antihero
a protagonist who lacks the attributes that make a heroic figure, as nobility of mind and spirit, a life or attitude marked by action or purpose, and the like.
Origin of antihero
1Other words from antihero
- an·ti·her·o·ism [an-tee-her-oh-iz-uhm, an-tahy-], /ˌæn tiˈhɛr oʊˌɪz əm, ˌæn taɪ-/, noun
Words Nearby antihero
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use antihero in a sentence
One of Succession’s smartest moves is the way it flips a common characteristic of the antihero drama — the main character is always six steps ahead — to reveal how “mastermind” status can mask toxic and abusive tendencies.
Succession turns a box of doughnuts into a stealthy statement about abuse | Emily VanDerWerff | October 25, 2021 | VoxThe core of Philipps’s book is Special Operations Chief Eddie Gallagher, a senior enlisted SEAL and antihero who is portrayed as possessing almost superhuman powers.
Comedy has seen its share of influential male antiheroes as well, from “social assassin” Larry David on Curb Your Enthusiasm to New Girl’s prickly, problem-drinker love interest Nick Miller.
In the late ’90s, The Sopranos ushered in the age of the antihero.
The era of the female villain-turned-protagonist—or at least antihero—is in full swing, with Margot Robbie and Sarah Paulson recently taking on the roles of Harley Quinn and Nurse Ratched, respectively.
What could have been yet another instance of cheap cable carnality—the irresistible male antihero!
‘Halt and Catch Fire’ and AMC’s Push to Reset Dramas | Andrew Romano | May 30, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTEveryone has a theory on how Mad Men will end, and one of the most popular is that our suave, slick antihero will die.
All the Signs That Don Draper Will Die on ‘Mad Men’ | Kevin Fallon | April 14, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTI also want to say that there's a degree to which we never really thought of this as an antihero show.
‘The Americans’ Showrunners Dissect the Secrets of Season 2 | Andrew Romano | February 27, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTSo when he graduated from antihero to pop stalwart in the mid-aughts, the rap world largely lost interest.
‘The Marshall Mathers LP 2’ Review: Eminem’s a Great Rapper With Nothing to Say | Rawiya Kameir | November 5, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTAt Last is the fifth novel about Patrick Melrose, St Aubyn's unhappy and self-absorbed antihero.
British Dictionary definitions for antihero
/ (ˈæntɪˌhɪərəʊ) /
a central character in a novel, play, etc, who lacks the traditional heroic virtues
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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