antiheroic

[an-tee-hi-roh-ik, an-tahy-]

adjective

1. (of a protagonist) possessing the characteristics of an anti-hero.

2. (of a literary work) having an antihero as its protagonist.

Word History and Origins

Origin of antiheroic¹

First recorded in 1875–80; anti- + heroic

Example Sentences

In-jokes fly fast and furious — as do adamantium claws and tart asides — as the antiheroic mashup doubles down on fandom, not plot, character or catharsis.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

At a time when antiheroic leads, with the outsize exception of Carroll O’Connor’s Archie Bunker, were a rarity on television comedies, Mr. Coleman’s distinctly unlikable Bill Bittinger on “Buffalo Bill” was an exception.

Read more on New York Times

Stalking the thrust stage of the Griffin Theater at the Shed with an awkward lope, his mouth fixed in a perpetual grimace, Fiennes applies a hypnotic antiheroic varnish to the man who remade New York’s byways, parklands and beachfronts.

Read more on Washington Post

The pop star also launched the #TSAntiHeroChallenge, a soon-to-be viral social media trend that directs fans to share their antiheroic traits remixed with the lyrics “It’s me. Hi. I’m the problem. It’s me.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

For her part, Spalding might see all the work of the past few years as feeding into a larger project, given how much the collaborative, antiheroic approach of “Iphigenia” comports with her solo work.

Read more on New York Times