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Synonyms

idealize

American  
[ahy-dee-uh-lahyz] / aɪˈdi əˌlaɪz /
especially British, idealise

verb (used with object)

idealized, idealizing

  1. to make ideal; represent in an ideal form or character; exalt to an ideal perfection or excellence.

verb (used without object)

idealized, idealizing

  1. to represent something in an ideal form.

idealize British  
/ aɪˈdɪəˌlaɪz /

verb

  1. to consider or represent (something) as ideal

  2. (tr) to portray as ideal; glorify

  3. (intr) to form an ideal or ideals

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • idealizer noun
  • overidealize verb
  • unidealized adjective

Etymology

Origin of idealize

First recorded in 1780–90; ideal + -ize

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.