The terms "encourage" and encouragement" refer to saying and doing things to cause someone to have comfort, hope, confidence, and courage.
* A similar term is "exhort," which means to urge someone to reject an activity that is wrong and to instead do things that are good and right.
* The apostle Paul and other New Testament writers taught Christians to encourage one another to love and serve others.
The term "discourage" refers to saying and doing things that cause people to lose hope, confidence, and courage and so to have less desire to keep working hard to do what they know they should do.
## Translation Suggestions ##
* Depending on the context, ways to translate "encourage" could include "urge" or "comfort" or "say kind things" or "help and support."
* The phrase "give words of encouragement" means "say things that cause other people to feel loved, accepted, and empowered."