Walk about certain to be highly esteemed (9)

I believe the answer is:

treasured

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'highly esteemed' is the definition.
'treasured' can be an answer for 'esteemed' (thesaurus). I'm not certain of the 'highly' bit.

'walk about certain' is the wordplay.
'walk' becomes 'tread' (treading is a kind of walking).
'about' indicates putting letters inside.
'certain' becomes 'sure' (synonyms).
'tread' placed around 'sure' is 'TREASURED'.

'to be' acts as a link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for treasured that I've seen before include "Cherished, precious" , "Valuable" , "thought highly of" , "Much-valued" , "Valued" .)

I've seen this clue in The Globe and Mail.

Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.