The phrase "a certain esteem" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used to express a specific level of respect or admiration for someone or something, often in a more formal context.
Example: "She held him in a certain esteem for his dedication to the community."
Alternatives: "a particular respect" or "a specific regard".
According to an annual Gallup Poll on professional honesty and ethics, funeral directors already command a certain esteem: 36percentt of Americans polled give them a "very high" or "high" rating.
* * * I'd always assumed, in ignorance, that to survive the atomic bomb — to be a hibakusha, or "explosion-affected person" — was to have conferred upon you a certain esteem or deference, not unlike that afforded to the bearer of a Purple Heart.
In May 1917, the heraldist Paul Gore had written a Russian-language study, "The National colors of the Romanians in Bessarabia", which sought to demonstrate that Bessarabians should use the Romanian tricolor correctly: "A certain esteem for the national past and just a little courage are needed to defend your national legal rights.
Showtime embraced "Masters of Sex" as "an only-in-pay-cable idea," said David Nevins, the network's president for entertainment, and not because it bore a superficial resemblance to a certain esteemed cable drama also set in America's tumultuous mid-20th century.
The dignity of human beings relentlessly prompts us to carry ourselves in a certain esteemed way.
Which is why certain esteemed members of the Tribunal have sought to reprove Christian Marclay for his "pranks," while other members see fit to induct him into the Tribunal itself!
There is still a certain degree of esteem with owning a computer from a boutique manufacture like Voodoo or Alienware.
I still have a certain feeling of self esteem, that I can't accept it, I just don't want it.
It smacked of a certain lack of self-esteem.
None of this had diminished Degel's esteem for a certain President-elect.
But he said that the pattern they found was "also an absolute aspect of an individual's personality," and that the dominant candidates gave off "a certain charisma and confidence and self-esteem in their persona" that came across to people.
