admiration
- 01 B1 Intermediate
a feeling of respect and liking for someone because of their qualities or achievements.
a feeling of warm approval, respect, and appreciation for someone or something based on perceived excellence.
Simple“I have a lot of admiration for her courage during the difficult move.”
In context“The young scientist expressed deep admiration for her mentor's commitment to ethical research and rigorous methodology.”
UsageOften used with the preposition 'for' before the object of the emotion.
PitfallI have a big admiration for her work. I have great admiration for her work.In English, we usually use 'great' or 'deep' rather than 'big' to describe strong feelings like admiration.
- 02 C2 Proficiency
a feeling of wonder or surprise at something impressive.
a state of wonder or astonishment, often without the modern connotation of moral approval.
Simple“The travelers looked at the ancient ruins with great admiration.”
In context“In the seventeenth-century text, the author uses 'admiration' to describe the pure shock of seeing the comet, rather than a feeling of respect.”
UsageFound primarily in historical texts or high-register literature.
Synonyms
From Middle English admiracion, borrowed from Middle French admiration, or directly from Latin admīrātiō, from prefix ad- (“to, towards”) + mīrō (“I look at”) + -ātiō. Compare the verb admire, and US dialectal terms miration and mirate.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.