Aspire

//əˈspaɪɚ// verb

verb ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Verb
  1. 1
    To have a strong desire or ambition to achieve something. intransitive

    "to aspire to / for / after / to do something; to aspire that something happens"

  2. 2
    have an ambitious plan or a lofty goal wordnet
  3. 3
    To go as high as, to reach the top of (something). obsolete, transitive

    "Thus ſhall my heart be ſtil combinde with thine, / Untill our bodies turne to Elements: / And both our ſoules aſpire celeſtiall thrones."

  4. 4
    To move upward; to be very tall. archaic, intransitive, literary, transitive

    "In midſt of which a ſumptuous Temple ſtands, / That threats the ſtarres with her aſpiring toppe."

Synonyms

All synonyms
ascendaimaimaim ataim higharise

Example

More examples

"The basic question is, what vision do you aspire to?"

Etymology

From Middle English aspiren, from Old French aspirer, from Latin aspīrō (“breathe on; approach; desire”).

More for "aspire"

SynonymsSentencesPronunciationTranslate

Next best steps

Find stronger synonymsSee usage examplesCheck pronunciationBrowse writing guides

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.