adored; adoring

transitive verb

1
: to worship or honor as a deity or as divine
2
: to regard with loving admiration and devotion
He adored his wife.
3
: to be very fond of
adores pecan pie
adorer noun
Choose the Right Synonym for adore

revere, reverence, venerate, worship, adore mean to honor and admire profoundly and respectfully.

revere stresses deference and tenderness of feeling.

a professor revered by her students

reverence presupposes an intrinsic merit and inviolability in the one honored and a similar depth of feeling in the one honoring.

reverenced the academy's code of honor

venerate implies a holding as holy or sacrosanct because of character, association, or age.

heroes still venerated

worship implies homage usually expressed in words or ceremony.

worships their memory

adore implies love and stresses the notion of an individual and personal attachment.

we adored our doctor

Examples of adore in a Sentence

He's a good doctor. All his patients adore him. They adored shopping in all the boutiques.
Recent Examples on the Web As much as everyone adores timeless classics such as The Plaza Hotel and Claridge’s, there’s also an undeniable allure of the next big thing. Spencer Whaley, Forbes, 4 Oct. 2024 Ken was loved and adored by so so many and will be missed so much. Brendan Morrow, USA TODAY, 2 Oct. 2024 Those seeking ski-in-ski-out mountain access should book The Lodge at Spruce Peak, while The Sound of Music fans will adore a stay at the alps-style Trapp Family Lodge. Morgan Goldberg, Architectural Digest, 2 Oct. 2024 Ciara is one of the most talented and adored superstars. Fairchild Studio, WWD, 24 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for adore 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'adore.' 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

Middle English aouren, adouren, borrowed from Anglo-French aurer, ahourer, adourer (with d restored from Latin), going back to Latin adōrāre "to plead with, appeal to, approach (a god) as a suppliant or worshipper, treat with reverence, admire," from ad- ad- + ōrāre "to pray to, beseech" — more at oration

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of adore was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near adore

Cite this Entry

“Adore.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/adore. Accessed 16 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

adore

verb
ə-ˈdō(ə)r How to pronounce adore (audio)
-ˈdȯ(ə)r
adored; adoring
1
2
: to be very fond of
adoration
ˌad-ə-ˈrā-shən
noun
adorer
ə-ˈdōr-ər
-ˈdȯr-
noun
Etymology

from early French adourer "to adore," from Latin adorare (same meaning), from ad- "to" and orare "to speak, pray" — related to oracle, oration

More from Merriam-Webster on adore

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