idolater
Americannoun
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Also idolist a worshiper of idols.
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a person who is an immoderate admirer; devotee.
Usage
What does idolater mean? An idolater is someone who worships an idol or idols—objects or images, such as statues, that are worshipped as the representations of deities or gods.It is sometimes spelled idolator. A common synonym is idol worshipper. A less common synonym is idolist.The word idol can also refer to the deity or god that is being worshipped.The worship of such an idol is sometimes called idolatry (or idol worship). The adjective idolatrous can be used to describe idolaters or their practices.This sense of idolator and its related terms are typically used in a negative, judgmental way, implying that the god that the idolater worships is not actually real and that such worship is wrong or sinful.A well-known example of an idol mentioned in a story in the Bible is the statue of a golden calf that the Israelites were said to have made while Moses was away receiving the Ten Commandments (which prohibit the worship of idols or “graven images”).Sometimes, idol is used in a metaphorical way to compare something to an object of religious devotion and worship, and idolater can refer to a person who’s devoted to such a thing, as in Her love of money has made her an idolater. This sense of the word is also used in a critical way.Idol is also commonly used in a figurative way to refer to a person, especially a famous celebrity such as a pop singer, whom someone treats with extreme admiration and devotion. The word sometimes implies that such devotion is excessive, likening it to religious worship. The word idolater can be used to refer to this kind of fan, but it is much more commonly used in a religious context.Example: Followers of certain forms of Christianity are sometimes accused of being idolaters by other Christians, who object to their use of religious iconography.
Other Word Forms
- self-idolater noun
Etymology
Origin of idolater
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English idolatrer, equivalent to idolatr(ie) “idolatry” + -er noun suffix ( -rer changed to -er by dissimilation); idolatry, -er 2
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.
As he proceeds to plant an intolerant city-state on American soil, this Milton sneers at the memory of More, calling him an idolater who had had his head chopped off.
From Time Magazine Archive
For Ibsen, as later for an Ibsen idolater named James Joyce, exile was creation's catalyst.
From Time Magazine Archive
And this coolheaded didact of "epic"theater and "alienation" effects was a sentimental idolater of Charlie Chaplin movies.
From Time Magazine Archive
Although hated by Orthodox Jews as a Hellenistic idolater, Herod expanded the Temple and adorned it with marble and gold.
From Time Magazine Archive
For the first time in his life he found himself in the presence of an idolater.
From Cudjo's Cave by Trowbridge, J. T. (John Townsend)
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.
