admire
Americanverb (used with object)
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admires,
present (3rd person singular)
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admired,
past participle, past
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admiring
present participle
verb (used without object)
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admires,
present (3rd person singular)
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admired,
past participle, past
-
admiring
present participle
-
to feel or express admiration.
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Dialect. to take pleasure; like or desire.
I would admire to go.
idioms
verb
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to regard with esteem, respect, approval, or pleased surprise
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archaic to wonder at
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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admirernoun
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quasi-admireverb
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preadmireverb (used with object)
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admiringadjective
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unadmiredadjective
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admiringlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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admiresimple
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admiressimple
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have admiredperfect
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has admiredperfect
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am admiringprogressive
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are admiringprogressive
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is admiringprogressive
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have been admiringperfect progressive
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has been admiringperfect progressive
Past
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admiredsimple
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had admiredperfect
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was admiringprogressive
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were admiringprogressive
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had been admiringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of admire
First recorded in 1580–90; from Latin admīrārī, equivalent to ad- ad- + mīrārī (in Medieval Latin mīrāre ) “to wonder at, admire”
Explanation
If you hold someone in high esteem or look up to someone, you admire that person. If you ask four-year-olds who they most admire, they are likely to list their mom, dad, and grandparents — or superheroes and comic book characters. The verb admire also means to look at with wonder and pleasure. She stood on the balcony of her hotel for a long time, simply to admire the view of the ocean and the surf as it crashed against the rocks below. I admire the way she volunteers to help at the school and with other charities because she is willing to give her time to good causes.
Vocabulary lists containing admire
"Martin's Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr." and "I Have a Dream"
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"A Natural Balance" and "In My Dreams"
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Lyrics from "American Pie" by Don McLean
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
“I admire that they learned quickly and they didn’t need a gatekeeper,” Kelly says of the prodigies that have taken this year’s box office by storm.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2026
“And I actually admire those types of people who can just keep pushing forward and shut the noise out and just keep going and striving towards a purpose while operating from a place of purpose.”
From Salon ● Aug. 26, 2026
We should be hesitant to place halos around the heads of people we admire, just as we shouldn’t totally condemn those with whom we disagree.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
His work without the ball is another reason Liverpool's recruitment team are understood to admire him.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
I want to hate her, but I have to admire her guts.
From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan
Kelly said she admires Swift and Kelce for donating to charity.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 3, 2026
Plus, Hodin, 37, a freelance writer who chronicled her “groomzilla” experience for Vogue, admires his gold-plated tastes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 19, 2026
The low-budget film stars Michael Johnston and Inde Navarrette as a man who makes a sinister bargain to win the affections of the woman he admires -- and must bear the consequences.
From Barron's ● May 17, 2026
Within the song’s verses, Kiedis gives shout-outs to other artists he admires, including Charlie Parker and Julia Butterfly Hill.
From Salon ● Apr. 4, 2026
She descends the stairs and admires the statue I've created.
From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton
“I can’t claim to know what he thinks or what he’s trying to accomplish, but it’s really hard to see this person that I admired support that kind of thing,” Eves said.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 29, 2026
She died in 1984, aged 51, without knowing that the film she'd backed would go on to be so loved and admired.
From BBC ● Aug. 23, 2026
The Dutch -- with their dikes, dams and vast waterworks--have long been admired for their tenacity in the face of flood risks.
From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026
Daniel Shelton attended an early August campaign rally in Houston and said he admired Paxton’s common sense.
From Salon ● Aug. 14, 2026
The women of the 46th Guards were liked and admired by the men who fought not far away from them.
From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein
The very thing that made their creative work possible – a large, mostly admiring audience – was also its biggest threat.
From Salon ● Aug. 30, 2026
One can’t help admiring people who value their way of life more than money, but let me give you the view from my farm in Atchison County: Developers, make me an offer.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
The documentary features admiring poets as well as Stephen Colbert, a huge Oliver fan, and the irreverent and colorful John Waters, a longtime friend.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
And social media brimmed with foreign fans admiring the US way of life.
From Barron's ● Jul. 7, 2026
One day Jake was bopping down the freshly painted halls of Riverview Middle School, admiring the rows of shiny new lockers.
From "The Smartest Kid in the Universe" by Chris Grabenstein
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
