respect

noun re·spect \ ri-ˈspekt \

Definition of respect

1 :a relation or reference to a particular thing or situation

remarks having respect to an earlier plan

2 :an act of giving particular attention :consideration

3 a :high or special regard :esteem

b :the quality or state of being esteemed

c respects plural :expressions of high or special regard or deference

paid our respects

4 :particular, detail

a good plan in some respects

— in respect of

chiefly British :with respect to :concerning

— in respect to

:with respect to :concerning

— with respect to

:with reference to :in relation to

See respect defined for English-language learners

See respect defined for kids

Examples of respect in a Sentence

The earth's crust floats over a core of molten rock and some of its parts have a tendency to move with respect to one another. —Mario Salvadori, Why Buildings Stand Up, 1990
Anyway any honor sent through the mail and cashable is about the only kind I got any great respect for … —Flannery O'Connor, The Habit of Being, 1979
Our ragged hero wasn't a model boy in all respects. I am afraid he swore sometimes, and now and then he played tricks upon unsophisticated boys from the country, or gave a wrong direction to honest old gentlemen unused to the city. —Horatio Alger, Ragged Dick, 1868
The Cat only grinned when it saw Alice. It looked good-natured, she thought: still it had VERY long claws and a great many teeth, so she felt that it ought to be treated with respect. —Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, 1865
He has earned their respect.
The soldier saluted as a sign of respect.
Despite our differences, I have enormous respect for him.
I have a great respect for his accomplishments.
I expect to be treated with respect.
Your theory makes sense in one respect.

Recent Examples of respect from the Web

Martial arts is about courage, integrity, honor and respect.

— yoolim lee, Bloomberg.com, "Ultimate Fighting Championship Has an Asian Rival," 30 Aug. 2017
But Tuesday’s launch clearly suggests that North Korea has not been dissuaded, and far from gaining the North Koreans’ respect as the president suggested, that tough talk may have unintentionally increased the likelihood of conflict.

— brian finlay, Fortune, "Trump Said All Options Are on the Table With North Korea. Here’s What They Are.," 30 Aug. 2017
These moms had good jobs, the respect of their peers and the love of family and friends.

— byron mccauley, Cincinnati.com, "The day I nearly forgot my daughter was in the car," 24 Aug. 2017
The progressive possession of an indestructible moral purity, and their sneering dismissiveness of any rival framework, fundamentally reveals an impatience with, rather than a respect for, pluralism.

— berny belvedere, National Review, "The Destructive Power of Progressive Overreach," 22 Aug. 2017
But most of all, there’s a deep animosity between Bannon and Kushner, amplified by a lack of respect.

— gabriel sherman, The Hive, "Steve Bannon Readies His Revenge," 20 Aug. 2017
Our fifth car has probably been more successful than our current cars in some respects.

— jim ayello, USA TODAY Sports, "Stefan Wilson frustrated that 2018 Indy 500 deal with Andretti not yet done," 17 Aug. 2017
Teamwork, sportsmanship and respect for opponents are prized over winning at any cost.

— randall p. lieberman, Jewish Journal, "Levis JCC Maccabi team small but potent," 17 Aug. 2017
The respect that Gianni had for Antonio [came out of] the fact that Antonio was bluntly honest.

— emma dibdin, Harper's BAZAAR, "The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story: Everything We Know So Far," 15 Aug. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'respect.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of respect

Middle English, from Latin respectus, literally, act of looking back, from respicere to look back, regard, from re- + specere to look — more at spy

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

respect Synonyms

Synonyms

reference, regard

Antonyms

disfavor

Related Words

appetite, fancy, fondness, like, love, partiality, preference, relish, shine, taste, use; acclamation, adoration, adulation, approbation, deference, hero worship, homage, honor, idolatry, infatuation, lionization, praise, props [slang], reverence, veneration, worship; delight, enjoyment; amazement, awe, wonder, wonderment; enthusiasm, interest, passion; bias, prejudice; affection, attachment, devotion, passion

Near Antonyms

condemnation, disapproval, disdain, opprobrium, scorn; disappointment, discontent, disenchantment, disgruntlement, disillusionment, displeasure, indignation, unhappiness; aversion, contempt, disfavor, disgust, disinclination, dislike, disliking, disregard, distaste; hate, hatred, loathing, nausea, repugnance, repulsion, revulsion; abomination, antipathy, detestation; deprecation, displeasure, dissatisfaction

respect

verb re·spect \ ri-ˈspekt \

Definition of respect

transitive verb

1 a :to consider worthy of high regard :esteem

b :to refrain from interfering with

please respect their privacy

2 :to have reference to :concern

—

respecter

noun

See respect defined for English-language learners

Examples of respect in a Sentence

Many other critics respect her work, but marginalize her as "the best Polish woman artist" or "the best woman artist of Eastern Europe." —Andrew Solomon, New York Times Book Review, 21 Aug. 1994
He had a weak point—this Fortunato—although in other regards he was a man to be respected and even feared. —Edgar Allan Poe, The Cask of Amontillado, 1846
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof … —The Constitiution of the United States of America
The students respect the principal for his honesty.
I respect what she has accomplished.
You must learn to respect other people's property.
We need to respect the environment.

Recent Examples of respect from the Web

Still, no matter how much Petrino likes and respects new Purdue coach Jeff Brohm as a friend, coaching colleague and former U of L player, Saturday's game at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis is about business and trying to get a victory.

— steve jones, The Courier-Journal, "Louisville vs. Purdue | Bobby Petrino and Jeff Brohm become friendly rivals," 28 Aug. 2017
Conformity with America requires acknowledging and respecting all of these realities.

— j. j. mccullough, National Review, "I Love America (and the Alt-Right Doesn’t)," 28 Aug. 2017
In the end, Jake promises to respect the Los Angeles Police Department and back off of filming at home.

— hannah orenstein, Seventeen, "It's Now Illegal for Jake Paul to Film Videos at His Own $17,000/Month Mansion," 25 Aug. 2017
But these feelings don’t lead him to lash out at me or respect me any less.

— melissa petro, Allure, "What It's Really Like to Date When You've Done Sex Work," 23 Aug. 2017
But those same people respect the chain of command, and were treating those who are transgender professionally until this week.

— chiara marinai, The Hive, "“Betrayal”: Transgender Troops React to Trump’s Ban," 2 Aug. 2017
The Place: Gianni’s at the Villa not only respects the memory of late designer Gianni Versace but gives diners access to the lavish villa.

— linda bladholm, miamiherald, "It’s called Gianni’s to honor the slain designer, and guess what? There’s caviar on the lobster," 2 Aug. 2017
To respect the law, in the context in which the American Negro finds himself, is simply to surrender his self-respect.

— kirsten west savali, The Root, "#SafetyIs: Night Out for Safety and Liberation Happening Tonight," 1 Aug. 2017
Johnson respected the difficulty of being a cop but had ideas about how policing could be done differently.

— joe domanick, Los Angeles Magazine, "How the Police Commission Got the LAPD to Buy Into De-Escalation," 13 July 2017

Origin and Etymology of respect

see ¹respect

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1560

See Words from the same year

respect Synonyms

Synonyms

appreciate, consider, esteem, regard, admire

Related Words

acclaim, accredit, applaud, approve, commend, compliment, credit, praise; delight (in), drink (in), enjoy, relish, revel (in), savor (also savour); dig, fancy, favor, groove (on), like, love; adore, adulate, canonize, deify, dote (on), hallow, idolize, revere, reverence, venerate, worship; cherish, love, prize, treasure, value

Near Antonyms

abhor, abominate, despise, detest, execrate, hate, loathe; condemn, decry, deplore, disapprove, discount, discountenance, disdain, disfavor, dislike, dismiss, disregard, frown (on or upon), kiss off, scorn, vilify

Synonym Discussion of respect

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

RESPECT Defined for English Language Learners

respect

noun

Definition of respect for English Language Learners

: a feeling of admiring someone or something that is good, valuable, important, etc.
: a feeling or understanding that someone or something is important, serious, etc., and should be treated in an appropriate way
: a particular way of thinking about or looking at something

respect

verb

Definition of respect for English Language Learners

: to feel admiration for (someone or something) : to regard (someone or something) as being worthy of admiration because of good qualities
: to act in a way which shows that you are aware of (someone's rights, wishes, etc.)
: to treat or deal with (something that is good or valuable) in a proper way

RESPECT Defined for Kids

respect

noun re·spect \ ri-ˈspekt \

Definition of respect for Students

1 :high or special regard :esteem

2 :thoughtfulness or consideration

“Of course, we would wait the appropriate amount of time out of respect for my brother.”
—Pam Muñoz Ryan, Esperanza Rising

3 respects plural :an expression of regard or courtesy

pay my respects

4 :¹detail 2

Our trip was perfect in all respects.

5 :relation to or concern with something specified

I'm writing with respect to your ad.

respect

verb

Definition of respect for Students

respected; respecting

1 :to consider worthy of high regard :esteem

2 :to pay attention to

We respected their wishes.

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respect

Definition of respect

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Examples of respect in a Sentence

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Origin and Etymology of respect

respect Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Related Words

Near Antonyms

respect

Definition of respect

respecter

Examples of respect in a Sentence

Recent Examples of respect from the Web

Origin and Etymology of respect

respect Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

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Synonym Discussion of respect

Phrases Related to RESPECT

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RESPECT Defined for English Language Learners

respect

Definition of respect for English Language Learners

respect

Definition of respect for English Language Learners

RESPECT Defined for Kids

respect

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respect

Definition of respect for Students

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