hero

¹

[heer-oh]

noun

plural

heroes, heros 

1. a person noted for courageous acts or nobility of character.

   He became a local hero when he saved the drowning child.

2. a person who, in the opinion of others, has special achievements, abilities, or personal qualities and is regarded as a role model or ideal.

   My older sister is my hero.

   Entrepreneurs are our modern heroes.

3. an animal acknowledged for its courageous acts, devotion to duty, etc..

   This police dog hero was shot during the apprehension of a suspect.

4. the principal male character in a story, play, film, etc.

   Synonyms: star, lead
   Antonyms: heavy, villain

5. Classical Mythology.

   1. a being of godlike prowess and beneficence who often came to be honored as a divinity.

   2. (in the Homeric period) a warrior-chieftain of special strength, courage, or ability.

   3. (in later antiquity) an immortal being; demigod.

6. hero sandwich.

7. the bread or roll used in making a hero sandwich.

adjective

1. being or relating to a person or animal noted for special achievements, abilities, or personal qualities, especially bravery or devotion to duty; heroic.

   A hero cat helped a firefighter spot a small child in a burning building.

2. (in advertising and marketing) especially notable, important, or central.

   Producing new hero content twice a year can help your brand grow.

   Your hero product should be obvious on your website.

verb (used with object)

1. to praise or treat as special; laud.

   We hero the moms who were writing parenting guides and giving advice to new mothers.

   Over the years, the judging panel has rightly heroed brands championing equal rights.

2. to bring to attention; highlight.

   These dishes beautifully hero the fresh organic ginger.

Hero

²

[heer-oh]

noun

1. Classical Mythology.,  a priestess of Aphrodite who drowned herself after her lover Leander drowned while swimming the Hellespont to visit her.

2. Also Heron Hero of Alexandria, flourished 1st century a.d., Greek scientist.

Hero

¹

/ ˈhɪərəʊ /

noun

1. Greek myth a priestess of Aphrodite, who killed herself when her lover Leander drowned while swimming the Hellespont to visit her

Hero

²

/ ˈhɪərəʊ /

noun

1. 1st century _ad , Greek mathematician and inventor

hero

³

/ ˈhɪərəʊ /

noun

1. a man distinguished by exceptional courage, nobility, fortitude, etc

2. a man who is idealized for possessing superior qualities in any field

3. classical myth a being of extraordinary strength and courage, often the offspring of a mortal and a god, who is celebrated for his exploits

4. the principal male character in a novel, play, etc

Hero

1. Greek mathematician who wrote on mechanics and invented many water-driven and steam-driven machines. He also developed a formula for determining the area of a triangle.

Gender Note

In its earliest use, the word hero was applied almost exclusively to a man. The corresponding word heroine was–and still is–reserved for a woman. Hero is still sometimes used to refer specifically to a man: British heroes and heroines. But hero is now considered to be a gender-neutral word, and is also increasingly used to refer to a woman: a list of American heroes; Joan of Arc, a French hero. In the sense "the principal character in a story, play, etc.," a hero is male and a heroine is female: Margaret is the novel’s heroine.

Other Word Forms

• herolike adjective
• subhero noun
• unhero noun
• unherolike adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of hero¹

First recorded in 1605–15; back formation from Middle English heroes (plural), from Latin hērōs (singular), hērōes (plural), from Greek hḗrōs, hḗrōes

Word History and Origins

Origin of hero¹

C14: from Latin hērōs, from Greek

Example Sentences

The universe has conspired to make him a hero again, just as it did in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

It provides readers with a compelling narrative, full of political drama and intrigue, heroes and villains, with themes of money and power.

Read more on Salon

His turn as a helicopter pilot in the Falklands War cast him in the role of war hero, and his televised marriage to Sarah Ferguson in 1986 drew an audience of millions.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

These unsung heroes of AI, the ones actually transforming business processes and workforces, also happen to be the smallest, fastest and cheapest.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Some North Carolina conservatives see Newby as something close to a hero, undoing years of harm inflicted by Democrats when they dominated the legislature and the courts.

Read more on Salon

Related Words

• eidolon 
• example 
• exemplar 
• good example www.thesaurus.com
• icon 
• ideal 
• idol 
• model 
• paragon 
• person to look up to www.thesaurus.com
• role model 
• shining example www.thesaurus.com

When To Use

Plural word for hero

The plural form of the noun hero is heroes. The plurals of other singular words that end in -o are also formed in this way, including potato/potatoes, tomato/tomatoes, and echo/echoes. This can be confusing, because in some instances, words that end in -o are pluralized by simply adding an -s to the end, as in mango/mangos and flamingo/flamingos. However, the plural form heros is only valid when hero is used in the sense of a “hero sandwich.” This usage is very rare.