ardor

American  

[ahr-der] / ˈɑr dər /

especially British, ardour

noun

ardors plural

1. great warmth of feeling; fervor; passion.

   She spoke persuasively and with ardor.

   Synonyms:

   intensity, earnestness, spirit, fervency

2. intense devotion, eagerness, or enthusiasm; zeal.

   his well-known ardor for Chinese art.

3. burning heat.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• ardors
  plural

Etymology

Origin of ardor

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin, equivalent to ārd ( ēre ) to burn + -or -or ¹; replacing Middle English ardure < Old French ardur < Latin, as above; 17th century ardour < Anglo-French < Latin, as above

Explanation

Are you inspired to write love poems to your crush? Sprinkle rose petals in her path? Then you're feeling ardor — an intense kind of warmth and fervor most often associated with love. The Brits spell ardor with an extra vowel, so you'll often see this word written as ardour. But on either side of the pond it's a noun that brings to mind Pepe Le Pew and his fervent pursuit of the female species. But ardor isn't always about love. It's perfectly platonic to be "an ardent supporter" of a certain cause, or show eagerness and ardor in your approach to anything.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

ardor ardors

Teenagers everywhere fell under the spell of Rice’s vampires in the mid-‘80s with an ardor that AMC’s “The Vampire Lestat” radiates through the devotion of his superfans.

From Salon ● Jun. 13, 2026

And he’s driven by an ardor that is both righteous and personal.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 1, 2026

Investors could well lose some ardor for Ferrari if it can’t get the electric rollout right.

From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2025

Over a bar piano and later behind closed doors, they bond over an affinity for rural songs thick with hardship, ardor and longing.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 12, 2025

Hamlet did not contend with me but loosened his embrace, and his ardor cooled like an ember when the wind ceases to blow.

From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein

Neither he nor manager Dave Roberts care to attribute the dip in production to the ardors of catching nearly every game.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2023

Damien Chazelle’s follow-up to “La La Land,” his swooning valentine to the movie musical, more closely resembles the film that preceded it, “Whiplash,” in its visceral attention to the rigors and ardors of achieving greatness.

From New York Times ● Feb. 25, 2019

The boundless aspirations and ardors of young people are themselves the core of his romanticism.

From The New Yorker ● Mar. 16, 2017

I also insist that to a billion contemporary Chinese, Mao Tse-tung has a lot more to answer for than the merry chaos and inscrutable epigrams this opera uses to recall his reckless ardors.

From New York Times ● Feb. 11, 2011

Henceforth he knows what his powers mean, what spiritual air they breathe, what ardors of service clear them of lethargy, relieve them all sense of effort, put them at their best.

From Modern American Prose Selections by Rees, Byron J. (Byron Johnson)

Related Words

• eagerness
• earnestness
• fervor
• intensity
• passion
• warmth
• zeal