inspired

[ in-spahyuh rd ]

/ ɪnˈspaɪərd /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR inspired ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

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.

Nearby words

inspiratory, inspiratory capacity, inspiratory reserve volume, inspiratory stridor, inspire, inspired, inspired gas, inspirit, inspissate, inspo, inst.

Origin of inspired

late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; see origin at inspire, -ed²

Related forms

in·spir·ed·ly

[in-spahy-rid-lee, -spahyuh rd-] /ɪnˈspaɪ rɪd li, -ˈspaɪərd-/, adverb

Definition for inspired (2 of 2)

inspire

[ in-spahyuh r ]

/ ɪnˈspaɪər /

verb (used with object), in·spired, in·spir·ing.

to fill with an animating, quickening, or exalting influence: His courage inspired his followers.

to produce or arouse (a feeling, thought, etc.): to inspire confidence in others.

to fill or affect with a specified feeling, thought, etc.: to inspire a person with distrust.

to influence or impel: Competition inspired her to greater efforts.

to animate, as an influence, feeling, thought, or the like, does: They were inspired by a belief in a better future.

to communicate or suggest by a divine or supernatural influence: writings inspired by God.

to guide or control by divine influence.

to prompt or instigate (utterances, acts, etc.) by influence, without avowal of responsibility.

to give rise to, bring about, cause, etc.: a philosophy that inspired a revolution.

to take (air, gases, etc.) into the lungs in breathing; inhale.

Archaic.

to infuse (breath, life, etc.) by breathing (usually followed by into).
to breathe into or upon.

verb (used without object), in·spired, in·spir·ing.

to give inspiration.

to inhale.

Origin of inspire

1300–50; Middle English inspiren < Latin inspīrāre to breathe upon or into, equivalent to in- in-² + spīrāre to breathe

Related forms

in·spir·a·tive

[in-spahyuh r-uh-tiv, in-spi-rey-tiv] /ɪnˈspaɪər ə tɪv, ˈɪn spɪˌreɪ tɪv/, adjectivein·spir·er, nounin·spir·ing·ly, adverbpre·in·spire, verb (used with object), pre·in·spired, pre·in·spir·ing.

pseu·do·in·spir·ing, adjectivere·in·spire, verb, re·in·spired, re·in·spir·ing.un·in·spir·ing, adjectiveun·in·spir·ing·ly, adverb

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

Examples from the Web for inspired

None of these, though, has inspired quite the same backlash as fluoride.
Anti-Fluoriders Are The OG Anti-Vaxxers|Michael Schulson|July 27, 2016|DAILY BEAST
We take enough time off in between so that our batteries get recharged and we get inspired again.
Coffee Talk with Fred Armisen: On ‘Portlandia,’ Meeting Obama, and Taylor Swift’s Greatness|Marlow Stern|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Seeing what they were doing, I was inspired to add my vision to their technique.
The Photographer Who Gave Up Manhattan for Marrakech|Liza Foreman|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
An 18-year-old Swedish rapper/Internet meme has inspired legions of impressionable teens to get based in bucket hats.
The Cult of Yung Lean: ‘I’m Building An Anarchistic Society From the Ground Up’|Marlow Stern|January 4, 2015|DAILY BEAST

Asprey was inspired to swap out butter for traditional coffee creamers while on a trip to Nepal.
Bulletproof Coffee and the Case for Butter as a Health Food|DailyBurn|December 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Cassiodorus, with a noble enthusiasm, inspired his monks to their task.
A Short History of Monks and Monasteries|Alfred Wesley Wishart
But Daniel, a spiritual (inspired) man, explained it in spiritual language and then all could understand it.
The Spirit and the Word|Zachary Taylor Sweeney
His ambition and his simple personal successes had formerly distracted him from the sentiments which madame de Rnal had inspired.
The Red and the Black|Stendhal
Hayne's work is even less important, for he did not, like Timrod and Lanier, touch an occasional height of inspired utterance.
American Men of Mind|Burton E. Stevenson
And indeed this seems to be the meaning of the inspired writer.
The Mosaic History of the Creation of the World|Thomas Wood

British Dictionary definitions for inspired (1 of 2)

inspired

/ (ɪnˈspaɪəd) /

adjective

aroused or guided by or as if aroused or guided by divine inspirationan inspired performance; she was like one inspired

extremely accurate or apt but based on intuition rather than knowledge or logical deductionan inspired guess

British Dictionary definitions for inspired (2 of 2)

inspire

/ (ɪnˈspaɪə) /

verb

to exert a stimulating or beneficial effect upon (a person); animate or invigorate

(tr; foll by with or to; may take an infinitive) to arouse (with a particular emotion or to a particular action); stir

(tr) to prompt or instigate; give rise toher beauty inspired his love

(tr; often passive) to guide or arouse by divine influence or inspiration

to take or draw (air, gas, etc) into the lungs; inhale

(tr) archaic

to breathe into or upon
to breathe life into

Derived Forms

inspirable, adjectiveinspirative, adjectiveinspirer, nouninspiringly, adverb

Word Origin for inspire

C14 (in the sense: to breathe upon, blow into): from Latin inspīrāre, from spīrāre to breathe

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

inspired

adjective

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Nearby words

Origin of inspired

Related forms

Definition for inspired (2 of 2)

inspire

verb (used with object), in·spired, in·spir·ing.

verb (used without object), in·spired, in·spir·ing.

Origin of inspire

Related forms

Examples from the Web for inspired

British Dictionary definitions for inspired (1 of 2)

inspired

adjective

British Dictionary definitions for inspired (2 of 2)

inspire

verb

Derived Forms

Word Origin for inspire

Medicine definitions for inspired

inspire

v.