admire

verb

ad·​mire əd-ˈmī(-ə)r 

admired; admiring

transitive verb

1

: to feel respect and approval for (someone or something) : to regard with admiration

They all admired her courage.

2

archaic : to marvel at

intransitive verb

dialect : to like very much

… I would admire to know why not …

—A. H. Lewis

admirer noun

Synonyms of admire

• respect
• appreciate
• regard

Choose the Right Synonym for admire

regard, respect, esteem, admire mean to recognize the worth of a person or thing.

regard is a general term that is usually qualified.

he is highly regarded in the profession

respect implies a considered evaluation or estimation.

after many years they came to respect her views

esteem implies greater warmth of feeling accompanying a high valuation.

no citizen of the town was more highly esteemed

admire suggests usually enthusiastic appreciation and often deep affection.

a friend that I truly admire

Examples of admire in a Sentence

We gazed out the window and admired the scenery.

I admire the way you handled such a touchy situation.

Recent Examples on the Web

There’s also an intangible quality about Wang that Morgan admires. —David Lyman, Cincinnati Enquirer, 11 Dec. 2025

Around me, passengers of all ages from Germany, the United States, England, and Turkey were crammed into booths, making friends, sharing boxes of pistachio pastries, and admiring the wilderness, where gusts of snow swept toward the window and obscured the scalps of mountains. —Monisha Rajesh, Outside, 9 Dec. 2025

In the late nineteenth century, public interest grew from simply admiring cats in shows to developing new breeds and collecting exotic cats. —Literary Hub, 9 Dec. 2025

Haitian fans have long admired the Brazilian team and fashion their play after the Brazilian fancy-passing style. —Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 6 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Middle French admirer, Latinization of amirer "to make (little or much) of," borrowed from Latin admīrārī, ammīrārī "to regard with wonder, show esteem for," from ad- ad- + mīrārī "to be surprised, look with wonder at," derivative of mīrus, "remarkable, amazing," of uncertain origin

Note: Regarding etymology of Latin mīrus see note at smile entry 1.

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 2

Rhymes for admire

• afire
• aspire
• backfire
• esquire
• expire
• haywire
• hellfire
• inquire
• inspire
• newswire
• perspire
• rehire

Kids Definition

admire

verb

ad·​mire əd-ˈmī(ə)r 

admired; admiring

1

: to look at with admiration

admire the scenery

2

: to have high regard for

admired her courage

admirer

-ˈmīr-ər

noun

Etymology

from early French admirer "to marvel at," from Latin admirari (same meaning), from ad- "at" and mirari "to wonder" — related to miracle