inspiration

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“
The price that the real worshippers pay for their inspiration is the slavering idolatry of the unintelligent; and I withdrew in a mournful wonder from the place, wishing I could set an invisible fence round the scene, a fence which none should pass but the few who had the secret and the key in their hearts.

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Definitions (20)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (7)

  1. noun Stimulation of the mind or emotions to a high level of feeling or activity.
  2. noun The condition of being so stimulated.
  3. noun An agency, such as a person or work of art, that moves the intellect or emotions or prompts action or invention.
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Examples (50)

  • Mr. Grinberg said his inspiration was a book by Vance Packard, "The Status Seekers" (1959), which told how Americans strove to communicate special status amid the general abundance of postwar America. —  Reflector - Latest Headlines from The Daily Reflector
  • And my inspiration is always so different that I can't continue from one of them. —  [Help] Most Recent Posts
  • One nation that Canada might look to for inspiration is Germany, which has made huge strides in terms of renewable energy, and ranks No. 2 on the index. —  Market News
  • That other inspiration was a similar poem by Scottish poet Allan Cunningham (who presumably wrote the glossary Rebello found so useful in translating some of Lee's words). —  MND: Your Daily Dose of Counter-Theory
  • When they changed the name to distinguish themselves from other "Hard Candy" bands, their inspiration was the Dairy Queen. —  Shanghaiist
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Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

Allen's Allen's Synonyms and Antonyms

Used in the same context Used in the Same Context

enthusiasm ·  insight ·  wisdom ·  revelation ·  happiness ·  impulse ·  genius ·  sympathy ·  aspiration ·  vision ·  appreciation ·  eloquence

Used in the same contextWord Family

inspiration:   inspirations
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (1)

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (1)

  1. from Middle English inspiracioun, from Old French (also F.) inspiration = Provencal inspiratio = Spanish inspiracion = Portuguese inspiração = Italian ispirazione, inspirazione, from Late Latin inspiratio(n-), inspiration, from Latin inspirare, inspire: see inspire.
 

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/ɪnspɪˈreɪʃən/
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