Meaning & use
white-gloving
Last updated
Meanings
noununcountable
The practice of giving someone very special, attentive, and luxurious treatment, as if they were a VIP.
Grammar: Uncountable; used mainly in business or marketing contexts.
Patterns
- white-gloving of someone
- give someone the white-gloving treatment
The luxury hotel is known for its white-gloving of every guest.
The company's white-gloving of its top clients helped it win loyalty.
verbtransitive
To treat someone with extreme care and attention, often in a professional or service setting.
Grammar: Usually used as a gerund or present participle: 'white-gloving a client'.
Patterns
- white-glove someone
- white-gloving a customer
The sales team is white-gloving the new account to ensure satisfaction.
She is used to being white-gloved by her assistant.
Common combinations
- white-gloving treatment
- The celebrity received the white-gloving treatment at the airport.
- white-gloving service
- The store offers a white-gloving service for its best customers.
- white-gloving approach
- Their white-gloving approach keeps clients coming back.
Synonyms and how they differ
- pampering
- More general; can be used for anyone, not just in business contexts.
- concierge service
- Refers to a specific type of assistance, often in hotels, while white-gloving is broader.
Opposites
Word family
- white-glove adjective
- Describing a very high level of service or care.
Commonly confused: white-gloving or whitewashing?
white-gloving vs whitewashing
Means covering up mistakes or presenting something in a falsely positive way; completely different meaning.
Practice
The hotel is famous for its ______ of VIP guests.
Choose one answer.
The noun form 'white-gloving' fits after 'its'. 'White-glove' is usually an adjective, 'white-gloved' is a past participle, and 'white-gloves' is a plural noun, none of which fit the sentence structure.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “white-gloving”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.