Cheer vs. Root: What's the Difference?
By Janet White || Published on November 6, 2023
Cheer typically means to shout joy or encouragement; Root refers to expressing support for a team or participant, often by cheering. Both convey positive support but can be used in slightly varied contexts.
Key Differences
Cheer and root, though synonymous in certain contexts, maintain nuanced differences in English parlance. To cheer is to shout out words or create noise that expresses happiness or encouragement. People often cheer at sports events, concerts, and any occasions that invite applause or shouts of joy. Rooting, though it involves an element of cheering, implies a deeper level of support or alliance with a particular team, individual, or cause. It's an enduring support that often spans various scenarios and contexts.
The act of cheering is visceral and expressive. One might cheer to express spontaneous joy, approval, or to contribute to a collective expression of enthusiasm, such as at a celebratory event. On the other hand, to root for someone or something often infers a steadier, more ingrained level of support. One might root for a particular sports team season after season, regardless of their performance.
The word cheer can also be utilized as a noun, referring to the physical expression of joy or encouragement (e.g., "three cheers for the team"). It reflects an outward exhibition of positivity or approval. Root, when used as a verb in the context of support (e.g., "rooting for my team"), focuses on the act of providing ongoing support and hope for success.
Cheer has varied uses outside of expressing encouragement vocally. It can also imply a general spirit of joy or positivity in certain contexts (e.g., "holiday cheer"). Root, in contrast, doesn’t extend its meaning much beyond the supportive context when used as a verb. However, it’s worth noting that "root" has other meanings unrelated to support when used as a noun (e.g., "plant root").
Comparison Chart
Part of Speech
Used as both a noun and a verb
Primarily used as a verb in supportive context
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Implication
Expressive, can be spontaneous
Implies enduring support
Use in Sentences
Can be used to reflect general spirit of joy
Largely used to show alliance/support
Alternate Meanings
May refer to overall positive ambience
When used as a noun, it refers to plant parts
Emotional Context
Can be generic or non-specific
Often implies deeper, specific support
Cheer and Root Definitions
Cheer
A feeling or atmosphere of optimism and happiness.
Her smile brought cheer to the room.
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Root
To express or show support for a team or participant.
I always root for the underdog in a competition.
Cheer
A shout of approval, encouragement, or congratulation
A remark that drew cheers from the crowd.
Root
To originate or be traced to something.
The tradition roots back to ancient times.
Cheer
A short, rehearsed jingle or phrase, shouted in unison by a squad of cheerleaders.
Root
The usually underground portion of a plant that lacks buds, leaves, or nodes and serves as support, draws minerals and water from the surrounding soil, and sometimes stores food.
Cheer
Comfort or encouragement
A message of cheer.
Root
Any of various other underground plant parts, especially an underground stem such as a rhizome, corm, or tuber.
Cheer
Lightness of spirits or mood; gaiety or joy
A happy tune, full of cheer.
Root
The embedded part of an organ or structure such as a hair, tooth, or nerve, that serves as a base or support.
Cheer
Festive food and drink; refreshment
Did not refrain from sampling their holiday cheer.
Root
The bottom or supporting part of something
We snipped the wires at the roots.
Cheer
To shout cheers.
Root
The essential part or element; the basic core
I finally got to the root of the problem.
Cheer
To express praise or approval
Bloggers cheered when the favorable decision was announced.
Root
A primary source; an origin.
Cheer
To become cheerful
Had lunch and soon cheered up.
Root
A progenitor or ancestor from which a person or family is descended.
Cheer
To encourage with cheers
The fans cheered the runners on.
Root
Often roots The condition of being settled and of belonging to a particular place or society
Our roots in this town go back a long way.
Cheer
To salute or acclaim with cheers; applaud.
Root
Roots The state of having or establishing an indigenous relationship with or a personal affinity for a particular culture, society, or environment
Music with unmistakable African roots.
Cheer
To express praise or approval for; acclaim
Cheered the results of the election.
Root
The element that carries the main component of meaning in a word and provides the basis from which a word is derived by adding affixes or inflectional endings or by phonetic change.
Cheer
To make happier or more cheerful
A warm fire that cheered us.
Root
Such an element reconstructed for a protolanguage. Also called radical.
Cheer
(uncountable) A cheerful attitude; happiness; a good, happy, or positive mood.
Root
A number that when multiplied by itself an indicated number of times forms a product equal to a specified number. For example, a fourth root of 4 is √2. Also called nth root.
Cheer
That which promotes good spirits or cheerfulness, especially food and entertainment prepared for a festive occasion.
A table loaded with good cheer
Root
A number that reduces a polynomial equation in one variable to an identity when it is substituted for the variable.
Cheer
(countable) A cry expressing joy, approval or support, such as "hurrah".
Three cheers for the birthday boy!
A cheer rose from the crowd.
Root
A number at which a polynomial has the value zero.
Cheer
(countable) A chant made in support of a team at a sports event.
Root
The note from which a chord is built.
Cheer
(obsolete) One's facial expression or countenance.
Root
Such a note occurring as the lowest note of a triad or other chord.
Cheer
(archaic) One's attitude, mood.
Root
To grow roots or a root
Carrot tops will root in water.
Cheer
Cheerleading, especially when practiced as a competitive sport.
Alex participated in cheer all four years of college.
I'm going to wear my new cheer shoes at cheer today.
Root
To become firmly established or settled
The idea of tolerance has rooted in our culture.
Cheer
(transitive) To gladden; to make cheerful; often with up.
We were cheered by the offer of a cup of tea.
Root
To plant and fix the roots of (a plant) in soil or the ground.
Cheer
(transitive) To infuse life, courage, animation, or hope, into; to inspirit; to solace or comfort.
Root
To establish or settle firmly
Our love of the ocean has rooted us here.
Cheer
To encourage to do something.
Root
To be the source or origin of
"Much of [the team's] success was rooted in the bullpen" (Dan Shaughnessy).
Cheer
(ambitransitive) To applaud or encourage with cheers or shouts.
The crowd cheered in support of the athletes.
The crowd cheered the athletes.
Root
To dig or pull out by the roots. Often used with up or out
We rooted out the tree stumps with a tractor.
Cheer
To feel or express enthusiasm for (something).
The finance sector will cheer this decision.
Root
To remove or get rid of. Often used with out
"declared that waste and fraud will be vigorously rooted out of Government" (New York Times).
Cheer
The face; the countenance or its expression.
Root
To turn up by digging with the snout or nose
Hogs that rooted up acorns.
Cheer
That which promotes good spirits or cheerfulness; provisions prepared for a feast; entertainment; as, a table loaded with good cheer.
Root
To cause to appear or be known. Used with out
An investigation that rooted out the source of the problem.
Cheer
Feeling; spirit; state of mind or heart.
Be of good cheer.
The parents . . . fled away with heavy cheer.
Root
To turn over the earth with the snout or nose.
Cheer
Gayety; mirth; cheerfulness; animation.
I have not that alacrity of spirit,Nor cheer of mind, that I was wont to have.
Root
To search or rummage for something
Rooted around for a pencil in his cluttered office.
Cheer
A shout, hurrah, or acclamation, expressing joy enthusiasm, applause, favor, etc.
Welcome her, thundering cheer of the street.
Root
To give audible encouragement or applause to a contestant or team; cheer.
Cheer
To cause to rejoice; to gladden; to make cheerful; - often with up.
Root
To give moral support to someone; hope for a favorable outcome for someone
We'll be rooting for you when you take the exam.
Cheer
To infuse life, courage, animation, or hope, into; to inspirit; to solace or comfort.
The proud he tamed, the penitent he cheered.
Root
The part of a plant, generally underground, that anchors and supports the plant body, absorbs and stores water and nutrients, and in some plants is able to perform vegetative reproduction.
This tree's roots can go as deep as twenty metres underground.
Cheer
To salute or applaud with cheers; to urge on by cheers; as, to cheer hounds in a chase.
Root
A root vegetable.
Cheer
To grow cheerful; to become gladsome or joyous; - usually with up.
At sight of thee my gloomy soul cheers up.
Root
The part of a tooth extending into the bone holding the tooth in place.
Root damage is a common problem of overbrushing.
Cheer
To be in any state or temper of mind.
How cheer'st thou, Jessica?
Root
The part of a hair under the skin that holds the hair in place.
The root is the only part of the hair that is alive.
Cheer
To utter a shout or shouts of applause, triumph, etc.
And even the ranks of TusculumCould scare forbear to cheer.
Root
The part of a hair near the skin that has not been dyed, permed, or otherwise treated.
He dyed his hair black last month, so the grey roots can be seen.
Cheer
A cry or shout of approval
Root
(figurative) The primary source; origin.
The love of money is the root of all evil.
Cheer
The quality of being cheerful and dispelling gloom;
Flowers added a note of cheerfulness to the drab room
Root
(aviation) The section of a wing immediately adjacent to the fuselage.
Cheer
Give encouragement to
Root
(engineering) The bottom of the thread of a threaded object.
The root diameter is the minor diameter of an external thread and the major diameter of an internal one.
Cheer
Show approval or good wishes by shouting;
Everybody cheered the birthday boy
Root
(arithmetic) Of a number or expression, a number which, when raised to a specified power, yields the specified number or expression.
The cube root of 27 is 3.
Cheer
Cause (somebody) to feel happier or more cheerful;
She tried to cheer up the disappointed child when he failed to win the spelling bee
Root
(arithmetic) A square root (understood if no power is specified; in which case, "the root of" is often abbreviated to "root").
Multiply by root 2.
Cheer
Become cheerful
Root
(analysis) A zero (of an equation).
Cheer
Urge on or encourage especially by shouts;
The crowd cheered the demonstrating strikers
Root
The single node of a tree that has no parent.
Cheer
A vocal expression of support or joy.
The crowd gave a loud cheer when the team scored.
Root
(linguistic morphology) The primary lexical unit of a word, which carries the most significant aspects of semantic content and cannot be reduced into smaller constituents. Inflectional stems often derive from roots.
Cheer
To shout words or sounds of approval or encouragement.
We cheer for our home team every Friday.
Root
(philology) A word from which another word or words are derived.
Cheer
To uplift the spirit or mood of a person or group.
He tried to cheer her with a small gift.
Root
(music) The fundamental tone of any chord; the tone from whose harmonics, or overtones, a chord is composed.
Cheer
To acclaim or express approval vocally.
They began to cheer the speaker with enthusiasm.
Root
The lowest place, position, or part.
Root
(computing) In UNIX terminology, the first user account with complete access to the operating system and its configuration, found at the root of the directory structure; the person who manages accounts on a UNIX system.
I have to log in as root before I do that.
Root
(computing) The highest directory of a directory structure which may contain both files and subdirectories.
I installed the files in the root directory.
Root
(slang) A penis, especially the base of a penis.
Root
An act of sexual intercourse.
Fancy a root?
Root
A sexual partner.
Root
To grow roots; to enter the earth, as roots; to take root and begin to grow.
The cuttings are starting to root.
Root
To prepare, oversee, or otherwise cause the rooting of cuttings.
We rooted some cuttings last summer.
Root
To be firmly fixed; to be established.
Root
To get root or privileged access on a computer system or mobile phone, often through bypassing some security mechanism.
We rooted his box and planted a virus on it.
I want to root my Android phone so I can remove the preinstalled crapware.
Root
(ambitransitive) To turn up or dig with the snout.
A pig roots the earth for truffles.
Root
(by extension) To seek favour or advancement by low arts or grovelling servility; to fawn.
Root
(intransitive) To rummage; to search as if by digging in soil.
Rooting about in a junk-filled drawer
Root
(intransitive) Of a baby: to turn the head and open the mouth in search of food.
Root
(transitive) To root out; to abolish.
Root
To sexually penetrate.
Root
To cheer (on); to show support (for) and hope for the success of. See root for.
I'm rooting for you, don't let me down!
Root
To turn up the earth with the snout, as swine.
Root
Hence, to seek for favor or advancement by low arts or groveling servility; to fawn servilely.
Root
To turn up or to dig out with the snout; as, the swine roots the earth.
Root
To fix the root; to enter the earth, as roots; to take root and begin to grow.
In deep grounds the weeds root deeper.
Root
To be firmly fixed; to be established.
If any irregularity chanced to intervene and to cause misappehensions, he gave them not leave to root and fasten by concealment.
Root
To shout for, or otherwise noisly applaud or encourage, a contestant, as in sports; hence, to wish earnestly for the success of some one or the happening of some event, with the superstitious notion that this action may have efficacy; - usually with for; as, the crowd rooted for the home team.
Root
To plant and fix deeply in the earth, or as in the earth; to implant firmly; hence, to make deep or radical; to establish; - used chiefly in the participle; as, rooted trees or forests; rooted dislike.
Root
To tear up by the root; to eradicate; to extirpate; - with up, out, or away.
The Lord rooted them out of their land . . . and cast them into another land.
Root
The underground portion of a plant, whether a true root or a tuber, a bulb or rootstock, as in the potato, the onion, or the sweet flag.
Root
An edible or esculent root, especially of such plants as produce a single root, as the beet, carrot, etc.; as, the root crop.
Root
That which resembles a root in position or function, esp. as a source of nourishment or support; that from which anything proceeds as if by growth or development; as, the root of a tooth, a nail, a cancer, and the like.
They were the roots out of which sprang two distinct people.
Root
A primitive form of speech; one of the earliest terms employed in language; a word from which other words are formed; a radix, or radical.
The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.
Root
The time which to reckon in making calculations.
When a root is of a birth yknowe [known].
Root
That factor of a quantity which when multiplied into itself will produce that quantity; thus, 3 is a root of 9, because 3 multiplied into itself produces 9; 3 is the cube root of 27.
Root
The lowest place, position, or part.
Root
(botany) the usually underground organ that lacks buds or leaves or nodes; absorbs water and mineral salts; usually it anchors the plant to the ground
Root
(linguistics) the form of a word after all affixes are removed;
Thematic vowels are part of the stem
Root
The place where something begins, where it springs into being;
The Italian beginning of the Renaissance
Jupiter was the origin of the radiation
Pittsburgh is the source of the Ohio River
Communism's Russian root
Root
A number that when multiplied by itself some number of times equals a given number
Root
The set of values that give a true statement when substituted into an equation
Root
Someone from whom you are descended (but usually more remote than a grandparent)
Root
A simple form inferred as the common basis from which related words in several languages can be derived by linguistic processes
Root
The part of a tooth that is embedded in the jaw and serves as support
Root
Take root and begin to grow;
This plant roots quickly
Root
Come into existence, originate;
The problem roots in her depression
Root
Plant by the roots
Root
Dig with the snout;
The pig was rooting for truffles
Root
Take sides with; align oneself with; show strong sympathy for;
We all rooted for the home team
I'm pulling for the underdog
Are you siding with the defender of the title?
Root
Become settled or established and stable in one's residence or life style;
He finally settled down
Root
Cause to take roots
Root
The underground part of a plant.
The carrot is a root vegetable, orange and crunchy.
Root
To establish deeply and firmly.
He has roots in the community, having lived here for decades.
Root
To search or rummage for something.
The pigs root around in the mud looking for food.
FAQs
What does "root" mean in a supportive context?
To "root" for someone means to wish for their success and possibly show vocal support.
Can "root" have meanings unrelated to support in English?
Absolutely, "root" commonly refers to the underground part of plants and can also imply establishing deeply, among other meanings.
Is "cheering" always loud and vigorous?
Not necessarily; "cheering" can be quiet and subdued depending on the context and cultural norms.
Are there alternative meanings to "cheer"?
Yes, "cheer" can also indicate an overall ambiance of joy and positivity, aside from being an expression of encouragement.
Can "cheer" be used to describe a person’s demeanor?
Yes, it can. For example, someone might be described as being "full of cheer" to indicate a joyful demeanor.
Does "root" always signify active involvement or engagement in supporting?
Not always. One can "root" for a team or person without engaging in visible supportive activities.
Can "root" be used formally in language?
Yes, while "root" is casual, it can be used in formal language, especially when discussing sports or competitions.
Is "root" common in American English?
Yes, "root" in the context of supporting a team is very common in American English.
Is there a synonym that can replace "cheer" in most contexts?
While not a perfect substitute, "applause" often fits, as it's another expression of approval or enthusiasm.
Can "cheer" be utilized as both a noun and a verb?
Yes, "cheer" can be used as both, for example: "She gave a cheer" (noun) and "They cheer loudly" (verb).
Is "cheer" culturally utilized differently in various English-speaking countries?
Yes, how and when people "cheer" might differ slightly due to cultural nuances and norms within different regions.
In what contexts might "root" be used in British English?
"Root" might be used less commonly in British English for support, but is understood and used in various contexts.
Is "cheer" utilized in formal writing?
It can be, although alternative words might be preferred for a more formal tone, depending on context.
Can “root” be used metaphorically?
Yes, such as in "roots of evil," where "root" metaphorically implies the origin or source.
Is “root” used similarly in Australian and American English?
Careful, in Australian slang, "root" can have an adult meaning, showing how regional variations can differ significantly.
What does it mean to "take root"?
"Take root" is an idiomatic expression meaning to become established, start to grow, or become fixed.
Can "cheer" imply approval?
Yes, cheering often implies approval and support of an action, person, or group.
Can "cheer" be used as an instruction?
Yes, such as in "Three cheers for the captain!" it becomes an instructive phrase.
Can "cheer" be used in negative contexts?
It’s typically associated with positivity, but it could be used negatively if, for example, cheering is inappropriate in a situation.
Can "root" be used to indicate an action of searching?
Yes, "root" can imply searching through or rummaging, e.g., "The dog rooted through the trash."
About Author
Written by
Janet WhiteJanet White has been an esteemed writer and blogger for Difference Wiki. Holding a Master's degree in Science and Medical Journalism from the prestigious Boston University, she has consistently demonstrated her expertise and passion for her field. When she's not immersed in her work, Janet relishes her time exercising, delving into a good book, and cherishing moments with friends and family.
