Dictionary

lionize en · VERB

Pronunciation

• (US) audio
• lī'-ə-nīz
• /ˈlaɪənaɪz/

Etymology

Etymology tree English lion Proto-Indo-European *-id- Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-idyéti Proto-Hellenic *-íd͏̌d͏̌ō Ancient Greek -ῐ́ζω (-ĭ́zō)bor. Late Latin -izōder. Middle French -iserbor. Middle English -isen English -ize English lionize From lion + -ize.

Meanings

1. (British, English, Oxford, US, transitive) To treat (a person) as if they were important, or a celebrity.
   • He [Li Wenliang] died of COVID-19 in February, lionized by the Chinese public as a hero and whistleblower. 2021 June 3, Katherine Eban, “The Lab-Leak Theory: Inside the Fight to Uncover COVID-19’s Origins”, in Vanity Fair, archived from the original on 05 Jun 2021:
   • Flare-riding is one of the most exotic and exhilarating sports in existence, and those who can dare and afford to do it are amongst the most lionized men in the Galaxy. 1980 October, Douglas Adams, chapter 18, in The Restaurant at the End of the Universe, London: Pan Books, →ISBN, page 106:
   • In early March, a person who had a history of posting Nazi imagery shared a 21-second video lionizing Juraj Krajčík. The clip shows one of his victims lying dead on the pavement. 2025 March 15, A.C. Thompson, James Bandler, “The Rise and Fall of Terrorgram: Inside a Global Online Hate Network”, in ProPublica, archived from the original on 22 Apr 2025:
   • The liberal justices lionized Kennedy and other conservatives for refusing to overturn Roe v Wade out of the need they cited in Casey to maintain the supreme court’s image. 2025 December 19, Ryan Doerfler, Samuel Moyn, “It’s time to accept that the US supreme court is illegitimate and must be replaced”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 19 Dec 2025:
2. (British, English, Oxford, US, transitive) To visit (a famous place) in order to revere it.

Forms

Deriveds

lionization · unlionized · lionizer · lionizable

Translations (2)

mi whakarangatira (to treat a person as important or as a celebrity) · gl adorar (to treat a person as important or as a celebrity)