idolatry

American  

[ahy-dol-uh-tree] / aɪˈdɒl ə tri /

noun

plural

idolatries

1. the religious worship of idols.

2. excessive or blind adoration, reverence, devotion, etc.

   Synonyms:

   mania, madness, obsession

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idolatry British  

/ aɪˈdɒlətrɪ /

noun

1. the worship of idols

2. great devotion or reverence

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Usage

What does idolatry mean? Idolatry is the worship of an idol or idols—objects or images, such as statues, that are worshipped as the representations of deities or gods. The word idol can also refer to the deity or god that is being worshipped. Idolatry is sometimes called idol worship and the people who worship idols can be called idolaters. The adjective idolatrous can be used to describe idolaters or their practices. This sense of idolatry and its related terms are typically used in a negative, judgmental way, implying that the god that the idol represents is not actually real and that such idolatry is wrong or sinful. In this way, an idol is sometimes called a false idol. A well-known example of idolatry mentioned in a story in the Bible involves a statue of a golden calf that the Israelites were said to have made while Moses was away receiving the Ten Commandments (which prohibit idolatry and the worship of “graven images”). Sometimes, idol is used in a metaphorical way to compare something to an object of religious devotion and worship, and such devotion can also be called idolatry, as in The endless pursuit of wealth is a form of idolatry. This sense of the word is also used in a critical way. Idol is also commonly used in a figurative way to refer to a person, especially a famous celebrity such as a pop singer, whom someone treats with extreme admiration and devotion. The word sometimes implies that such devotion is excessive, likening it to religious worship. The word idolatry can be used to refer to this kind of fandom, but it is much more commonly used in a religious context. Example: Most people don’t bow down before statues, but they engage in other forms of idolatry, like an obsession with material possessions.

Other Word Forms

• idolater noun
• idolatress noun
• idolatrous adjective
• idolatrously adverb
• idolatrousness noun
• self-idolatry noun

Etymology

Origin of idolatry

1200–50; Middle English idolatrie < Medieval Latin īdōlatrīa, by haplology from Late Latin īdōlolatrīa Greek (NT) eidōlolatreía. See idol, -latry

Explanation

Idolatry means the worship of images as if they were gods. Many religions prohibit idolatry, some even to the extent of forbidding any representational objects in houses of worship. Idol sits at the head of the word idolatry. If you worship — or even just look up to — a person or a thing, you are said to idolize them. For some modern idolaters, money is their idol, while for others it is celebrities, and for still others their jobs.

Example Sentences

“Enough of the idolatry of self and money! Enough of the display of power! Enough of war,” the pope said during a prayer service in St. Peter’s Basilica.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 12, 2026

He then issued a religious edict, or fatwa, that allowed image-making and the depiction of living beings for scientific and educational purposes, so long as it did not lead to idolatry.

From New York Times • Dec. 14, 2023

Anyone speaking of Kissinger’s sincerity will forgive me if I do not indulge in such idolatry.

From Salon • Dec. 1, 2023

I was stunned by Ryan Kartje’s slobbering idolatry of Caleb Williams.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 17, 2022

She must have looked into our eyes and seen the shining idolatry there and understood that she was trapped.

From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck

Related Words

• adulation