awe

1 of 2

noun

1
: an emotion variously combining dread, veneration, and wonder that is inspired by authority or by the sacred or sublime
stood in awe of the king
regard nature's wonders with awe
2
archaic
a
b
: the power to inspire dread

awe

2 of 2

verb

awed; awing; awes

transitive verb

: to inspire or fill with awe
We were awed by the beauty of the mountains.

Examples of awe in a Sentence

Noun Clem gasped in awe. Inches from the shelf stood a column of scrimshaw the likes of which he'd never seen. Al Michaud, Fantasy & Science Fiction, March 2005
I expected to be impressed by Machu Picchu, but now that we're here, standing in the clouds atop the world, I'm more than impressed—I'm in awe. Machu Picchu is actually better than photographs suggest, more a timeless way station than archaeological ruin. Patrick J. Kelly, Traveler, May/June 2005
Organs began to appear in American churches early in the eighteenth century. Their glorious tones promised to harmonize cacophonous congregational singers and to inspire worshippers with a reverential sense of awe, bestirring them to moral improvement. Jonathan D. Sarna, American Judaism, 2004
It was a sight that filled me with awe and reverence. a person who inspires feelings of awe in others Verb Most relative neophytes are so awed by having been accepted into the priesthood of specialty medicine and so reluctant to cause themselves trouble in the institutions in which they will work for the coming decades that they would be hesitant to risk offending their seniors. Sherwin B. Nuland, New York Review of Books, 18 July 2002
But even non-birders cannot help but be awed by the significance of the habitat. All around us creatures dart and dive; birds attracted by fish and water, birds drawn by seeds and chaff. Birds with silly names: loons, boobies, cuckoos, goatsuckers. Clara Jeffery, Harper's, November 2002
Her style both awes and perplexes me.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Seven months later, Ms. Hughes is still in awe of the scope of the branding and its impact on the entire event. Rachel Simon, New York Times, 22 Feb. 2024 Those virtues left his contemporaries in awe and exercised a compelling and positive moral influence on everyone around him and all who followed him. The Editors, National Review, 19 Feb. 2024 Yet in Ukraine, at least, the result has not been a fluid war of shock and awe. Shashank Joshi, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2024 Just to the left of center Dürer painted his own portrait: an isolated figure in a recognizably German landscape, poised between the apostles looking up in awe and the Madonna floating above. Jenny Uglow, The New York Review of Books, 1 Feb. 2024 Carol and John Sr. are in awe over what John Cena has accomplished John Cena's parents, Carol and John Cena Sr., have always been supportive of his dreams. Nasha Smith, Peoplemag, 31 Jan. 2024 A week earlier, after Jackson had rallied the Ravens from a flat first half to resounding triumph over the Houston Texans, teammates spoke in awe of their asserted, assured offensive master, who possessed answers that eluded him at stressful moments earlier in his career. Childs Walker, Baltimore Sun, 29 Jan. 2024 In a 2021 interview with Glamour, Dynevor voiced her awe at being cast in the first season of Bridgerton, which, at the time, Netflix said was watched by 63 million households. Stephanie McNeal, Glamour, 8 Feb. 2024 Arriving at a studio space to see the latest figure, Visage immediately expressed her awe. Stephen Daw, Billboard, 6 Feb. 2024
Verb
Despite his youth, he was not awed by the experience. Alex Williams, New York Times, 16 Feb. 2024 People travel there to be awed by the immensity of nature. Jen Murphy, Travel + Leisure, 19 Jan. 2024 Dinosaur giants evolved again and again We’re often awed by the giant size of many dinosaurs, especially the long-necked, plant-eating sauropods like Patagotitan and Argentinosaurus. Riley Black, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 Dec. 2023 The Geminids will peak Wednesday night into Thursday morning under near optimal moon conditions The Geminid meteor shower awes sky watchers around the world every December—but this year promises a particularly spectacular show as the meteors streak across an exceptionally dark sky. Aylin Woodward, WSJ, 12 Dec. 2023 Like everyone else, I’ve been awed by what these powerful models can create. Zohar Bronfman, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2023 Erik’s Take There has been a lot of money flowing into low carbon footprint cement manufacturers lately, but the elegance of Eco Material’s solution awes me. Erik Kobayashi-Solomon, Forbes, 13 Nov. 2023 Employees were awed by a huge spike in Mother’s Day sales, the first big pandemic gift-giving holiday, and glowing press rolled in. Sapna Maheshwari, New York Times, 20 Oct. 2023 Looking across the Serengeti at herds of honking wildebeest, most of us would be awed by the exuberance of these migrating masses, resplendent in their magnitude. Amy Brady, Scientific American, 17 Oct. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'awe.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English aw, awe, ahe "terror, dread, extreme reverence, veneration, something to be feared, danger," borrowed from Old Norse agi, accusative aga "terror, uproar," n-stem derivative from a Germanic base *ag- seen in the s-stem noun *agaz (whence Old English ege "fear, terror" [with assimilation to i-stems], Gothic agis) and a verbal derivative *agisōjan- (whence Old High German egisōn "to fear," Middle Dutch eisen) and a corresponding noun derivative *agisan- (whence Old English egesa, egsa "fear, terror," Old Saxon egiso, Old High German agiso, egiso); Germanic *agaz perhaps going back to Indo-European *h2egh-os, whence also Greek áchos "pain, distress"

Note: Germanic also has a verb *agan-, exemplified by the Gothic Class VI preterite-present ogan "to fear" (from a presumed reduplicated perfect) and the adjective unagands "fearless"; the verb has been compared with Old Irish adˑágadar "(s/he) frightens," and (despite the semantic gap) Greek áchnymai, achnýnai "to grieve, lament." See also etymology and note at ail entry 1.

Verb

Middle English awen "to terrify, overawe," derivative of awe "terror, awe entry 1"

First Known Use

Noun

12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2a

Verb

13th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of awe was in the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near awe

Cite this Entry

“Awe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/awe. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

awe

1 of 2 noun
: a feeling of mixed fear, respect, and wonder

awe

2 of 2 verb
awed; awing
: to fill with awe

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