admire

[ad-mahyuhr]

verb (used with object)

admired, admiring 

1. to regard with wonder, pleasure, or approval.

   Synonyms: venerate, revere, esteem
   Antonyms: despise

2. to regard with wonder or surprise (usually used ironically or sarcastically).

   I admire your audacity.

verb (used without object)

admired, admiring 

1. to feel or express admiration.

2. Dialect.,  to take pleasure; like or desire.

   I would admire to go.

admire

/ ədˈmaɪə /

verb

1. to regard with esteem, respect, approval, or pleased surprise

2. archaic,  to wonder at

Other Word Forms

• admiring adjective
• admiringly adverb
• admirer noun
• preadmire verb (used with object)
• quasi-admire verb
• unadmired adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of admire¹

First recorded in 1580–90; from Latin admīrārī, equivalent to ad- ad- + mīrārī (in Medieval Latin mīrāre ) “to wonder at, admire”

Word History and Origins

Origin of admire¹

C16: from Latin admīrāri to wonder at, from ad- to, at + mīrāri to wonder, from mīrus wonderful

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. be admiring of, to admire.

   He's admiring of his brother's farm.

Example Sentences

There we heard stories of late-night confrontations between bodysnatchers and police, and admired a carving of a dancing skeleton on a famous surgeon’s memorial.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

"It is unimaginable and I thank you and admire you for it," he said.

Read more on BBC

A self-taught writer who never saw the inside of a classroom, Douglass wrote with a force and elegance that matched the breadth he admired in Lincoln.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

“You just have to admire the ingenuity, sound, and amount of hours that go into creating something like that, just for people to enjoy,” Cox shares.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Anderson offers an accelerated learning environment to a select few 4- and 5-year-olds, who are admitted because they have shown an early aptitude that impresses an admiring preschool teacher or a district interviewer.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• adore 
• applaud 
• appreciate 
• cherish 
• commend 
• credit 
• extol 
• hail 
• honor 
• idolize 
• laud 
• marvel at www.thesaurus.com
• praise 
• prize 
• respect 
• revere 
• treasure 
• worship