heroine

American  

[her-oh-in] / ˈhɛr oʊ ɪn /

noun

heroines plural

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

   Esther and other biblical heroines.

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

   Name two women who have been heroines in your life.

3. the principal female character in a story, play, film, etc.

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heroine British  

/ ˈhɛrəʊɪn /

noun

1. a woman possessing heroic qualities

2. a woman idealized for possessing superior qualities

3. the main female character in a novel, play, film, etc

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Gender

See hero.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• superheroine
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• heroines
  plural

Etymology

Origin of heroine

1650–60; < Latin hērōīnē < Greek hērōī́nē, feminine of hḗrōs hero; see -ine ²

Explanation

A heroine is a real-life or fictional woman who has lots of courage and fights on the side of good, maybe by rescuing a kitten from a tree, slaying an evil dragon, or helping you with your science fair project. In books and movies, the heroine is the woman who is the main character, and in comic books and fantasy novels, heroines often have superpowers that help them accomplish incredible feats. There are heroines in regular life too, like women’s rights activists who fight against sexism, or a brave mother who rescues her child from a burning building. Heroine sounds the same as the addictive drug heroin, but a heroine will save your life, while heroin will probably end it.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

heroine heroines

Think of it more as an inversion, with a bottom-up view of its heroine Emma Harte’s life viewed through parallel timelines.

From Salon ● Jul. 19, 2026

I’d love to see Alcock’s heroine in a grotty, silly “Animal House”-style comedy, out-drinking a galaxy of alien squids.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2026

Petry’s coiled, claustrophobic story of a well-meaning heroine trapped in a system beyond her comprehension or control rises to a pitch of tragedy.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026

In the show, the heroine shares nightmarish tales alongside Herneval, who appears not as a prince but a sentient book.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 15, 2026

I’m named for the great young Pashtun heroine Malalai, who inspired her countrymen with her courage.

From "Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Changed the World" by Malala Yousafzai

You can’t help rooting for Colleen Hoover heroines, bless their bruised hearts.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 12, 2026

Did you channel any classic romance heroes, heroines or stories as you prepped?

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 29, 2026

Over the years, Dharmendra said he was cast against 70 heroines, but his most successful screen pairing was with Hema Malini, who later became his second wife.

From BBC ● Nov. 24, 2025

Orchards, wildernesses and bowers abound in her fiction, where her heroines contemplate curated views or scamper across fields and over stiles.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 21, 2025

The more convoluted the story lines, the more I liked them, and I imagined that all the long-suffering heroines looked like me, or rather, that I looked like them.

From "When I Was Puerto Rican" by Esmeralda Santiago

Related Words

• beau ideal
• eidolon
• epitome
• example
• exemplar
• good example
• icon
• ideal
• idol
• model
• paragon
• person to look up to
• role model
• shining example