appreciation

Universal Words noun 1 [U] pleasure that you have when you recognize and enjoy the good qualities of sb/sth: She shows little appreciation of good music. * The crowd murmured in appreciation. 2 [U,sing.] ~ of sth a full or sympathetic understanding of sth, such as a situation or a problem, and of what it involves: I had no appreciation of the problems they faced. 3 [U] ~ (of / for sth) the feeling of being grateful for sth: Please accept this gift in appreciation of all you've done for us. 4 [U,sing.] ~ (in sth) increase in value over a period of time: an appreciation in the value of the house * capital appreciation 5 [C] ~ (of sth) (formal) a piece of writing or a speech in which the strengths and weaknesses of sb/sth, especially an artist or a work of art, are discussed and judged: They were asked to write an appreciation of a poem of their choice.