inspirare

In inspirare, the Latin verb means “to breathe into” or “to breathe in,” and by extension, to inspire in a broader sense. It has two primary senses: literal inhalation (the act of drawing air into the lungs) and a figurative sense of filling a person with a quality, idea, or influence. The figurative sense is the origin of the modern English verb inspire and the noun inspiration.

Etymology and form: inspirare is formed from in- “into” plus spirare “to breathe,” from the root spir- related to breath. It belongs to the first conjugation of Latin verbs and has the regular set of principal parts used to conjugate it across tenses, voices, and moods.

Usage in Latin: The verb occurs in classical and later Latin to describe breathing into something as well as to denote inspiration in the sense of stimulation or influence. In the passive voice, inspirari means “to be inspired” or “to be breathed into.” The related noun inspiratio denotes the act or result of inspiration, including both physical inhalation and metaphorical influence.

Legacy in modern languages: The Latin term is the etymological source of the English words inspire and inspiration. In medical terminology, inspiratio denotes the act of drawing air into the lungs, while expiratio (or exspiratio) denotes expiration. The Latin distinction between breath as a physical act and breath metaphorically as creative influence influenced the development of related terms in several European languages.