hero worship

¹

noun

1. a profound reverence for great people or their memory.

2. extravagant or excessive admiration for a personal hero.

hero-worship

²

[heer-oh-wur-ship]

verb (used with object)

hero-worshiped, hero-worshiping , hero-worshipped, hero-worshipping .

1. to feel or express hero worship for.

hero worship

noun

1. admiration for heroes or idealized persons

2. worship by the ancient Greeks and Romans of heroes

verb

1. (tr) to feel admiration or adulation for

Other Word Forms

• hero-worshipper noun
• hero-worshiper noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of hero worship¹

First recorded in 1765–75

Origin of hero worship²

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

The Emergency was also a stark warning against the perils of hero worship - something embodied in the towering political persona of Indira Gandhi.

From BBC

But maybe Cohn just wants to bask in Trump’s sycophantic hero worship of him?

From Salon

A fitting coda to a childish slog of hero worship.

From Los Angeles Times

Herbert wrote about his distrust — hatred, even — of hero worship and how it influenced Dune for the July 1980 issue of Omni Magazine.

From Seattle Times

“My intention throughout,” he writes, “has been to avoid hagiography and hero worship, telling Lewis’s full story with all its ups and downs intact.”

From Seattle Times