MORALE


Meaning of MORALE in English

mo ‧ rale /məˈrɑːl $ məˈræl/ BrE AmE noun [uncountable]

[ Date: 1700-1800 ; Language: French ; Origin: moral , from Latin moralis ; ⇨ ↑ moral 1 ]

the level of confidence and positive feelings that people have, especially people who work together, who belong to the same team etc:

A win is always good for morale.

low/high morale

low staff morale

The failed coup caused a loss of morale within the army.

boost/raise/improve/build morale

There is a need to raise morale in the teaching profession.

the Prince’s morale-boosting (=intended to raise morale) mission to the war-torn country

maintain/keep up/restore morale

The media feels pressure to keep the morale of the country up in war time.

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COLLOCATIONS

■ verbs

▪ raise/improve morale

The special meetings were intended to raise morale.

▪ boost/bolster morale (=improve morale)

The wins have boosted team morale.

▪ keep up/maintain morale (=keep morale high)

It was becoming difficult to keep up the morale of the troops.

▪ affect morale (=have an effect on morale, usually to make it worse)

The uncertainty has badly affected morale.

▪ lower/damage morale

We need to avoid damaging people's morale.

▪ sap morale (=to gradually lower morale)

Knowing it was all pointless sapped my morale.

▪ destroy morale

The possibility of big job cuts was destroying morale.

▪ restore morale (=make people confident and positive again)

The new manager realized that his first job would be to restore morale.

▪ be good/bad for morale

Well-deserved praise is always good for morale.

■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + morale

▪ high/good

Morale among the staff was high.

▪ low/poor

The pay levels have resulted in low morale within the company.

▪ shaky (=morale that could easily become low)

The team's morale is shaky after their series of losses.

▪ sagging morale (=when people are getting less confident and positive)

He did his best to boost the sagging morale of the civil service.

▪ staff/team morale

Positive feedback is good for staff morale.

■ morale + NOUN

▪ a morale booster/boost (=something that improves morale)

A letter from home was always a morale booster.

▪ morale problems (=when the morale of a group is low)

A lack of information can cause morale problems.

■ phrases

▪ a lack/loss of morale

Rising sickness levels among your employees may show a loss of morale.

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THESAURUS

▪ confidence the feeling that you have the ability to do things well, and to not make mistakes or be nervous in new situations:

You need patience and confidence to be a good teacher.

| have the confidence to do something :

‘We have the confidence to beat Brazil,’ said Sampson.

|

After the accident it took a long time before she had the confidence to get back in a car again.

| full of confidence (=very confident) :

I went into the test full of confidence, but it was more difficult than I had imagined.

▪ self-confidence a strong belief that you can do things well and that other people will like you, which means you behave confidently in most situations:

He’s new in the job but he has plenty of self-confidence.

|

Studies show that girls tend to lose some of their self-confidence in their teenage years.

|

Students who get some kind of work experience develop greater self-confidence and better communication skills.

▪ morale the level of confidence, satisfaction, and hope that people feel, especially a group of people who work together: low/high morale :

Morale among the soldiers has been low.

| keep up morale (=keep it at a high level) :

They sang songs to keep up their morale until the rescuers arrived.

▪ assurance/self-assurance a feeling of calm confidence in your own abilities, especially because you have a lot of experience:

She envied the older woman’s assurance.

|

Danby spoke to the committee with the self-assurance of an expert.

▪ self-esteem the feeling that you are someone who deserves to be liked and respected:

Getting a job did a lot for her self-esteem.

|

Sports should build a child’s self-esteem, not damage it.

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English.      Longman - Словарь современного английского языка.