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• Horatio Alger
  Horatio Alger

  adjective

  of or characteristic of the heroes in the novels of Horatio Alger, who begin life in poverty and achieve success and wealth through honesty, hard work, and virtuous behavior.
• Alger, Horatio, Jr.
  Alger, Horatio, Jr.

  A nineteenth-century American author known for his many books in which poor boys become rich through their earnest attitudes and hard work.

Horatio Alger

American  

adjective

1. of or characteristic of the heroes in the novels of Horatio Alger, who begin life in poverty and achieve success and wealth through honesty, hard work, and virtuous behavior.

   the Horatio Alger story of his rise in the business world.

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Alger, Horatio, Jr. Cultural  

1. A nineteenth-century American author known for his many books in which poor boys become rich through their earnest attitudes and hard work.

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A true story of spectacular worldly success achieved by someone who started near the bottom is often called a “Horatio Alger story.”

Etymology

Origin of Horatio Alger

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

Starting in 1886, a series of games derived from the Horatio Alger books—with titles like From Log Cabin to the White House—caught the public’s fancy.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 21, 2026

Curricula used to include stories like those by Horatio Alger about people pulling themselves up from poverty.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 10, 2026

In that time period, he joined Huizenga at Horatio Alger scholarship ceremonies in South Florida, travel that the justice disclosed in several of his yearly financial filings.

From Salon • Aug. 10, 2023

Thomas first met Huizenga at a formal gala in Washington, D.C., in 1992, when they were both inducted into the Horatio Alger Association.

From Salon • Aug. 10, 2023

I didn’t want to be Horatio Alger in someone’s tear-filled homage to the American dream.

From "Educated" by Tara Westover