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inspiration.

The drawing of air into the lungs, accomplished in mammals by elevation of the chest walls and flattening of the diaphragm, as part of the act of breathing.

11 characters4 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

noun/ˌɪn.spɪˈɹeɪ.ʃən/Received-Pronunciation/ˌɪn.spɚˈeɪ.ʃən/Canada, General-American/ˌɪn.spəˈɹæɪ.ʃən/Australia
  1. The drawing of air into the lungs, accomplished in mammals by elevation of the chest walls and flattening of the diaphragm, as part of the act of breathing.

    uncountable
  2. A single inward breath (intake of air).

    countable
  3. A supernatural divine influence on the prophets, apostles, or sacred writers, by which they were qualified to communicate moral or religious truth with authority; a supernatural influence which qualifies people to receive and communicate divine truth; also, the truth communicated.

    countable · uncountable
  4. The act or process of an elevating or stimulating influence upon the intellect, emotions or creativity.

    countable · uncountable
    She was waiting for inspiration to write a book.
  5. A person, object, or situation which quickens or stimulates an influence upon the intellect, emotions or creativity.

    countable · uncountable
    The trip was an inspiration to her for writing a book.
  6. A new idea, especially one which arises suddenly and is clever or creative.

    countable · uncountable
Where this word comes from

From Middle English inspiracioun, from Old French inspiration, from Late Latin īnspīrātiōnem (nominative: īnspīrātiō), from Latin īnspīrātus (past participle of inspīrō). By surface analysis, inspire + -ation. Displaced native Old English onbryrdnes (literally “in-pricked-ness”).

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.