esteem
Americanverb (used with object)
noun
-
favorable opinion or judgment; respect or regard.
to hold a person in esteem.
- Synonyms:
- veneration, reverence, honor, admiration, favor
-
Archaic. opinion or judgment; estimation; valuation.
verb
-
to have great respect or high regard for
to esteem a colleague
-
formal to judge or consider; deem
to esteem an idea improper
noun
-
high regard or respect; good opinion
-
archaic judgment; opinion
Usage
What are other ways to say esteem? If you esteem someone, you hold them in high regard. How is esteem different from appreciate, value, and prize? Find out on Thesaurus.com.
Synonym Usage
See respect.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
have esteemedperfect
-
has esteemedperfect 3rd person singular
-
is esteemingprogressive 3rd person singular
-
has been esteemingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
-
are esteemingprogressive
-
esteemingparticiple
-
am esteemingprogressive 1st person singular
-
esteemssingular 3rd person
-
have been esteemingperfect progressive
Past
-
had esteemedperfect
-
was esteemingprogressive singular
-
had been esteemingperfect progressive
-
esteemedsimple
-
esteemedparticiple
-
were esteemingprogressive plural
Future
Etymology
Origin of esteem
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English estemen, from Middle French estimer, from Latin aestimāre “to fix the value of”
Explanation
Esteem is all about respect and admiration. If you have high self-esteem, it means you like yourself. When you say, "My esteemed colleagues," you are saying you have nothing but the highest respect for them. Esteem derives from the same Latin word that gives us estimate, and back in the day, esteem, like estimate meant "to assess, or judge the value of something." That sense lingers today. When you say you hold someone in high esteem, it means you give them a high value. Unless you're a politician, in which case, when you say, "I hold my opponent in high esteem," you are most likely to follow that statement with a big "But...."
Vocabulary lists containing esteem
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Things Fall Apart
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A French speaker, Leo had expressed on various occasions "the great esteem in which he holds our country and her spiritual history", Aveline said earlier in May.
From Barron's • May 16, 2026
Most countries hold us in remarkably lower esteem today than they did a year ago.
From Slate • Apr. 22, 2026
Not too long ago, “Bridgerton” was held in the highest esteem in the meeting place between TV fantasy and drab reality.
From Salon • Mar. 4, 2026
Such esteem should not come as a surprise.
From BBC • Feb. 7, 2026
“How do you manage to keep up on so many diseases like that?” he inquired with high professional esteem.
From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
