awe

[ aw ]

/ ɔ /

noun

an overwhelming feeling of reverence, admiration, fear, etc., produced by that which is grand, sublime, extremely powerful, or the like: in awe of God; in awe of great political figures.

Archaic. power to inspire fear or reverence.

Obsolete. fear or dread.

verb (used with object), awed, aw·ing.

to inspire with awe.

to influence or restrain by awe.

Nearby words

away, away goal, away-going crop, awayday, awb, awe, awe-inspiring, awe-struck, aweary, aweather, awed

Origin of awe

1250–1300; Middle English aghe, awe < Scandinavian; compare Old Norse agi fear, cognate with Gothic agis, Old English ege, Greek áchos pain

SYNONYMS FOR awe

1 wonder, veneration.

ANTONYMS FOR awe

1 apathy; contempt.

Related forms

out·awe, verb (used with object), out·awed, out·aw·ing.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for awing

For the first time he saw the awing vastness of the desert, and the soft pastel shades which made their desolation beautiful.
'Me-Smith'|Caroline Lockhart
Nevertheless he paraded the Tory remainder of it, doubtless with the intention of awing the entire county.
The Little Red Foot|Robert W. Chambers
Goold Brown has most disingenuously insinuated that the great success of my Grammar is awing wholly to extrinsic circumstances.
The Knickerbocker, Vol. 10, No. 4, October 1837|Various
The outburst, sharp with pain, burst from her involuntarily, awing Sylvia into silence.
Shifting Sands|Sara Ware Bassett

His voice was low, in an awing, confident contrast with the headlong emphasis of his movements.
End of the Tether|Joseph Conrad

British Dictionary definitions for awing

awe

/ (ɔː) /

noun

overwhelming wonder, admiration, respect, or dread

archaic power to inspire fear or reverence

verb

(tr) to inspire with reverence or dread

Derived Forms

aweless or US awless, adjective

Word Origin for awe

C13: from Old Norse agi; related to Gothic agis fear, Greek akhesthai to be grieved

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012