endear

American  

[en-deer] / ɛnˈdɪər /

verb (used with object)

• endears,
  present (3rd person singular)
• endeared,
  past participle,  past
• endearing
  present participle

1. to make dear, esteemed, or beloved.

   He endeared himself to his friends with his gentle ways.

2. Obsolete. to make costly.

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endear British  

/ ɪnˈdɪə /

verb

1. (tr) to cause to be beloved or esteemed

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unendeared
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• endearing
  present
• endeared
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• endear
  simple
• endears
  simple
• have endeared
  perfect
• has endeared
  perfect
• am endearing
  progressive
• are endearing
  progressive
• is endearing
  progressive
• have been endearing
  perfect progressive
• has been endearing
  perfect progressive

Past

• endeared
  simple
• had endeared
  perfect
• was endearing
  progressive
• were endearing
  progressive
• had been endearing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will endear
  simple
• will have endeared
  perfect
• will be endearing
  progressive
• will have been endearing
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of endear

First recorded in 1570–80; en- ¹ + dear ¹

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Explanation

Things that endear you to others — like your sense of humor or your skill at baking chocolate chip cookies — cause them to be fond of you. The verb endear is almost always followed by the word "to," as in the sentence "The teacher's ready smile and gentle voice endear him to the class of kindergartners." When something endears you to another person, he or she adores you. In the 1500s, endear meant "increase the value of," though it quickly came to mean "make dear," or perhaps to increase the emotional value, especially of another person.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

endear endears endeared endearing

So even just to get them to sort of endear an animal that usually gives people a sort of like a reaction of like “ugh,” just that alone is a win for me.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2026

Closer to home, securing a deal in Venezuela would endear Exxon to President Trump, who is pushing for U.S. energy companies to invest $100 billion to repair the country’s dilapidated oil-and-gas infrastructure.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 28, 2026

As one can imagine, this does nothing to endear Carol to Laxmi.

From Salon ● Nov. 26, 2025

However, roses on my birthday, coinciding with the anniversary of our infamous sailing date and our exchanges of “I love you,” did endear him to me.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2025

The new heir apparent soon had an opportunity to endear himself to the Athenians.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton

But that’s what endears him to his fans, who appreciate the chthonic split between the aerial skate aesthete and the grieving empath.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026

Wearing her heart on her sleeve is one of the things that endears Sabalenka to her fans.

From BBC ● Sep. 6, 2025

The hothead look isn’t necessarily a good one - though Sirianni endears himself to Eagles fans when he barks at visiting fans.

From Washington Times ● Dec. 26, 2023

I hope that "Pearl" endears itself to people because there isn't anything out there like it.

From Salon ● Oct. 1, 2022

This fac endears them tew us, and i have alwas rated the dog az about the seventh cusin tew the human specious.

From The Complete Works of Josh Billings by Henry W. Shaw

"Gebremariam endeared himself to his employees during both these black swan events, especially his backing of the pilots and engineers at Ethiopian," Sanjay Lazar, CEO of Avialaz Consultants, told the BBC.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

Obama endeared himself to voters, especially younger ones, by coming off as the cool college professor who manages to sound erudite without being condescending.

From Salon ● Jul. 29, 2026

That lighthearted attitude is what endeared Wallace to Randolph before the teen even joined the team.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2026

Years later, she endeared herself to the public when she appeared in 2010 on the BBC's "Strictly Come Dancing" show where celebrities with no dance experience are paired with a professional partner.

From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026

It was nowhere as blond as Vera Louise’s hair once was, but its sunlight color, its determined curliness, endeared him to her.

From "Jazz" by Toni Morrison

Anthony Ippolito has the moves down pat in “I Play Rocky,” Peter Farrelly’s endearing crowd-pleaser, an underdog story about making the underdog movie that went on to win the Oscar for best picture in 1977.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 6, 2026

Viewers found this endearing, speculating that the robot was “bashful” or suffering from social anxiety.

From Slate ● Sep. 27, 2026

“Voice of a Century” is not intended to supplant Allan Keiler’s definitive 2000 biography—one of Mr. Tommasini’s main sources, along with Anderson’s endearing but circumspect 1956 autobiography, “My Lord, What a Morning.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

Water voles have been functionally extinct in Surrey since the early 2000s, but co-ordinated reintroduction and habitat improvement efforts by nature restoration groups are working to help the endearing species thrive again.

From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026

He rubbed the back of his neck, which she found strangely endearing.

From "When Dimple Met Rishi" by Sandhya Menon

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