Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Veneration

Veneration , noun

[Latin veneratio: compare French vénération.]

The act of venerating, or the state of being venerated; the highest degree of respect and reverence; respect mingled with awe; a feeling or sentiment excited by the dignity, wisdom, or superiority of a person, by sacredness of character, by consecration to sacred services, or by hallowed associations.
We find a secret awe and veneration for one who moves about us in a regular and illustrious course of virtue. — Addison