celebrity
Americannoun
-
a famous or well-known person.
-
fame; renown.
- Synonyms:
- stardom, eminence, note, distinction
noun
-
a famous person
a show-business celebrity
-
fame or notoriety
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of celebrity
1350–1400; Middle English < Latin celebritās multitude, fame, festal celebration, equivalent to celebr- (stem of celeber ) often repeated, famous + -itās -ity
Explanation
A celebrity is a very famous person. If you single-handedly save an entire family from a burning building, you'll become a local celebrity. Celebrity comes directly from the Latin celebritatum, meaning famous, and is related to the verb celebrate which means to honor something with the proper ritual. We usually use celebrity now when we talk about entertainment stars, but someone doesn't have to be on the supermarket tabloids to be a celebrity. Celebrity can also be used to mean the state of fame. If you are seeking celebrity, develop a thick skin for nasty rumors.
Vocabulary lists containing celebrity
And the Oscar Goes to... Award-worthy Words
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Academy Awards, List 5
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Lesson 5
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
This is especially true in the era of social media, hyper-individualization, personal branding and micro celebrity.
From Salon • Jun. 23, 2026
Part of the appeal was observing a celebrity up close.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 22, 2026
A number of celebrity guests - including members of the Beckham family and Dragons' Den star Sara Davies - attended the couple's wedding in 2025.
From BBC • Jun. 20, 2026
Days after the Goleta get-together, Santa Barbara dad Eric Drachman became a celebrity at the preschool of his daughter, Noa, who is soon to be 3.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 19, 2026
"Having been through a rather unusual experience for an SIS officer, few of whom have ever fallen into enemy hands, I found myself, for a short while, a bit of a celebrity," Blake said.
From "Spies: The Secret Showdown Between America and Russia" by Marc Favreau
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
