1
as in to adore
to love or admire too much
people who hero-worship celebrities are setting themselves up for disappointment
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to overpraise
to praise too much
a golfing pro who is hero-worshipped by hordes of weekend duffers
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in worship
excessive admiration of or devotion to a person
once the object of uncritical hero worship, the aging quarterback now faces the derision of his team's fickle fans
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hero-worship
Georg Szalai, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 Mar. 2025
The film’s gaze is arguably as mocking as it is dazzled — with the macho posturing and hero-worship of Roca Rey a tacit source of comedy — while Serra, living up to his reputation for challenging arthouse fare, doesn’t flinch in his presentation of animal abuse and suffering.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 28 Sep. 2024
Charles Pulliam-Moore, The Verge, 4 Oct. 2024
Folie à Deux has much to say about the state of society and questionable hero worship in the name of keeping the masses entertained in a TMZ era.
—Pete Hammond, Deadline, 20 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for hero-worship
Verb
Machismo is another one of these elements as the doc repeatedly shows a star matador and his hero-worshipping entourage.
—Georg Szalai, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 Mar. 2025
The film’s gaze is arguably as mocking as it is dazzled — with the macho posturing and hero-worship of Roca Rey a tacit source of comedy — while Serra, living up to his reputation for challenging arthouse fare, doesn’t flinch in his presentation of animal abuse and suffering.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 28 Sep. 2024
Noun
But rather than trying to find more meaning in the Joker’s madness, Folie à Deux brings the metaphorical house lights up to take a much more negatively critical look at its central anti-villain and the culture of hero worship.
—Charles Pulliam-Moore, The Verge, 4 Oct. 2024
Folie à Deux has much to say about the state of society and questionable hero worship in the name of keeping the masses entertained in a TMZ era.
—Pete Hammond, Deadline, 20 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for hero-worship
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hero-worship
Verb
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In front of its adoring crowd, the North London club took a huge step towards the Champions League semifinal by beating Spanish juggernaut Real Madrid 3-0 in its quarterfinal first-leg.—
Ben Church,
CNN Money,
8 Apr. 2025
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His Family Life He’s not just adored onscreen; he’s got a phenomenally close family as well.—
Rachel McRady,
People.com,
8 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Know-nothings pretend that Schrader’s Bressonian mannerisms reveal the spiritual depths of contemporary crisis, when, in fact, Master Gardener repeats the same social-collapse paranoia that made secular reviewers overpraise the religious, racial, suicide-bomber topics of First Reformed.—
Armond White,
National Review,
24 May 2023
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He’s overpraised of course.—
Nick Laird,
The New York Review of Books,
16 Mar. 2023
Noun
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Nearby, southeast of Mandalay, a video captured the collapse of the tower on the Shwe Sar Yan Pagoda, an important Buddhist place of worship, late last week.—
Francesca Aton,
ARTnews.com,
31 Mar. 2025
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For many, the morning congregation is no longer just a sacred moment of worship followed by a quick departure.—
Tiana Randall,
Vogue,
31 Mar. 2025
Verb
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During her years on the show, she became known as a shade queen who liked to twirl (her signature move and catchphrase).—
Kate Aurthur,
Variety,
7 Apr. 2025
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Dan [Fogelman] doesn’t like anybody to be purely evil or purely good.—
Scott Huver,
Deadline,
6 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Participants frequently praise Finland’s egalitarian business culture and efficient decision-making processes.—
Jessica Mendoza,
Forbes.com,
28 Mar. 2025
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Greene deflected and bashed the Biden administration while praising the Trump administration before circling back to the purpose of the news conference.—
Anthony Robledo,
USA Today,
28 Mar. 2025
Noun
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The outpouring from fans this week shows the ongoing adoration around the late singer.—
Nicole Acevedo,
NBC news,
29 Mar. 2025
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The touching display of affection between the dachshunds quickly captured the attention of Instagram users, who flooded the comments with adoration.—
Tommy Tuberville,
Newsweek,
6 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Solomon said retirement is idolized as a wonderful stage in life when officers are expected to be happy while a reckoning is happening in their minds.—
Rosa Flores,
CNN Money,
29 Mar. 2025
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She was later adopted by an Illinois family and grew up idolizing Moceanu.—
Colson Thayer,
People.com,
29 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Samira Nasr, the editor-in-chief of Harper’s Bazaar, warmly congratulated the designer and founder of Fear of God in a manner that felt compelling.—
Robyn Mowatt,
Essence,
8 Apr. 2025
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After the 49ers won the AFC Championship against the Detroit Lions in January 2024, Mindy congratulated her husband in an Instagram reel that featured a montage of herself and their kids on the field.—
Emily Krauser,
People.com,
8 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hero-worship.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hero-worship. Accessed 16 Apr. 2025.
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