endear

[ en-deer ]
See synonyms for: endearendearedendearing on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)
  1. to make dear, esteemed, or beloved: He endeared himself to his friends with his gentle ways.

  2. Obsolete. to make costly.

Origin of endear

1
First recorded in 1570–80; en-1 + dear1

Other words from endear

  • un·en·deared, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use endear in a sentence

  • When he attacked the government he was eminently quotable, and this endeared him to both reporters and editors.

    Ancestors | Gertrude Atherton
  • This very independence of his endeared him to the villagers, who always spoke of him as "one of the right sort."

    The Doctor of Pimlico | William Le Queux
  • He was a gallant, the Colonel, full of little 33 courtesies which endeared him to the hearts of women.

    Those Dale Girls | Frank Weston Carruth
  • To them he had become much endeared, as they had been in his company as fellow-travellers for many months.

    Robert Moffat | David J. Deane
  • From earliest childhood certain qualities of Louis had endeared him to Napoleon.

    The Life of Napoleon Bonaparte | William Milligan Sloane

British Dictionary definitions for endear

endear

/ (ɪnˈdɪə) /


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

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