Venerable

How to spell venerable

9 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce venerable

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does venerable mean?

1. adjectiveWorthy of deep respect because of age, wisdom, dignity, or long-standing character.

Venerable in a sentence

• The venerable professor had taught at the college for forty years.

• Visitors admired the venerable stone walls of the old abbey.

Where does venerable come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word comes from the Latin venerabilis, meaning 'worthy of reverence,' which was built on the verb venerari, 'to worship, revere, or pay homage to.' That verb in turn traces back to venus, an old Latin noun for love, desire, and charm; the same root gave the goddess Venus her name, so to venerate something was once close to holding it in loving awe. English took the word in during the late 1400s, partly through Old French, with the settled sense of commanding respect through age, dignity, or character. In Christian usage it became a formal title, as in 'the Venerable Bede,' marking a person of holy reputation. The spelling keeps the calm, single-consonant Latin shape, and the tricky part for writers is the unstressed middle: it is vener-A-ble, with that faint schwa, not 'venrable.'

How the word is built

• vener- (from Latin venerari: to revere, worship)
• -able (worthy of)