mythologize

verb

my·​thol·​o·​gize mi-ˈthä-lə-ˌjīz 

mythologized; mythologizing

transitive verb

1

obsolete : to explain the mythological significance of

2

: to build a myth around : mythicize

intransitive verb

1

: to relate, classify, and explain myths

2

: to create or perpetuate myths

mythologizer noun

Examples of mythologize in a Sentence

a politician who has been mythologized by his supporters

Recent Examples on the Web

Moving between 1992 and the present in South Central Los Angeles, the film follows a boy who mythologizes his absent father. —Emiliano De Pablos, Variety, 23 Apr. 2026

Krasner came to artistic maturity during the time of Abstract Expressionism, which mythologized masculinity and self-destruction as artistic proof of life. —Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 15 Apr. 2026

Why this is the case reveals a cultural preference for ignoring or mythologizing laborers as American as the Empire State Building itself. —Glenn Kurtz, Time, 28 Mar. 2026

Sometimes the culprit is the observer—the propagandizing correspondent, the mythologizing historian. —David Remnick, New Yorker, 21 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Middle French mythologiser, from mythologie mythology + -iser -ize

First Known Use

1603, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Rhymes for mythologize

• actualize
• antagonize
• apologise
• apologize
• capitalize
• categorize
• characterize
• commercialize
• conceptualize
• contrariwise
• criminalize
• decentralize