romanticize

verb

ro·​man·​ti·​cize rō-ˈman-tə-ˌsīz 

rə-

romanticized; romanticizing

transitive verb

: to make romantic : treat as idealized or heroic

romanticize the past

intransitive verb

1

: to hold romantic ideas

2

: to present details, incidents, or people in a romantic way

romanticization

rō-ˌman-tə-sə-ˈzā-shən 

rə-

noun

Synonyms

• idealize
• glamourize
• glamorize

Examples of romanticize in a Sentence

He has romanticized notions of army life.

a romanticized view of politics

We were romanticizing about the past.

Recent Examples on the Web

These records start to make sense of why Dean wants to keep her distance, romanticize the weekends, and rebuild her walls when the party is over. —Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 26 Sep. 2025

The new book suggests that human beings have always been declinist, underselling the riches of the present and romanticizing what earlier generations merely made do with. —Katy Waldman, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025

Tribeny Rai never intended to romanticize her homeland. —Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 21 Sep. 2025

According to the filing, the system provided noose-tying instructions, romanticized suicide, and discouraged seeking help. —Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 17 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1818, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Rhymes for romanticize

• actualize
• antagonize
• apologise
• apologize
• capitalize
• categorize
• characterize
• commercialize
• conceptualize
• contrariwise
• criminalize
• decentralize

Kids Definition

romanticize

verb

ro·​man·​ti·​cize rō-ˈmant-ə-ˌsīz 

romanticized; romanticizing

1

: to make romantic : show in a romantic way

2

: to have romantic ideas

romanticization

-ˌmant-ə-sə-ˈzā-shən 

noun