admire to like someone because they have achieved something special, or they have skills or qualities that you would like to have:
I admire your courage. She admired him for the way he dealt with the situation.respect to have a good opinion of someone, even if you do not agree with them, for example because they have achieved a lot or have high standards:
She is respected by all her colleagues at the university. She’s an actor who is not prepared to compromise, and her audience loves and respects her for that.revere /rɪˈvɪə $ -ˈvɪr/
formal to greatly admire someone because of their achievements and personal qualities, especially someone famous:
Mandela is revered as one of the great leaders of our time.look up to somebody to admire someone who is older or who has more experience than you:
All the young comedians look up to him.think highly of somebody to think that someone is good at what they do:
His teachers seem to think very highly of him.idolize to admire someone so much that you think they are perfect – used especially about famous people or people in your family:
He idolized his brother. Jane grew up idolizing Princess Diana.hero-worship to admire someone a lot and want to be like them – often used when this seems unreasonable or extreme:
She hero-worshipped John to such an extent that she was blind to his faults. [TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲