Award vs Reward
Award and Reward are nouns and verbs – they are things and actions. They also both mean something given. They might seem like the same thing, but there are differences: An award is a prize for an achievement – something you did better than others. An award can be a medal, a trophy, a certificate, or even money. It is usually given as a result of a competition, and for this reason, it is usually decided by a group of people and given publicly. A reward is something given for service or effort. A reward is usually money, or intangible things like respect, prestige, or gratitude. It is usually decided by an individual and given privately.
Here are some definitions and examples to help make the use of these words clearer.
Award (noun, verb)
(n) Something given as a prize for achievement;
(v) Giving something as a prize for achievement.
Examples:
(n) My team won an award for winning the robotics competition!
(v) Leonardo DiCaprio was nominated five times before was awarded an Oscar.
In the first sentence, award is a noun: the prize given as a result of winning a competition. In the second sentence, award is a verb: the action of giving the prize. In this case, the prize is an Oscar. In both of these sentences, there was a competition where the prize was given to the person who did something the best. The prize was decided on by a group of people, and the prize was given in a public ceremony.
Reward (noun, verb)
(n) Something given for service or effort;
(v) Giving something for service or effort.
Examples:
(n) My neighbor’s dog went missing and he’s offering a $500 reward to whoever
finds it.
(v) I got good grades this school year and my parents rewarded me with a new
laptop.
In the first sentence, reward is a noun: the thing given for service or effort. In this case, it is money given for the effort of finding the missing dog. In the second sentence, reward is the action of giving something for effort. The effort was working hard during the school year to get good grades. The thing given as a result of the effort was a laptop. In both of these sentences, there was no competition. There was no group of people deciding who did something the best. There was no public ceremony to give the reward.
Main Points
- Award and Reward both mean something given, but there are differences.
- Award means a prize given for achievement. Usually, it is decided by a group of people and given publicly.
- Reward means something given for service or effort. Usually, it is decided by an individual and is given privately.
- Remember the As: Award is given for A