Word Comparison | admire vs honor vs respect ，如何分辨？

These three words all translate to “尊敬” in Chinese, but their English meanings and contexts are distinct. We’ll focus on their original English definitions to see how they differ, rather than relying on Chinese translations.
PART Ⅰ
❶admire
English definition : to respect sb for what they have done or to respect their qualities
Key : feel respect for sb’s actions/qualities
Example : I admire her courage.

❷honor
English definition : to show great respect for someone
Key : show respect publicly/through actions
Example : We honor our teachers on Teachers’ Day.

❸respect
English definition : to have a very good opinion of sb/sth; to admire sb/sth
Key : hold a high opinion of sb/sth privately,not publicly
Example : I respect his hard work.

PART Ⅱ
The Real Difference in Simple English
admire =I like and respect what you did or who you are.
honor =I publicly show my great respect to you.
respect =I have a good opinion of you,even if I don’t say it out loud.

PART Ⅲ
Practice Time
1. You should ______ other people’s choices.
2. We all ______ him for saving the cat.
3. The school will ______ the top students at the ceremony.

In short, admire is about feeling respect for someone’s actions or qualities. Honor is about publicly showing great respect to someone. Respect is about holding a positive opinion of someone or something, often without public emphasis. By focusing on these English meanings, you can use these words more precisely and naturally.

Now it’s your turn! Try to write three sentences using ability, capability, and capacity correctly. Share them in the comments below!

答案:1.respect 2.admire 3.honor