gratification

Everyday

1. A feeling of pleasure or satisfaction when you get what you want. tree →
2. Something that gives pleasure. tree →
3. «Instant gratification» means wanting pleasure right now, not waiting for it; «delayed gratification» means waiting for a bigger reward later. tree →

In the lessons

In PSHE and ethics lessons delayed gratification is an important idea: saving pocket money, studying now for later success, or the famous «marshmallow test» where children wait for a second sweet. In everyday life screens and snacks give instant gratification. Phrases: instant gratification, delayed gratification, a sense of gratification.

Examples

• Saving for a bike teaches delayed gratification. tree →
• Games give instant gratification, but reading pays off later. tree →
• She felt deep gratification when her painting won a prize. tree →
• In the marshmallow test, some children waited for two sweets. tree →
• Gratification can come from helping others too. tree →
• He wanted instant gratification and ate the cake before dinner. tree →

Note

Long word: grat-i-fi-CAY-shun. Verb: gratify (to please). Adjective: gratifying. Do not confuse with «gratitude» (thankfulness) or «graffiti» (writing on walls). Fairly formal.

In Jewish tradition

Means pleasure or satisfaction. In Ecclesiastes a stillborn child is said to have more than a long-lived man who never enjoyed good.

Interpretation. Ecclesiastes is read as pondering the hard question of what makes life worth living when pleasures do not satisfy.

Examples

• moreover it hath not seen the sun nor known it; this hath gratification rather than the other; (Writings ECC.6.5, JPS 1917) tree →

Note

Long word: grat-i-fi-CAY-shun. Verb: gratify (to please). Adjective: gratifying. Do not confuse with «gratitude» (thankfulness) or «graffiti» (writing on walls). Fairly formal.