as in heroes
a person who is the object of extreme or uncritical devotion
a movie star whose portrayal of a comic book superhero in a blockbuster series has made him the idol of millions
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of idols
Expect to see surgeonfish, blue tang, moorish idols, plus whale shark and manta rays in the May-September rainy season.
—
Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 28 Apr. 2026
No wonder Trump, who wants to erect idols to himself like a Canaanite king, is so upset.
—Gustavo Arellano, Mercury News, 17 Apr. 2026
Yet when the lights come up and the idols of her youth begin to sing, something is unlocked.
—Danielle Parker, CBS News, 14 Apr. 2026
No wonder Trump, who wants to erect idols to himself like a Canaanite king, is so upset.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 14 Apr. 2026
Pressley became a performance chef after shedding 200lbs himself and entering a cooking competition show for amateurs, judged by one of his idols, Gordon Ramsay.
—Sarah Shephard, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2026
The show features a performance by young women dressed as the HUNTR/X idols, courtesy of Royal Entertainers, a San Diego business that provides costumed characters for parties.
—Marcia Luttrell, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Apr. 2026
For the first time ever on Survivor, a contestant found two idols, then got to keep neither.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 2 Apr. 2026
The team harbored a zany obsession over nicknaming one another for heavy-metal stars and other teen music idols.
—Shawn Tully, Fortune, 31 Mar. 2026
Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 28 Apr. 2026
No wonder Trump, who wants to erect idols to himself like a Canaanite king, is so upset.
—Gustavo Arellano, Mercury News, 17 Apr. 2026
Yet when the lights come up and the idols of her youth begin to sing, something is unlocked.
—Danielle Parker, CBS News, 14 Apr. 2026
No wonder Trump, who wants to erect idols to himself like a Canaanite king, is so upset.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 14 Apr. 2026
Pressley became a performance chef after shedding 200lbs himself and entering a cooking competition show for amateurs, judged by one of his idols, Gordon Ramsay.
—Sarah Shephard, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2026
The show features a performance by young women dressed as the HUNTR/X idols, courtesy of Royal Entertainers, a San Diego business that provides costumed characters for parties.
—Marcia Luttrell, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Apr. 2026
For the first time ever on Survivor, a contestant found two idols, then got to keep neither.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 2 Apr. 2026
The team harbored a zany obsession over nicknaming one another for heavy-metal stars and other teen music idols.
—Shawn Tully, Fortune, 31 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for idols
Noun
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The villain — who flew around inside a giant disco ball for no apparent reason — absorbed the Guardians’ powers and used them against the magical girl heroes.—
Brady MacDonald,
Oc Register,
24 Apr. 2026
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Kerouac is now seen as a quintessentially American writer, mining the American truths of his time and place as his heroes Whitman, Mark Twain, and Thomas Wolfe had done.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
24 Apr. 2026
Noun
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An impressive theater Each of the three stories of the West Theater was surrounded by 16 columns, between which statues of gods were displayed, often depicting scenes from Homer’s epics.—
Maria Mocerino,
Interesting Engineering,
26 Apr. 2026
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Empires before the Persians, like the Egyptians and the Assyrians, forced people to bow to their gods and adopt their ways.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
23 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Idols.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/idols. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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