inspired
Americanadjective
-
aroused, animated, or imbued with the spirit to do something, by or as if by supernatural or divine influence.
an inspired poet.
-
resulting from such inspiration.
an inspired poem;
an inspired plan.
-
inhaled.
inspired air.
adjective
-
aroused or guided by or as if aroused or guided by divine inspiration
an inspired performance
she was like one inspired
-
extremely accurate or apt but based on intuition rather than knowledge or logical deduction
an inspired guess
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of inspired
Explanation
Inspired is an adjective that describes something of excellent quality. If your singing in a choral concert is particularly inspired, people can hear your voice hitting all the right notes beautifully. If something is so extraordinary that it's worthy of being described as inspired, you might think that the gods had something to do with its creation. In fact, inspired originally meant "directly inspired by God or gods." It comes from the Latin in-"in" and spirare "to breathe." Maybe such supernatural power did breathe life into something truly excellent. Or maybe the humans just worked very hard and had a great idea.
Vocabulary lists containing inspired
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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.
He told Cates how Klopp inspired his team to dust themselves off and go for more.
From BBC • May 23, 2026
The idea that black holes might connect distant regions of the cosmos — or even act as time machines — inspired countless papers, books and films.
From Science Daily • May 22, 2026
And since the service debuted in 2019, the San Francisco-based studio pumped out 13 shows, including “The Mandalorian,” which inspired the film, though others received mixed reviews.
From Los Angeles Times • May 21, 2026
"So we're just really trying to get inspired by the technology, a bit like China did with the German car industry."
From Barron's • May 21, 2026
He was almost destroyed by the statues that inspired him.
From "The Mona Lisa Vanishes" by Nicholas Day
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.
