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Featured Word -- in⋅spire

with some uses in writing & poetry

in⋅spire
[in-spahyuhr]  verb, -spired, -spir⋅ing.
 
–verb (used with object)
 
- 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 communicate or suggest by a divine or supernatural influence:  writings inspired by God.
 
- to guide or control by divine influence.
 
- 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.
 
–verb (used without object)
- to give inspiration.
- to inhale.
 
 
Origin:
1300–50; ME inspiren < L inspīrāre to breathe upon or into, equiv. to in- + spīrāre to breathe
 
 
in⋅spir⋅a⋅tive - adjective
in⋅spir⋅er - noun
in⋅spir⋅ing⋅ly - adverb
 
Random House Dictionary, 2009
 
 
 
 ***   ***   ***   ***
 
* To affect, guide, or arouse by divine influence.
 
* To fill with enlivening or exalting emotion: hymns that inspire the congregation; an artist who was inspired by Impressionism.
 
* To draw forth; elicit or arouse: a teacher who inspired admiration and respect.
 
* To be the cause or source of; bring about: an invention that inspired many imitations.
 
Archaic:
To breathe on.
To breathe life into.
 
Origin:
 [Middle English enspiren, from Old French enspirer, from Latin īnspīrāre : in-, into; see in-2 + spīrāre, to breathe.]
 
in·spir'er - noun
 
The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 2006
 



Word Of The Day

from www.dictionary.com

 





 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ***   ***   ***   ***
 
inspire - verb
- to be the origin or source of a poetic or artistic idea
  Example:  An incident in his childhood inspired the poem.
 
 
To breathe into; to fill with the breath; to animate:
 
When Zephirus eek, with his sweete breath, Inspir[`e]d hath in every holt and health The tender crops.  Chaucer.
 
Descend, ye Nine, descend and sing, The breathing instruments inspire.  Pope.
 
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:
 
And generous stout courage did inspire.  Spenser.
 
But dawning day new comfort hath inspired.  Shakespeare
 
Erato, thy poet's mind inspire, And fill his soul with thy celestial fire.  Dryden.
 
And when the wind amongst them did inspire, They wav[`e]d like a penon wide dispread.  Spenser.
 
Some translations:
Czech:  inspirovat
Danish:  inspirere
French:  inspirer
German:  anregen
Italian:  ispirare
Norwegian:  inspirere
Portuguese:  inspirar
Romanian:  a inspira
Spanish:  inspirar
Swedish:  inspirera