Click here for Merriam-Webster definition of "Venerate".
I guess the dictionary is wrong when suggesting synonyms for "venerate". I do not despise or advocate dishonoring Mary. She's just not to be elevated to where some wish to place here.
The language of the Catholic Church is Latin which preceded English by some 2,000 years. It doesn’t matter what Daniel Webster thinks it means, only what the Catholic Church says it means. I believe the Latin term is “dulia” which specifically means reverence to saints and angels and definitely NOT worship.
adore, deify, glorify, revere, reverence, worship