heron.
/ˈhɪərəʊ/, U.S. /ˈhɪroʊ/, /ˈhiroʊ/α. 1500s–1600s heroë, 1500s–1600s heroie, 1500s–1600s heroyes (plural), 1500s–1700s heroe, 1600s heroys (plural), 1600s– hero; also Scottish pre-1700 herys (plural, perhaps transmission error); Irish English 1800s– hairo, 1800s– hayro, 1900s– hayroe.
β. 1500s–1600s heros, 1600s heroeces (plural).
1. Classical Mythology and Ancient Greek History. A man (or occasionally a woman) of superhuman strength, courage, or ability, favoured by the gods; esp. one regarded as semi-divine and immortal. Also in extended use, denoting similar figures in non-classical myths or legends. Cf. heroine n. 2.In Ancient Greece, heroes to whom a partly divine nature was attributed belonged to either of two categories: deified human beings (esp. historical figures) whose great deeds had raised them to a rank intermediate between gods and humans, and who were venerated or worshipped; and demigods, said to be the offspring of a god or goddess and a human. In practice often no distinction was made between the two categories.Cf. note at hers pron.1 2a.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the supernatural > deity > [noun] > demigod or hero
kingeOE
half-godc1374
semigoda1464
heroa1522
demigod1530
indigetec1550
petty god1581
under-god1583
heroic1586
godling1596
semi-deity?1624
goddikin1675
medioxumus1677
godkin1765
man-god1826
godlet1884
a1522 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid (1959) ix. 200 And na less murnyng hard thai in that sted For Rhamnetes, fund hedless, pail and ded, Togiddir with samony capitanys, And gret herys [1553 heros].
1534 W. Marshall tr. Erasmus Playne & Godly Expos. Commune Crede f. 60 Of goddes & women & of goddesses & men were gendred & broughtforth [sic] heroes.
1555 R. Eden in tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Decades of Newe Worlde Pref. sig. ajv Goddes made of men (whom the antiquitie cauled Heroes).
?1615 G. Chapman tr. Homer Odysses (new ed.) iv. 420 And what, my young Ulyssean heroë, Provoked thee on the broad back of the sea, To visit Lacedaemon the divine?
1628 R. Burton Anat. Melancholy (ed. 3) i. ii. i. ii. 43 Plato..made nine kindes of [spirits]..4 Archangels, 5 Angels, 6 Diuels, 7 Heroes.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 98 Resembling Heroes, whose Etherial Root Is Jove himself. View more context for this quotation
1700 tr. M. Amyraut Evid. Things not Seen iii. 127 That Majestick aspect that we suppose to have been in the female Hero's of time past.
1712 J. Addison Spectator No. 417. ¶6 Homer is in his Province, when he is describing..a Heroe or a God.
1791 W. Cowper tr. Homer Iliad in Iliad & Odyssey I. iv. 225 The Hero seeking earnest on all sides Machaon.
1828 London Lit. Gaz. 16 Feb. 98/2 The Bhâts..still retained their functions of singing the praises of gods and heroes.
1840 C. Thirlwall Hist. Greece VII. 199 He continued..to receive marks of public reverence approaching to the worship of a hero.
1881 Jrnl. Hellenic Stud. 2 18 After the victory, he [sc. Alexander] gave substantial proof of gratitude to the Ilian gods and heroes.
1933 H. Allen Anthony Adverse I. ii. ix. 112 Perhaps there were even gods and giants, heroes and demigods with all their half-human, half-divine progeny buried there.
1986 J. E. Bellquist Strindberg as Mod. Poet iii. 32 The tarnished medievalism that originally glittered in Swedish poetry with the Romantics' glorification of ancient Viking heroes.
2010 National Trust Mag. Summer 26/2 Stables designed for horses named after ancient Roman heroes—Hercules, Julius and Regulus.
2. A man (or occasionally a woman) distinguished by the performance of courageous or noble actions, esp. in battle; a brave or illustrious warrior, soldier, etc. Cf. war hero n. at war n.1 Compounds 4.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > courage > heroism > [noun] > hero
Hectora1387
worthy1552
Brutea1556
hero1578
heroic1586
Argonaut1596
Argonautic1614
1578 B. Rich Allarme to Eng. sig. F.ij Charles the great..gaue this honor to his souldiers saying: You shall be called Heroes.
1586 W. Warner Albions Eng. iii. xvi. 63 After scylence shorte, The Brutaine Heros vailed, and did answer in this sorte.
1602 W. Watson Decacordon Ten Quodlibeticall Questions ix. v. 305 All the heroeces, nobles and gentles of these northern Isles.
a1616 W. Shakespeare All's Well that ends Well (1623) ii. i. 39 Noble Heroes; my sword and yours are kinne. View more context for this quotation
1665 R. Head Eng. Rogue I. sig. Hh2 Mars, come guide my pen. To ranke this Female Heroe 'mongst thy Men... Never man injoy'd so brave a mind.
1730 J. Thomson Summer in Seasons 89 Raleigh..whose breast with all The sage, the patriot, and the hero burn'd.
1748 T. Morell Joshua 21 See, the conqu'ring Hero comes!
1829 N. Amer. Rev. Jan. 239 The remains of General Fraser, who fell like a hero in open battle,..still lie without the slightest memorial.
1862 Sat. Rev. 13 Sept. 302 The hero must, to give meaning to a meaningless phrase, fight for an idea... There is very little room for heroes in wars carried on to settle successions, to rectify frontiers, or to maintain the balance of power.
1915 J. Turner Let. 15 July in C. Warren Somewhere in France (2019) 17 The great man..is changed marvellously from the hero of the photographs that everybody knows.
1947 M. Lowry Under Volcano i. 31 On the contrary he was an extremely brave man, no less than a hero in fact, who had won, for conspicuous gallantry in the service of his country.., a coveted medal.
1962 N.Y. Amsterdam News 25 Aug. 22/4 (heading) She's a hero—Lt. Gertrude E. Baker..won the Winged Rescue Award..for saving the life of a patient being airlifted to Landstuhl.
1999 N.Y. Times 3 Oct. xiv. 3/1 A granite monument commemorating the World War II hero John A. Basilone.
3.
a. A man (or occasionally a woman) generally admired or acclaimed for great qualities or achievements in any field. Cf. heroine n. 1a.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > esteem > reputation > fame or renown > famous or eminent person > [noun]
kingeOE
master-spiritc1175
douzepersc1330
sire1362
worthya1375
lantern1382
sira1400
greatc1400
noblec1400
persona1425
lightc1425
magnate?a1439
worthyman1439
personagec1460
giant1535
honourablec1540
triedc1540
magnifico1573
ornament1573
signor1583
hero1592
grandee1604
prominent1608
name1611
magnificent1612
choice spirita1616
illustricity1637
luminary1692
lion1715
swell1786
notable1796
top-sawyer1826
star1829
celebrity1831
notability1832
notoriety1841
mighty1853
tycoon1861
reputation1870
public figure1871
star turn1885
headliner1896
front-pager1899
legend1899
celeb1907
big name1909
big-timer1917
Hall of Famer1948
megastar1969
1592 T. Nashe Pierce Penilesse (Brit. Libr. copy) sig. L4 I am most highly to accuse thee of forgetfulnes, that in that honourable Catalogue of our English Heroes,..thou wouldest let so speciall a piller of Nobilitie passe unsaluted.
1661 J. Glanvill Vanity of Dogmatizing xxiv. 240 The sole Instances of those illustrious Heroes, Cartes, Gassendus, Galilæo, Tycho [etc.] will strike dead the opinion of the worlds decay.
1687 R. Boyle Martyrdom Theodora xii. 242 A Female Hero, punished for a Generosity, that could not sufficiently be Rewarded.
1707 London Gaz. No. 4343/1 Some other Protestant Hero like your Majesty.
1765 S. Johnson Pref. to Shakespear's Plays p. xi Shakespeare has no heroes; his scenes are occupied only by men, who act and speak as the reader thinks that he should himself have spoken or acted on the same occasion.
1802 Sporting Mag. 21 17/1 This hero, who justly stiles himself in his advertisement, ‘Champion of England’, was himself to exhibit all his science [i.e. skill at boxing].
1853 F. D. Maurice Prophets & Kings Old Test. iii. 44 David no doubt became a hero in the eyes of the men and the virgins of Israel.
1934 P. Fleming Jrnl. 30 Aug. in Forgotten Journey (1952) 24 The shrubs are exploited to reproduce the features of Stalin or the Chelyuskin heroes.
1988 N.Y. Times 11 Sept. a9 In West Germany, she is a national hero, her recognition factor almost 100 percent.
2011 Atlantic Monthly July 138/1 The figures of Mandela, King, or the other moral heroes with whom Gandhi's name is linked.
b. In a particular context: an individual (usually a man but occasionally a woman) or group lauded or admired by a specified person or group of people. Usually with possessive pronoun or of. Cf. my hero! at Phrases 1.
ΚΠ
1670 tr. A. de Brunel Journey into Spain 170 She publickly said..that he was her Hero, and the only Man she admired.
1745 Addr. of Thanks to Broad-Bottoms 50 The late Minister was no Hero of mine; because he seemed inattentive to the Complaints of his Fellow-Subjects.
1772 T. Nugent tr. J. F. de Isla Hist. Friar Gerund II. v. iv. 294 I confess to you, Sir, that, after the Mythologists, my heroes are the Symbolists and Emblematists.
1822 Q. Rev. Apr. 184 Horace Walpole is an old hero of ours.
1891 J. McCarthy Charing Cross to St. Paul's (1893) vi. 206 The girls have still the fullest..faith in everything he undertakes... Papa will always be a hero to them.
1918 R. M. Haines in J. G. Millais Life F. C. Selous xiv. 346 From a boy he had always been a hero of mine.
1967 Washington Post 18 Dec. a8/4 An article in the New York Times..obliquely compared him to Sir Thomas More, the great antiestablishment Englishman who is one of McCarthy's personal heroes.
1987 B. Ross in J. Miller Democracy is in Streets vii. 137 Her husband..was a hero to me.
2013 Daily Record (Glasgow) (Nexis) 12 June 28 They say you should never meet your heroes—they'll only leave you disappointed.
4. The central character or protagonist (often, but esp. in later use not necessarily, male) in a story, play, film, etc.; esp. one whom the reader or audience is intended to support or admire (cf. anti-hero n.). Cf. heroine n. 3.Recorded earliest in our hero n. at our pron. and adj. Compounds.action, film, movie, stage hero, etc.: see the first element.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > literature > prose > narrative or story > fiction > [noun] > creation or description of characters > principal character
heroa1645
our heroa1645
protagonist1671
society > leisure > the arts > performance arts > drama > part or character > [noun] > principal character
protagonist1671
heroine1817
lead1831
shero1836
title role1857
title part1866
nayika1873
leading-business1880
beau rôle1887
name part1894
nayaka1933
hero1983
a1645 W. Browne tr. M. Le Roy Hist. Polexander (1647) ii. i. 166 Our Heroe approov'd of all that Amatontha desir'd.
1672 J. Dryden Def. Epilogue in Conquest Granada 164 The Clown who enters immediately, and not only has the advantage of the Combat against the Heroe, but diverts you from your serious concernment.
1711 R. Steele Spectator No. 11. ⁋5 The Youth, who is the Hero of my Story.
1770 ‘Junius’ Stat Nominis Umbra (1772) II. xxxviii. 84 The pomp of a mock-tragedy, where..even the sufferings of the hero are calculated for derision.
1841 M. Elphinstone Hist. India I. ii. iv. 175 The great Hindú heroic poem, the ‘Mahá Bhárat’, of which Crishna is, in fact, the hero.
1866 A. Trollope Claverings xxviii Perhaps no terms have been so injurious to the profession of the novelist as those two words, hero and heroine... Something heroic is still expected; whereas, if he attempt to paint from Nature, how little that is heroic should he describe!
1948 Startling Stories July 128/1 The next thing I hope will happen will be, that some kind author will write a story with a woman as hero.
1983 W. Goldman Adventures in Screen Trade Pref. p. xiii It was a kissing movie. All they did was kiss, the hero and the lady.
2011 New Yorker 7 Nov. 83/2 The book's hero, Joe, is an unsuccessful Electrolux salesman.
5. U.S. regional (esp. New York City). = hero sandwich n. at Compounds 4.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > dishes and prepared food > bread > bread with spread or filling > [noun] > sandwich > other sandwiches
cheese sandwich1828
bacon sandwich1858
cucumber sandwich1896
club sandwich1903
western sandwich1908
Reuben sandwich1927
poor boy1931
po' boy1932
hero1938
hero sandwich1939
foot-long1941
steak sandwich1941
sub1948
sub sandwich1948
submarine1949
BLT1952
panini1955
tuna sandwich1957
hoagie1967
muffuletta1967
gyro1971
PBJ1971
stotty1971
Philadelphia cheesesteak1977
Philly cheesesteak1982
banh mi1985
1938 Armored Car Guards & Mail & Newspaper Delivery Workers' Slang 2 in Lexicon Trade Jargon (Federal Writers' Project) (typescript at Libr. of Congr. MS Div.) Hero,..big sandwich.
1940 Chicago Tribune 7 Dec. 1/4 Sam Kava was injured today by a sandwich. In an Italian restaurant he ordered a ‘Hero’, [peppers, eggs, half a loaf of Italian bread] and went to work until something happened. At Columbus hospital his jaw was found to be dislocated.
1963 M. Scherf Death & Diplomat (1964) v. 62 They have hot and cold heros next door.
1991 Tucson (Arizona) Weekly 6 Nov. 36/2 ‘Grinder’ was originally the New England term for what is called a ‘hoagy’ in Pennsylvania, a ‘hero’ in New York, a ‘poor boy’ in New Orleans and a submarine from the mid-Atlantic coast sporadically across to Los Angeles.
2009 N.Y. Mag. 30 Mar. 40/3 He decided to..restrict the menu to twenty composed heros plus a few daily specials.
Phrases
P1. my hero!: expressing (now frequently mock) admiration, gratitude, etc., to a person, esp. a man.
ΚΠ
1676 T. Otway Don Carlos v. 65 Thou Austria shal't grow old, and in thy age Doat, Doat, my Heroe!
?a1786 R. Burns Poems & Songs (1968) I. 198 But whilst with both hands I can hold the glass steady, Here's to thee, My Hero, My Sodger laddie!
1801 J. B. Burges Richard the First I. xv. 215 Say why, my hero! are our joys delay'd?
1898 D. B. W. Sladen Admiral xxiv. 356 Oh Nelson, Nelson, my hero! my hero!
1912 Green Bk. Mag. Dec. 1034/2 ‘My hero!’ she whispered happily.
1934 T. Slesinger Unpossessed ii. i. 108 ‘No use to any man, not after three months when one's socks have begun to wear out. You are a fay, you are a sprite, you are not a woman at all.’ ‘My hero!’ she said derisively.
1974 Observer 17 Feb. 31/2 We pan away to where the notably unbandaged Dook is sitting up and rubbing his neck ruefully while a doctor announces ‘No bones broken.’ Ooh, my hero!
2011 J. Dee Gordon Ryder's Blues v. 59 He managed to..place the three-foot tower of paper down without spilling a single sheet. ‘My hero,’ Myra declared with mock ardor.
P2. hero of the hour (also day, etc.): a person viewed as being heroic at the present moment or in relation to current events; (also more generally) a person who is currently and widely celebrated or praised as a hero.
ΚΠ
1712 Rev. State Brit. Nation 21 June 3/1 At Night, the two Squadrons met in our city, where they acted also like the Heroes of the Day.
1781 Xsmwpdribvnwlxy, or Sauce-pan 43 I must be sour, When such shine forth, the heroes of the hour.
1824 C. G. Garnett Night before Bridal 30 Envy he was of dexterous Matadore, The admired of all—the hero of the day.
1897 Syracuse (N.Y.) Standard 11 July 14/1 When the hero of the minute finally appeared it took rather long for the news to reach the Athenians.
1932 M. D. Luhan Lorenzo in Taos iv. 239 Being quite the hero of the moment, he made the most of it.
1962 H. M. Ward Dept. of War, 1781–95 ii. 8 The first leading candidate was John Sullivan.., the hero of the hour as a result of his recent expedition against the Iroquois.
1987 Working Mother Nov. 103/1 Abel..was everyone's best friend, the hero of the day.
2012 Scotsman (Nexis) 26 Jan. 62 Goalkeeper Tom Heaton was the hero of the hour with two saves.
P3. Proverb. no man is a hero to his valet (originally valet de chambre) and variants: no person is accorded excessive respect or admiration by someone who knows him or her in an intimate or familiar way. Frequently in extended, allusive, or similative contexts.Allusive and similative use often extends to a noun other than valet (and occasionally a noun other than man: see, for example, quot. 2008). [After French il n'y a point de héros pour son valet de chambre, attributed to Madame Cornuel (1605–94), French society hostess (in Letter 13 ‘De Paris, 1728’ in Lettres de Mlle Aïssé à Madame C (1787)), although sometimes also attributed to the Prince de Condé (see quot. 1753). Compare also Hellenistic Greek οὐ τοιαῦτα μοι ὁ λασανοϕόρος σύνοιδεν ‘the slave who looks after my chamber-pot does not think such things (i.e. does not consider me a god)’, attributed to Antigonus, King of Macedonia (4th cent. b.c.) by Plutarch ( Moralia 360 C).]
ΚΠ
1753 D. Hume Ess. & Treat. (ed. 4) I. xvii. 170 ‘No man,’ said the prince de Condé, ‘is a hero to his Valet de Chambre.’
1776 St. James's Chron. 27 Aug. 4/1 That no Man is a Hero to his Valet de Chambre, is an old Remark newly clothed in French Frippery.
1824 J. G. Lockhart Hist. Matthew Wald xix. 224 No man is a hero to his valet; and few can play the hypocrite effectually to their doctor.
a1859 R. Choate Lect. 1833 in Wks. (1862) I. 340 As no man is a hero to his servant, so no age is heroic of which the whole truth is recorded.
1917 Princeton Alumni Weekly 24 Jan. 374/2 The French proverb, ‘No man is a hero to his valet’, might be rendered, in the language of the college world, ‘No man is a hero to his room-mate.’
1946 N.Y. Times Bk. Rev. 24 Nov. 18/3 If it is true that no man is a hero to his valet, it may be surmised that few men are heroes to their wives.
1986 D. N. Walton Courage ii. 51 No man is a hero to his valet, it is said, and given the kind of ubiquitous investigative reporting of public figures today, it is easy to uncover the feet of clay.
2008 Financial Times 14 Apr. 14/1 No man is a hero to his valet; and no woman is a heroine to her children's nanny.
P4. Originally U.S. to go from hero to zero and variants: to suffer a sudden decline in popularity or success; to experience a fall from grace. Also hero-to-zero: a decline of this type; a person who experiences such a decline. Cf. to go from zero to hero at zero n. and adj. Phrases 1.
ΚΠ
1919 Daily Northwestern (Oshkosh, Wisconsin) 29 Nov. 6/6 The shortest step in the world is from hero to zero.
1942 Hartford (Connecticut) Courant 17 Sept. 15/3 The Miners old master, Lew Krausse, went from hero to zero, all within a space of a couple of minutes tonight as the Binghamton Triplets pushed across two runs in the tenth.
1984 Associated Press Newswire (Nexis) 17 Sept. It was hero-to-zero for Ross, a rookie cornerback opposing quarterbacks have picked on all year.
1996 F. Popcorn & L. Marigold Clicking iii. 436 Another Hero-to-Zero..had an abusive fall from grace that cost him not only his freedom but also his big-time endorsements.
2001 N.Z. Herald (Electronic ed.) 23 Apr. Henry Fa'afili knows how it feels to go from hero to zero after a rush of blood to the head produced the turning-point in the 16-20 loss to the Sharks.
Compounds
C1.
a. Appositive, as hero-child, hero-horseman, hero-son, hero-soul, etc.
ΚΠ
1695 C. Leslie Coll. Several Papers in Def. Snake in Grass (1700) 64 Two Months after, they renew'd the same to his Hero Son Richard.
1731 G. Jeffreys Merope iii. i. 37 The Yoke of Hero Souls.
1847 Lowe's Edinb. Mag. June 152 The maids of Israel poured, in annual round, Their loves and tears for Jephthah's hero-child.
1904 Museum of Fine Arts Bull. 2 6/2 This statuette was probably a dedicatory offering at some shrine—perhaps that of the hero-horsemen Kastor and Polydeukes.
1997 M. L. Christensen Heroes & Saints (Introd.) p. xi The tales of hero-souls I mention here are not the sort that have George Washington chopping down a cherry tree and then confessing to his father.
2010 Express (Nexis) 24 Sept. 21 No one could better play the role of hero horseman and general bounder Rupert Campbell Black.
b.
hero-king n.
ΚΠ
1732 T. Lediard tr. J. Terrasson Life Sethos I. ii. 77 Mercury himself had enjoy'd the same advantage from some columns anterior to the deluge, which had been erected by the hero-kings.
1840 T. Arnold Hist. Rome II. 266 Alexander's genuine successor, the hero-king of the race of Achilles.
1987 N.Y. Times (Nexis) 4 Oct. vi. 22/2 Arthur became Britain's hero-king.
hero-founder n.
ΚΠ
1825 Classical Jrnl. 32 372 The hero-founder of the serapeum.
1974 Jennings (Louisiana) Daily News 16 May 2/1 In..The Aeneid, the whole history of Rome is foretold long before the hero-founder of the city ever set foot in Italy.
2009 Internat. Herald Tribune (Nexis) 4 Apr. 2 Pakistan's hero-founder, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, died one year after independence.
hero-leader n.
ΚΠ
1834 J. Nevay Peasant ix. 183 The hero-leader of an hundred boys.
1928 Amer. Mercury Oct. 130/2 Far out and away Paul Bunyan, the master logger, the hero-leader, strode on through the tall timber.
2003 Halifax (Nova Scotia) Daily News (Nexis) 11 Feb. 17 Saddam always dreamed of becoming the hero-leader of the Arab world.
hero-martyr n.
ΚΠ
1826 H. Smith Tor Hill III. viii. 235 Behold the love-enlighten'd youth Offer his life for Christian truth—A hero-martyr!
1999 Australian (Nexis) 25 Mar. 10 Senator John McCain,..the prime US hero-martyr of the Vietnam War.
hero-saint n.
ΚΠ
1735 Gentleman's Mag. Apr. 210/1 The Frisan, and th' Imperial hero-saint, Have worth to shame a whole church militant.
1863 W. Phillips Speeches xiii. 291 I thought I could hear our hero-saint saying, ‘I give my sword to the slave.’
1998 N.Y. Times (Nexis) 4 Oct. v. 6/1 Named for the 13th-century Russian hero-saint,..the restaurant promises authentic czarist-era cuisine.
C2.
a. General attributive.See also hero worship n.
ΚΠ
1706 I. Watts Horæ Lyricæ ii. 145 But there's a Heavenly Art t' elude the Grave, And with the Heroe-Race Immortal Kindred claim.
1741 T. C. Pagett Misc. Prose & Verse 327 And is he then less odd a Creature, With Hero Airs, and Coward Nature?
1757 tr. J. G. Keyssler Trav. IV. 133 In the hero-apartment [Ger. Heldensaale], as it is called, besides the old Saxon warriors..are to be seen the portraits of all the Generals employed by king Augustus.
1776 W. J. Mickle tr. L. de Camoens Lusiad 327 That hero-form the Lusian standard rears.
1814 Ld. Byron Ode to Napoleon xii Hero dust Is vile as vulgar clay.
1896 Folk-lore 7 263 There is one more small point which Taillefer the younger seems to have contributed to the joint hero-image of himself and his predecessor.
1903 Daily Chron. 11 June 3/1 The hero-tales and culture-legends of the prehistoric period of the Hebrews.
1951 M. McLuhan Mech. Bride 63/1 Li'l Abner himself is a cluster of the swarming hero images.
2005 Independent 22 Nov. 3/1 Today's young rock fans are bestowing hero status on someone with a little self-indulgence and a bit more everyday realness.
b.
hero-cult n.
ΚΠ
1859 A. Andrews Hist. Brit. Journalism II. ii. 100 Sophocles incorporated in his play many of the elements in the traditional hero-cults for the propitiation of dead warriors.
1945 A. Koestler Yogi & Commissar iii. ii. 197 His famous speech on the 24th anniversary of the Soviet Revolution..which started the new hero-cult.
2008 Sunday Times (Nexis) 6 July 6 Antinous's mysterious death in the Nile led to a Graeco-Egyptian hero-cult to surpass all others.
hero fantasy n.
ΚΠ
1928 M. Samuel tr. H. Keyserling Europe 336 In the hero fantasies of the American the Indian character plays a leading rôle.
1960 C. Day Lewis Buried Day 22 Nor..did I indulge in the hero-fantasies of the only child.
2008 N.Y. Times (Nexis) 23 Feb. b8 He plays out his hero fantasies by rescuing a sultry trial witness named Madeleine.
hero-figure n. [after German Heldengestalt (1795 in the passage translated in quot. 1796)]
ΚΠ
1796 tr. J. G. Herder in Monthly Rev. 20 App. 523 Hero-figures [Ger. Heldengestalten] of the Greeks.
1896 New Irel. Rev. Jan. 290 Setting him up as a splendid but impracticable hero-figure.
1958 Punch 23 July 102/3 His agent..built up an image of this untalented scallywag as a top-line genius and hero-figure for millions.
2012 Belfast Tel. (Nexis) 14 Apr. 50 The elder son..became a hero-figure to his brother.
hero myth n. [originally after German Heroen-mythus (1849 in the passage translated in quot. 1851)]
ΚΠ
1851 S. F. Baird tr. J. G. Heck Iconogr. Encycl. IV. Sculpt. 13 The hero-myths [Ger. Der Heroen-mythus] were more suited to the representations of poetry than of plastics.
1957 tr. S. Moscati Anc. Semitic Civilizations v. 118 Of the hero-myths the most outstanding is the Ugaritic Aqhat poem.
1991 D. Rowe Wanting Everything (1994) v. 178 The hero myth is one of the ways we try to hide from ourselves the destructiveness and failure of violence and coercion.
2012 Irish Times (Nexis) 14 Jan. (Weekend section) 11 Right-wing movie stars were..more likely to peddle easily digestible hero myths.
hero-saga n.
ΚΠ
1852 W. Howitt & M. B. Howitt Lit. & Romance of Northern Europe I. iii. 31 An after-harvest of mythological traditions, which blended with many incongruous additions and middle age hero-sagas, are yet retained in the memory of the people.
1987 James Joyce Q. 24 265 The magic bird image..typical of Irish hero-saga.
C3. Objective with agent nouns, as hero-maker, hero-nurser, hero-slayer, etc.See also hero-worshipper n.
ΚΠ
1832 R. Cattermole Becket 176 Proud was the birth-right dealt To those who sucked that teeming breast which Time Wed in his youth, when first he felt His bearded boyhood gathering to its prime—Sons of the Hero-nurser!
1835 H. H. Milman Nala & Damayanti 20 Pushkara the hero-slayer.
1900 Literature 3 Mar. 190/1 Our hero-hater is herself plain.
1991 D. Rowe Wanting Everything (1994) v. 178 Heroes and hero-makers are usually men, but many women, even though they often suffer at the hands of the heroes, have always supported this myth.
C4.
hero-errant n. [after knight-errant n.] a hero (esp. in a story) who wanders in search of adventure.
ΚΠ
a1774 A. Tucker Light of Nature Pursued (1777) III. i. 390 If Persia be subdued, our hero-errant must seek adventures at the Ganges.
1835 Q. Rev. Sept. 308 In both cases we have a monster subdued by a professed hero-errant, and by the assistance of fire.
1992 F. Celoria Metamorph. Antoninus Liberalis 128 This tale of a rescue by a passing hero-errant is not unique, if one recalls the story of Perseus and Andromeda or that of St George and the Dragon.
hero sandwich n. U.S. regional (esp. New York City) a large sandwich consisting of (half of) a long roll or loaf of bread, cut lengthways and typically filled with meat, cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, etc.; cf. hoagie n., sub n.10 2. [No contemporary evidence supporting the theory of the name's origin given in quot. 1983 has been found. A connection with gyro n.2 has also sometimes been suggested, but that is implausible on chronological, formal, and semantic grounds.]
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > dishes and prepared food > bread > bread with spread or filling > [noun] > sandwich > other sandwiches
cheese sandwich1828
bacon sandwich1858
cucumber sandwich1896
club sandwich1903
western sandwich1908
Reuben sandwich1927
poor boy1931
po' boy1932
hero1938
hero sandwich1939
foot-long1941
steak sandwich1941
sub1948
sub sandwich1948
submarine1949
BLT1952
panini1955
tuna sandwich1957
hoagie1967
muffuletta1967
gyro1971
PBJ1971
stotty1971
Philadelphia cheesesteak1977
Philly cheesesteak1982
banh mi1985
1939 W. Winchell in Daily Mirror (N.Y.) 22 June 10/3 Tastiest tidbits on the Island [sc. Coney Island] are..the Hero Sandwich (a loaf of Italian bread with ham and Swiss, American or Bel Paese cheese), [etc.].
1959 R. Condon Manchurian Candidate v. 91 She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand like a labourer who had just finished a hero sandwich and a bottle of beer.
1972 New Yorker 1 July 21/2 An office just above a hero-sandwich shop.
1983 J. F. Mariani Dict. Amer. Food & Drink 193 Hero, also, ‘hero sandwich’ and ‘Italian hero sandwich’... In the 1930s [food writer] Clementine Paddleford noted that the name derived from the hyperbole that one must be a hero to eat such a sandwich.
2004 Chile Pepper Feb. 111/3 This is another style of hero sandwich, made with a long French loaf sliced sideways.
hero-woman n. a female hero; = heroine n.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > courage > heroism > [noun] > heroine
heroine1587
heroess1612
lady errant1615
Bellona1820
shero1836
hero-woman1847
tiger-cat1863
war heroine1932
lad1935
1847 S. Eliot Passage from Hist. Liberty 269 Although troops were instantly sent against Toledo, this hero-woman defended her townspeople for many long months.
1860 ‘G. Eliot’ in Life (1885) II. 244 An almost unique presentation of a hero-woman.
1993 Washington Times (Nexis) 20 Feb. c3 I thus freely acknowledge my debt to the author of ‘Hearts Afire’,..whose hero-woman is a martial arts champion.
C5. Compounds with hero's or heroes'.
Heroes' Day n. a day on which heroes (esp. of a particular battle, struggle, etc.) are recognized and commemorated for their courageous and noble actions; frequently in various countries as a national public holiday.Also in attributive use of the plural form.
ΚΠ
1814 New Monthly Mag. Nov. 344/2 All-Heroes Day, for the celebration of the achievements of the heroes who fell in the great struggle for [German] independence.]
1893 Morning Oregonian (Portland, Oregon) 13 July 3 Next Sunday will be set aside as ‘Heroes' day’ at the world's fair, and all the proceeds..will be devoted to the relief of those firemen who died while doing their duty.
1918 Commerc. & Financial Chron. 31 Aug. 863/1 I request..that all good citizens do whatever lies in their power to make this Heroes' Day a solemn and impressive tribute to our gallant dead.
1962 L. H. Palmier Indonesia & Dutch 99 The second [stage of the 1957 liberation campaign] was to begin on 10 November, ‘Heroes' Day’, the anniversary of the battle against British troops at Surabaja in 1945.
2010 J. L. Fisher Pioneers, Settlers, Aliens, Exiles iv. 79 The memory of the anti-colonial war as the revolutionary founding event is conveyed and sustained most powerfully in ceremonies held [in Zimbabwe] on Heroes Day.
hero's welcome n. an enthusiastic or rapturous welcome, esp. for someone who has done something brave or praiseworthy; frequently with reference or allusion to the return of a victorious warrior or soldier.
ΚΠ
1684 Earl of Roscommon tr. Virgil Eclogues vi, in Misc. Poems 49 Linus thus (deputed by the rest) The Hero's welcome, and their thanks express'd.
1810 J. Porter Sc. Chiefs I. xv. 314 He seemed the bard of Morven issuing from his cave of shells to bid a hero's welcome to the young and warlike Oscar.
1925 Times 2 Mar. 13 Herr Adolf Hitler received a hero's welcome from some 3,000 of his National Socialist supporters at the Bürgerbräukeller on Friday night.
1945 Life 24 Sept. 35/2 In New York 4,000,000 people jammed the streets..to roar a hero's welcome.
2013 Daily Record (Glasgow) (Nexis) 30 Mar. 29 Five officers have arrived to a hero's welcome after finishing a 400-mile charity run.
Derivatives
ˈheroless adj.
ΚΠ
1858 Ballou's Dollar Monthly Mag. July 33/2 They were all hero-less romances, aimless fancies, air castles that I was content to build.
1877 Brooklyn Daily Union-Argus 5 July 2/2 We have had just such bits of heroless tragedy in Brooklyn in bygone times.
1882 Athenæum 9 Sept. 329/3 The history of Ireland is also almost—if we may use the term—heroless.
1988 Orange County Reg. (Nexis) 8 Apr. p28 Today's children seem to be heroless.
2010 L. Porter Tarnished Heroes i. 31 A virtually hero-less TV society made up of ensembles of protagonists.
ˈhero-like adj. and adv.
ΚΠ
1662 J. T. Traytors Perspective-glass 8 A grand Rebel,..with a Hero-like courage.
1673 H. N. Payne Morning Ramble ii. 27 He does Hero-like Fight, To rescue the Kingdoms Honour and Wealth.
1858 Daily Milwaukee (Wisconsin) News 14 Jan. The brave and chivalric veteran Scott, whose hero-like figure contrasted strongly with that of Senator Douglas.
1883 F. Triplett Conquering Wilderness 72 It was a land for which, hero-like, they were willing to lay down their lives.
1997 Atlanta Jrnl.-Constit. (Nexis) 31 July e1 We have imbued these athletes with herolike qualities and showered them with money.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2014; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
herov.
/ˈhɪərəʊ/, U.S. /ˈhɪroʊ/, /ˈhiroʊ/ rare.
transitive. To treat or honour as a hero.
ΚΠ
1762 ‘Citizen of London’ Wedding Day ii. 19 The man..All nature robs regardless of the wrong;—Gains bits of silk—is hero'd by the throng.
1909 R. A. Wason Happy Hawkins xv. 191 They heroed me an' Ches right consid'able.
1992 Washington Post (Nexis) 4 Mar. c1 Once presidents die, they tend to be heroed.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2014; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
<
n.a1522
v.1762