To Praise, To Compliment
transitive verb, ichidan verb
Because the hiragana ends with an う sound, you know this word is a verb. The kanji itself means praise and the verb vocab version is to praise.
ほめる
If you are going to praise this guy in front of you, it would have to be for his amazing hoe-using (ほ) abilities. Look at him go with that hoe.
どう返答していいか分からないので、人に褒められるのは苦手です。
I’m bad at being complimented because I don’t know how to respond.