heroine

[her-oh-in]

noun

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.

heroine

/ 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

Gender Note

See hero.

Other Word Forms

• superheroine noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of heroine¹

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

Example Sentences

The heroine of “The House Without Windows” is a young girl named Eepersip who runs away from home to live contentedly with her animal friends in the woods.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Though Hale’s crude aping of Harold Lloyd is disappointing, the rest of the cast acquit themselves admirably—no one more so than La Plante as the sympathetic heroine.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Sir Philip, author of the hugely popular novels about Lyra Silvertongue, the heroine of His Dark Materials and The Book of Dust trilogies, thinks writers should be compensated.

Read more on BBC

Its climax -- when the heroine runs alongside a moving train into her lover's arms -- still draws whistles, cheers and applause.

Read more on Barron's

She won the Academy Award for best actress for 1977’s “Annie Hall,” in which she plays the neurotic titular heroine written by her former partner Woody Allen.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

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