idolatrize

A young musician idolatrize his favorite guitarist by practicing his solos every day.

Definition

1. Verb:
   • To worship or revere excessively: "idolatrize" means to treat someone or something as an idol, often with extreme admiration or devotion that is considered irrational or excessive.
   • To engage in idolatry: In a religious or figurative sense, it refers to the act of practicing idol worship.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Fans often idolatrize celebrities, forgetting they are ordinary people. (They worship them as if they were divine.)
  • The ancient tribe was known to idolatrize stone statues. (They engaged in the worship of physical objects as gods.)

Advanced Usage

• "to idolatrize a person": to treat a human being as if they were a god or perfect.

  • He tended to idolatrize his mentor, ignoring all his flaws. (He revered his mentor blindly, without criticism.)

• "to idolatrize an idea": to hold a concept or belief in extremely high, uncritical regard.

  • Some politicians idolatrize the notion of unlimited economic growth. (They worship this idea without considering its downsides.)

Variants and Related Words

• Idolatry (noun): the worship of idols; excessive devotion to something.

  • Their idolatry of money led to their downfall. (Their extreme love of money caused problems.)

• Idol (noun): an image or object worshipped as a god; a person greatly admired.

  • The pop star became an idol for millions of teenagers. (A person they adore.)

• Idolater (noun): a person who worships idols.

  • He was an idolater of ancient Greek gods. (A worshipper of idols.)

Synonyms

• Deify: to treat someone as a god.

  • They deified the emperor, believing he was divine. (They made a god of him.)

• Worship: to show reverence or adoration.

  • She would worship the ground he walked on. (She adored him completely.)

• Revere: to feel deep respect or awe.

  • The community revered the elder for his wisdom. (They respected him greatly, though not necessarily as an idol.)

Phrasal Verbs

• (None specific to "idolatrize"; it is a formal, literary verb.)

Related Idioms

• To put on a pedestal: to admire someone so much that you ignore their faults.
  • Stop putting him on a pedestal; he makes mistakes too. (Stop idolizing him.)
  • This idiom is synonymous with the act of idolatrizing a person.