Meaning & use
fervent
Last updated
Meaning
adjectivecomparable
Full of sincere, strong feeling, especially when someone believes in something or hopes for it very much.
Grammar: Usually before a noun: a fervent supporter.
Patterns
- a fervent believer in something
- fervent hope
She is a fervent supporter of local libraries.
He offered a fervent prayer for his sister's recovery.
The speech drew fervent applause from the crowd.
Word forms
| comparative | more fervent |
|---|---|
| superlative | most fervent |
Common combinations
- fervent supporter
- He remained a fervent supporter of the club through every losing season.
- fervent belief
- Her fervent belief in fairness shaped her career.
- fervent hope
- It is our fervent hope that the rescue succeeds.
- fervent plea
- The mayor made a fervent plea for calm.
- fervent admirer
- She was a fervent admirer of his poetry.
Synonyms and how they differ
- passionate
- Passionate is more common and can mean emotional or romantic, while fervent sounds more formal and suggests deep conviction.
- ardent
- Ardent is close in meaning but leans toward warm devotion, often to a person or a cause.
- zealous
- Zealous implies energetic, sometimes excessive, effort for a cause, while fervent concerns the feeling itself.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: fervent or fervid?
fervent vs fervid
Fervid is a near-synonym that often suggests feverish or excessive intensity, while fervent is usually admiring.
Practice
Which phrase best describes someone who believes in a cause very sincerely?
Choose one answer.
Fervent means sincerely and intensely felt. Hesitant and distant suggest weak commitment, and fragile does not describe belief.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “fervent”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.