doffing one's hat to

Verb

doff one's hat to (third-person singular simple present doffs one's hat to, present participle doffing one's hat to, simple past and past participle doffed one's hat to)

1. To acknowledge praise towards (someone or something).
   • I doffed my hat to the wondrous horse, the fast trotter, the best in mother England; and I too drew a deep ah! and repeated the words of the old fellows around. "Such a horse as this we shall never see again; a pity that he is so old."1851, George Borrow, Lavengro; The Scholar - the Gypsy - the Priest, volume I, page 209