a person noted for courageous acts or nobility of character.
He became a local hero when he saved the drowning child.
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.
an animal acknowledged for its courageous acts, devotion to duty, etc..
This police dog hero was shot during the apprehension of a suspect.
the principal male character in a story, play, film, etc.
Classical Mythology.
a being of godlike prowess and beneficence who often came to be honored as a divinity.
(in the Homeric period) a warrior-chieftain of special strength, courage, or ability.
(in later antiquity) an immortal being; demigod.
the bread or roll used in making a hero sandwich.
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.
(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.
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.
to bring to attention; highlight.
These dishes beautifully hero the fresh organic ginger.
Classical Mythology. a priestess of Aphrodite who drowned herself after her lover Leander drowned while swimming the Hellespont to visit her.
Also Heron Hero of Alexandria, flourished 1st century a.d., Greek scientist.
a man distinguished by exceptional courage, nobility, fortitude, etc
a man who is idealized for possessing superior qualities in any field
classical myth a being of extraordinary strength and courage, often the offspring of a mortal and a god, who is celebrated for his exploits
the principal male character in a novel, play, etc
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.
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.
First recorded in 1605–15; back formation from Middle English heroes (plural), from Latin hērōs (singular), hērōes (plural), from Greek hḗrōs, hḗrōes
Yes, a hero is a kind of sandwich. But when David Bowie sings, “We can be heroes,” he’s not talking about sandwiches. He’s talking about the more popular kind of hero — the kind who saves your life! A hero is someone who does fantastic things that people love. The guy who rescues a skater from a frozen pond is a hero. A hero can be the main character of a story, too, if people root for him. Spiderman is the hero of the comic series: he's the central character, but he also saves people. The word hero goes back to the Greek, referring to a demigod.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A decade and a half later, in an All-Star Game that was short on drama and long on tributes to Trout, the hometown hero and future Hall of Famer, Crow-Armstrong shared center field with Trout.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026
After all, it has plenty of the hallmarks of a classic Nolan film: It’s an epic about a tormented hero pining after a wife and grappling with memory loss.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
Sonny, its hero, has checked into Sanctuary, a spendy Phoenix-area resort, for an extended stay.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
No problem—they have $1 billion invested in Ohtani’s arm and October hero Yoshinobu Yamamoto to pick up the slack.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026
The five-year-old boy would have an encounter with the hero of Yorktown—the man who would become America’s first president.
From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis
Delivery Hero on Tuesday said talks are at an advanced stage, and didn’t comment on speculation regarding the price of the offer.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
Steinman also wrote her other major 1980s pop-rock anthem, the lustful and bombastic Holding Out for a Hero, which was recorded for the Footloose film soundtrack and later appeared in Shrek 2.
From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026
Mr. Brookhiser is the author of “The Hero Returns: Lafayette and the Legacy of the Revolution.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026
The three Iran-flagged tankers, Diona, Hero II and Sonia I, are all owned by the National Iranian Tanker Company which has been sanctioned by the US Treasury, as have the ships themselves.
From BBC ● Jun. 17, 2026
Below the two of them was a depiction of the Hero Twins fighting a large bird, a large pig, a large rock, and a large human.
From "Healer of the Water Monster" by Brian Young
As a boy, Loftus would keep up with his heroes on the team’s local radio and TV station, and occasionally on a weekend network broadcast.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
Ten years ago, I had the privilege of traveling the length of the state and meeting some of the heroes of the coast going back to the 1960s.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 11, 2026
When Watt is not working with pop stars like Miley Cyrus and Justin Bieber, he’s often producing grizzled rock heroes, including Iggy Pop and Paul McCartney—who recommended Watt to the Rolling Stones.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026
He went to Whitchurch High School in Cardiff, whose alumni include some of Wales' best known sporting heroes.
From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026
All names for one of the most fascinating folk heroes I’d ever heard of.
From "Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky" by Kwame Mbalia
To mix it up, leftovers can easily be made into meatball heros.
From Salon ● Aug. 28, 2021
I’m sure the jobless, teachers, medical heros and first responders can sleep well tonight knowing these two gentlemen can survive.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 4, 2020
“I met one of my heros today,” Shaw tweeted with his picture with Emma Gonzalez.
From Washington Times ● May 12, 2018
Have one of their fabulous heros or hot dishes, then peruse the varied dried pasta section.
From New York Times ● Jan. 23, 2018
Thy heros did with gentleness or'e come Thy foes themselves, but one another first, Whilst envy stript alone was left, and burst.
From The Lucasta Poems by Lovelace, Richard
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.
