Dictionary

antihero en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• (US) audio
• (Australia) audio
• /ˈæn.tɪˌhɪə.ɹəʊ/ (UK)
• /ˈænˌtaɪ.hiɹ.oʊ/ (US)
• /ˈæn.tiˌhiɹ.oʊ/ (US)
• (US) audio

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂ent- Proto-Indo-European *-s Proto-Indo-European *h₂énts Proto-Indo-European *-i Proto-Indo-European *h₂énti Ancient Greek ᾰ̓ντῐ́ (ăntĭ́) Ancient Greek ἀντι- (anti-)der. English anti- English hero English antihero From anti- + hero.

Meanings

1. (qualifier:roleplaying games) A protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner, such as by criminal means, via cowardly actions, or for mercenary goals.
   • JK Rowling says that “girls are very apt to romanticise” the antihero, and reveals that she had been forced to pour “cold common sense” on the startling number of readers who fall for the arrogant, unscrupulous bully Draco Malfoy in her Harry Potter books. 2014 December 22, Alison Flood, “JK Rowling ‘unnerved’ by girls who fall for Hogwarts bully Draco Malfoy”, in The Guardian, →ISSN, archived from the original on 25 Mar 2016:
   • The Deadpool fly is a species of Robber fly, which are “assassins of the insect world” – fitting for the mercenary antihero. 2020 July 29, Jessie Yeung, “Australia names new species after Deadpool, Thor, and other Marvel favorites”, in CNN, archived from the original on 22 Apr 2022:
   • The latest act in the Madness of King Donald drama playing globally on every channel underlined the increasingly delusional world the anti-hero inhabits, his fantasies fed and indulged by a cast of sycophants, lackeys and straight grifters, all in it for what they can get. 2026 January 24, Michael Pascoe, “America’s mighty economic power has feet of clay”, in Michael West Media, archived from the original on 04 Mar 2026:
   • Alienation: A stage on the downside of the passage wherein the holdfast and the antihero take actions which bring about a disintegration of personality. 2006, James Bonnet, Stealing Fire from the Gods: The Complete Guide to Story for Writers and Filmmakers:
   • Fictional male antiheroes like television’s crime patriarchs Tony Soprano and Walter White have reigned for some time, but the antiheroine has only more recently had the opportunity to rise up – and become the cause of her own downfall. […] Grayson serves as an archetype for a female antihero not driven by much except for her own ambition, and she’s quite fine with that. 2021 August 11, Jacqui Palumbo, “Rosamund Pike in ‘I Care a Lot’ and six more recommendations if you love an antiheroine”, in CNN, archived from the original on 16 Jul 2022:

Forms

Deriveds

antiheroic · antiheroics · antiheroine · antiheroism

Relateds

counterhero · false protagonist · anti-villain · false hero

Synonyms

unhero

Translations (62)

fr antihéros (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · fa ناقهرمان (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · af antiheld (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · ta எதிரானவீரன் (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · ca antiheroi (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · ja ダークヒーロー (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · mk антихерои́на (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · et antikangelane (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · ko 반영웅 (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · io antiheroo (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · fa ضدقهرمان (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · nl antiheld (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · lv antivaronis (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · eo kontraŭheroo (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · be антыгерой (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · tr antikahraman (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · tl kontrabida (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · no antihelt (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · ar بطلة مزيفة (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · eu antiheroi (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · la antiheros (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · ta ஆண்டிஹீரோ (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · hy հակահերոս (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · cs antihrdina (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · pl antybohaterka (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · ro antierou (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · gl antiheroe (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · it antieroe (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · ja アンチヒーロー (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · ga frith-laoch (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · sw shujaa hasi (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · ja 反英雄 (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · kmr antîleheng (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · kk анти-қаһарман (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · mk антихе́рој (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · fi antisankari (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · ga ana-laoch (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · ur انٹی ہیرو (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · tl kontrabayani (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · de Antiheld (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · uk антигеро́й (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · gd ana-gaisgeach (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · ru антигеро́й (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · el αντιήρωας (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · es antihéroe (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · vi phản anh hùng (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · ro erou negativ (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · sq antiheroi (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · fr anti-héros (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · cmn 反英雄 (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · nl antiheldin (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · bn অ-নায়কোচিত নায়ক (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · sw shujaa wa upande wa mbaya (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · ar بطل مزيف (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · sv antihjälte (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · pl antybohater (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · pt anti-herói (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · lt antiherojus (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · fi pahis (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · kk антиқаһарман (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · bg антигеро́й (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner) · la contra heros (protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner)

wikipedia: A Clockwork Orange (novel) · wikipedia: Walter White (Breaking Bad) · wikipedia: Don Quixote (character) · wikipedia: DC Comics · wikipedia: Batman · wikipedia: Dollars Trilogy · wikipedia: Kratos (God of War) · wikipedia: Prince Hamlet · wikipedia: Image Comics · wikipedia: Deadpool · wikipedia: Spawn (character) · wikipedia: Hamlet · wikipedia: God of War (franchise) · wikipedia: Punisher · wikipedia: Han Solo · wikipedia: Alex (A Clockwork Orange) · wikipedia: Man with No Name · wikipedia: Don Quixote · wikipedia: Marvel Comics · wikipedia: Breaking Bad · wikipedia: Star Wars