inspire

Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
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See also: inspiré and inspirē

English[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Middle English inspiren, enspiren, from Old French inspirer, variant of espirer, from Latin īnspīrāre, present active infinitive of īnspīrō (“inspire”), itself a loan-translation of Biblical Ancient Greek πνέω (pnéō, “breathe”), from in + spīrō (“breathe”).

Pronunciation[edit]

Verb[edit]

inspire (third-person singular simple present inspires, present participle inspiring, simple past and past participle inspired)

  1. (transitive) To infuse into the mind; to communicate to the spirit; to convey, as by a divine or supernatural influence; to disclose preternaturally; to produce in, as by inspiration.
    • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], OCLC 964384981, Wisdom 15:11:
      He knew not his Maker, and him that inspired into him an active soul.
    • c. 1588-1593, William Shakespeare, Titus Andronicus
      Dawning day new comfort hath inspired.
    • 2012 March-April, Anna Lena Phillips, “Sneaky Silk Moths”, in American Scientist‎[1], volume 100, number 2, page 172:
      Last spring, the periodical cicadas emerged across eastern North America. Their vast numbers and short above-ground life spans inspired awe and irritation in humans—and made for good meals for birds and small mammals.
  2. (transitive) To infuse into; to affect, as with a superior or supernatural influence; to fill with what animates, enlivens or exalts; to communicate inspiration to.
    Elders should inspire children with sentiments of virtue.
    • 1697, “The Seventh Book of the Æneis”, in John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], OCLC 403869432:
      Erato, thy poet's mind inspire, / And fill his soul with thy celestial fire.
  3. (intransitive) To draw in by the operation of breathing; to inhale.
    • c. 1670, Gideon Harvey, Morbus Anglicus", Or a Theoretick and Practical Discourse of Consumptions and Hypochondriack Melancholy... Likewise a Discourse of Spitting of Blood
      By means of those sulfurous coal smokes the lungs are as it were stifled and extremely oppressed, whereby they are forced to inspire and expire the air with difficulty.
  4. To infuse by breathing, or as if by breathing.
  5. (archaic, transitive) To breathe into; to fill with the breath; to animate.
    • 1708, Alexander Pope, Ode for Music on St Cecilia's Day:
      Descend, ye Nine, descend and sing, / The breathing instruments inspire.
  6. (transitive) To spread rumour indirectly.
Conjugation[edit]
conjugation of inspire
infinitive inspire
present participle inspiring
past participle inspired
simple progressive perfect perfect progressive
present I inspire we inspire I am inspiring we are inspiring I have inspired we have inspired I have been inspiring we have been inspiring
you inspire you inspire you are inspiring you are inspiring you have inspired you have inspired you have been inspiring you have been inspiring
he inspires they inspire he is inspiring they are inspiring he has inspired they have inspired he has been inspiring they have been inspiring
past I inspired we inspired I was inspiring we were inspiring I had inspired we had inspired I had been inspiring we had been inspiring
you inspired you inspired you were inspiring you were inspiring you had inspired you had inspired you had been inspiring you had been inspiring
he inspired they inspired he was inspiring they were inspiring he had inspired they had inspired he had been inspiring they had been inspiring
future I will inspire we will inspire I will be inspiring we will be inspiring I will have inspired we will have inspired I will have been inspiring we will have been inspiring
you will inspire you will inspire you will be inspiring you will be inspiring you will have inspired you will have inspired you will have been inspiring you will have been inspiring
he will inspire they will inspire he will be inspiring they will be inspiring he will have inspired they will have inspired he will have been inspiring they will have been inspiring
conditional I would inspire we would inspire I would be inspiring we would be inspiring I would have inspired we would have inspired I would have been inspiring we would have been inspiring
you would inspire you would inspire you would be inspiring you would be inspiring you would have inspired you would have inspired you would have been inspiring you would have been inspiring
he would inspire they would inspire he would be inspiring they would be inspiring he would have inspired they would have inspired he would have been inspiring they would have been inspiring
imperative inspire

Synonyms[edit]

Antonyms[edit]

Derived terms[edit]

Related terms[edit]

Translations[edit]

to inhale — see inhale
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

Anagrams[edit]

Asturian[edit]

Verb[edit]

inspire

  1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive of inspirar

French[edit]

Verb[edit]

inspire

  1. inflection of inspirer:
    1. first/third-person singular present indicative/subjunctive
    2. second-person singular imperative

Portuguese[edit]

Verb[edit]

inspire

  1. First-person singular (eu) present subjunctive of inspirar
  2. Third-person singular (ele, ela, also used with tu and você?) present subjunctive of inspirar
  3. Third-person singular (você) affirmative imperative of inspirar
  4. Third-person singular (você) negative imperative of inspirar

Romanian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Verb[edit]

inspire

  1. third-person singular present subjunctive of inspira
  2. third-person plural present subjunctive of inspira

Spanish[edit]

Verb[edit]

inspire

  1. First-person singular (yo) present subjunctive form of inspirar.
  2. Formal second-person singular (usted) present subjunctive form of inspirar.
  3. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted?) present subjunctive form of inspirar.
  4. Formal second-person singular (usted) imperative form of inspirar.
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