idolatry

noun

idol·​a·​try ī-ˈdä-lə-trē 

plural idolatries

1

: the worship of a physical object as a god

2

: immoderate attachment or devotion to something

Synonyms

• adulation
• deification
• hero worship
• idolization
• worship
• worshipping
• worshiping

Examples of idolatry in a Sentence

fans of the team are well known for their idolatry of the quarterback

Recent Examples on the Web

But because the Israelites atoned for their sin of idolatry, God forgave them and offered Moses a second set of tablets. —Alesandra Dubin, Good Housekeeping, 22 Aug. 2023

There might be love, adulation, desire, idolatry (the affects of positive transference)—or anxiety, frailty, jealousy, and anger (the affects of negative transference). —Merve Emre, The New Yorker, 11 July 2023

Might a new life, and a new identity, even be obtainable for Hazel, in a roundabout way, from the idolatry being showered on her sister? —Don Aucoin, BostonGlobe.com, 5 June 2023

Two decades later, guitar music and rock and roll are still omnipresent, shapeshifting into new, subversive forms that can make Finn’s idolatry feel distant and dusty. —Luke Ottenhof, Billboard, 13 Apr. 2023

Joe Biden inspires no such idolatry. —Paul Schwartzman, Washington Post, 30 Aug. 2022

Thus the penalty intrinsic to idolatry. —Alan Jacobs, Harper's Magazine, 12 Oct. 2021

And because Wahhabist clerics saw preservation of heritage as a form of idolatry, most historic sites — even religiously significant ones such as the house where the prophet Muhammad is thought to have been born — were neglected or even bulldozed to make way for expansion of cities. —Nabih Bulosforeign Correspondent, Los Angeles Times, 15 Feb. 2023

This is idolatry; this is also a kind of madness. —Alan Jacobs, Harper's Magazine, 12 Oct. 2021

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Word History

Etymology

Middle English ydolatrie, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin idolatria, alteration of Late Latin idololatria, from Greek eidōlolatreia, from eidōlon idol + -latreia -latry

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing idolatry

• self-idolatry

• self-idolatry

Kids Definition

idolatry

noun

idol·​a·​try ī-ˈdäl-ə-trē 

plural idolatries

1

: the worship of an idol as a god

2

: very great attachment or devotion to something