hagiography

noun

ha·gi·og·ra·phy ˌha-gē-ˈä-grə-fē

ˌhā-,

-jē-

Synonyms of hagiography next

: biography of saints or venerated persons

: idealizing or idolizing biography

an account that smacks of hagiography

Did you know?

Like biography and autograph, the word hagiography has to do with the written word. The combining form -graphy comes from Greek graphein, meaning "to write." Hagio- comes from a Greek word that means "saintly" or "holy." This origin is seen in Hagiographa, the Greek designation of the Ketuvim, the third part of the Jewish Scriptures. English's hagiography, though it can refer to biography of actual saints, is these days more often applied to biography that treats ordinary human subjects as if they were saints.

Examples of hagiography in a Sentence

a hagiography about a famous politician The book gives a good idea of his virtues without resorting to hagiography.

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Advertisement That story is neither hagiography nor hit job. —

Stuart Miller, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2024 This dramatization of John F. Kennedy’s heroics during World War II was accused of hagiography when it was released, five months before Kennedy was shot in Dallas. —

Will Leitch, Vulture, 13 Oct. 2024 Concert movies, especially ones like this that are essentially authorized by the artists, often skirt hagiography. —

Peter Rainer, The Christian Science Monitor, 24 Oct. 2024 Her subjects are just people on the day that will be their last; this is not hagiography. —

Gal Beckerman, The Atlantic, 7 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for hagiography