conduct is appropriate
not when Commendable is slightly cooler and more administrative.
- professional
creditable
performance deserves recognition despite limits
not when Creditable often implies a respectable rather than exceptional result.
- formal
deserving praise is the exact transparent claim
not when Praiseworthy sounds more explicit and less elegant than laudable.
- literary
high moral purpose is central
not when Noble overstates a small but useful administrative improvement.
- literary
moral merit is established without specifying praise
not when Worthy needs a complement or context and can sound vague alone.
Said against
3- blameworthy
- disgraceful
- unworthy
It naturally appears in
3- laudable goal
Universal access is a laudable goal that still needs a budget.
- laudable effort
The clinic made a laudable effort to publish in plain language.
- entirely laudable
Her refusal to hide the conflict was entirely laudable.
The word family
1Where this comes from
- merriam-webster, adjective, single sense opens in a new tab · retrieved 2026-07-26
The definition and the example on this page are written here. The dictionaries above ground which meaning is being described, not the wording.