Inspire \In*spire"\ ([i^]n*sp[imac]r"), v. t. [OE. enspiren, OF.
enspirer, inspirer, F. inspirer, fr. L. inspirare; pref. in-
in + spirare to breathe. See Spirit.]
[1913 Webster]
1. To breathe into; to fill with the breath; to animate.
[1913 Webster]
When Zephirus eek, with his sweete breath,
Inspir[`e]d hath in every holt and heath
The tender crops. --Chaucer.
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Descend, ye Nine, descend and sing,
The breathing instruments inspire. --Pope.
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2. To infuse by breathing, or as if by breathing.
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He knew not his Maker, and him that inspired into
him an active soul. --Wisdom xv.
11.
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3. To draw in by the operation of breathing; to inhale; --
opposed to expire.
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Forced to inspire and expire the air with
difficulty. --Harvey.
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4. 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.
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And generous stout courage did inspire. --Spenser.
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But dawning day new comfort hath inspired. --Shak.
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5. To infuse into; to affect, as with a superior or
supernatural influence; to fill with what animates,
enlivens, or exalts; to communicate inspiration to; as, to
inspire a child with sentiments of virtue; to inspire a
person to do extraordinary feats.
[1913 Webster +PJC]
Erato, thy poet's mind inspire,
And fill his soul with thy celestial fire. --Dryden.
[1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Inspire \In*spire"\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Inspired; p. pr. &
vb. n. Inspiring.]
[1913 Webster]
1. To draw in breath; to inhale air into the lungs; --
opposed to expire.
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2. To breathe; to blow gently. [Obs.]
[1913 Webster]
And when the wind amongst them did inspire,
They wav[`e]d like a penon wide dispread. --Spenser.
[1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
inspire
v 1: heighten or intensify; "These paintings exalt the
imagination" [syn: animate, invigorate, enliven, exalt]
2: supply the inspiration for; "The article about the artist
inspired the exhibition of his recent work"
3: serve as the inciting cause of; "She prompted me to call my
relatives" [syn: prompt, instigate]
4: urge on or encourage especially by shouts; "The crowd
cheered the demonstrating strikers" [syn: cheer, urge,
barrack, urge on, exhort, pep up]
5: fill with revolutionary ideas [syn: revolutionize, revolutionise]
6: draw in (air); "Inhale deeply"; "inhale the fresh mountain
air"; "The patient has trouble inspiring"; "The lung
cancer patient cannot inspire air very well" [syn: inhale,
breathe in] [ant: exhale]
WordNet (r) 2.0
142 Moby Thesaurus words for "inspire":
activate, actuate, affect, affirm, afford hope, animate, arouse,
aspirate, assure, augur well, awaken, bid fair, blow, bolster,
boost, brace up, breathe, breathe hard, breathe in, breathe out,
brighten, bring, bring about, bring on, buck up, buoy up, buttress,
call forth, call up, carry, cause, cheer, confirm, contrive, cough,
draw down, draw in, draw on, effect, elicit, embolden, embue,
encourage, endow, endue, energize, enliven, evoke, exalt, excite,
exhale, exhaust, exhilarate, expel, expire, fire, fortify,
galvanize, gasp, get, give a lift, give hope, gladden, gulp, hack,
have good prospects, hearten, hiccup, hold out hope,
hold out promise, huff, imbue, impress, induce, infect, influence,
inform, infuse, inhale, inject, inoculate, inspire hope, inspirit,
instigate, invigorate, justify hope, kindle, lead, liven,
make fair promise, motivate, move, muster up, nerve, obtain, pant,
pick up, procure, promise, prompt, provoke, puff, quicken,
raise expectations, raise hope, rally, reassure, reinforce,
rejoice, rejoice the heart, respire, rouse, set up, sigh, slurp,
sneeze, sniff, sniffle, snore, snort, snuff, snuff in, snuffle,
spirit, spirit up, stimulate, stir, strengthen, strike, suck,
suck in, suckle, summon up, superinduce, support, sway, touch,
uplift, vitalize, vivify, waken, wheeze
Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0
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