diva
Americannoun
plural
divas, divenoun
Etymology
Origin of diva
1880–85; < Italian < Latin dīva, feminine of dīvus god; divine
Explanation
Technically, a diva is a big-time female opera star. Beverly Sills and Maria Callas were two of the world's most renowned divas. More commonly, though, we call anyone who thinks they're more fabulous than everyone else a diva. The word diva was a compliment, one reserved for only the greatest singers in the world. Lately, though, diva has come to describe someone that's acting entitled or holier than thou. A person who acts like the world revolves around her is a diva. If you walk into a packed restaurant and demand the best table snapping, "Don't you know who I am?", well, that's diva behavior.
Vocabulary lists containing diva
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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.
She’s not a diva, but she has her pride.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 22, 2026
The pop diva attracted more than 144,000 visitors, almost half of them foreigners.
From Barron's • Feb. 24, 2026
Pair that winning team with Williams’ tremendously campy performance as a fur-trimmed-leopard-print-wearing, her-way-or-the-highway, Capital-D diva, and you’ve got the ultimate reason why “A Christmas Carol” and Ebenezer Scrooge have maintained their relevance for 182 years.
From Salon • Dec. 24, 2025
She was in shock to have won the award and dedicated it to "every northern, working-class diva."
From BBC • Nov. 13, 2025
As he begins to speak to the cast, Britney Harron, a diva since he first encountered her as a freshman, is stretched out on one of the couches, her feet up, her eyes half open.
From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove
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.
