as in worship
excessive admiration of or devotion to a person
the instant deification by the press of the country's newest war hero
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of deification
The deification of emperors was fairly standard practice at the time, and the spoof claimed to lift the lid on what really happened during the process.
—
Mary Beard, The New Yorker, 26 June 2023
Bookstores still held their ground here among the shopfronts, and the deification of French writers living and dead was evinced everywhere in street names and statues and advertising hoardings for new novels.
—Rachel Cusk, New York Times, 2 May 2023
Our work points to a biological explanation for the deification of the species.
—Nathaniel J. Dominy, Scientific American, 1 Nov. 2021
There’s a deification of this absence.
—Amanda Petrusich, The New Yorker, 23 Mar. 2023
See all Example Sentences for deification 
Mary Beard, The New Yorker, 26 June 2023
Bookstores still held their ground here among the shopfronts, and the deification of French writers living and dead was evinced everywhere in street names and statues and advertising hoardings for new novels.
—Rachel Cusk, New York Times, 2 May 2023
Our work points to a biological explanation for the deification of the species.
—Nathaniel J. Dominy, Scientific American, 1 Nov. 2021
There’s a deification of this absence.
—Amanda Petrusich, The New Yorker, 23 Mar. 2023
See all Example Sentences for deification
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deification
Noun
-
Visiting a mosque is not unlike visiting a cathedral, a synagogue, or any other place of worship.—
Kaitlyn McInnis,
Forbes,
21 Jan. 2025
-
So are schools, supermarkets and houses of worship.—
Alexis Soloski,
New York Times,
17 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
The couple can't get enough of their cute pups, Jesse and Fable, and now have one more way to showcase their adoration in addition to posting paw-fect selfies to social media — and that's with custom sweaters featuring pictures of their dogs on them!—
Michelle Lee,
People.com,
20 Jan. 2025
-
Betty White's sweet, ever-cheery Rose — a role that snagged her an Emmy Award in 1986 — may not have all the zingers on The Golden Girls, but her rants and tangents draw priceless looks from her housemates and adoration from viewers.—
Margaret Lyons,
EW.com,
17 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
But as a Christian, the bigger threat in the U.S. now seems to be Evangelical idolatry—this tendency of many Christians to turn a political candidate into an idol, particularly one who has proven himself so thoroughly unfit as Donald Trump.—
Donovan McAbee,
TIME,
28 Oct. 2024
-
People begin drifting to certain games or consoles, staring intently at a wall of idolatry.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
27 Sep. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near deification
Cite this Entry
“Deification.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deification. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share