as in romanticizing
to represent or think of as better than reality would warrant
he had a tendency to idealize his heroes and believe they could do no wrong
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Recent Examples of idealizing
The new fad of tradwife influencers idealizing a time before women had the right to vote is evidence enough.
—
Literary Hub, 20 May 2026
Nothing wrong with idealizing and daydreaming, but to a certain extent.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 13 Apr. 2026
Neptune can blur boundaries, so be mindful of overcommitting or idealizing people who have not shown consistency yet.
—Dossé-Via Trenou, Refinery29, 25 Jan. 2026
Teens are already blocked from repeatedly viewing videos that could send them down dangerous content rabbit holes, such as those idealizing certain body types.
—Clare Duffy, CNN Money, 14 Jan. 2026
There’s no wishful thinking that our society will stop idealizing appearance, but framing and intrinsic motivation matter.
—Alexa Mikhail, Flow Space, 8 Oct. 2025
Literary Hub, 20 May 2026
Nothing wrong with idealizing and daydreaming, but to a certain extent.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 13 Apr. 2026
Neptune can blur boundaries, so be mindful of overcommitting or idealizing people who have not shown consistency yet.
—Dossé-Via Trenou, Refinery29, 25 Jan. 2026
Teens are already blocked from repeatedly viewing videos that could send them down dangerous content rabbit holes, such as those idealizing certain body types.
—Clare Duffy, CNN Money, 14 Jan. 2026
There’s no wishful thinking that our society will stop idealizing appearance, but framing and intrinsic motivation matter.
—Alexa Mikhail, Flow Space, 8 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for idealizing
Verb
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College football has a habit of romanticizing the past in ways that don’t match the actual results.—
Ian Miller OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
4 June 2026
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Gucci Memoria, a collection of tapestries that tells the fashion brand’s 105-year-old history, is one example of how brands are romanticizing their archives.—
Angela Velasquez,
Footwear News,
2 June 2026
Verb
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Needless to say, Adrián Morejón was excited to share a uniform with someone who grew up idolizing.—
Jeff Sanders,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
29 May 2026
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Leave it to a musical theater girl from Pennsylvania who grew up idolizing Dion to create the ultimate tribute to her icon.—
Dave Quinn,
PEOPLE,
29 May 2026
Verb
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Even in the wake of the body positivity movement from the past few years, researchers are concerned about a cultural swing back to glamorizing thin-ness, pointing to the popularity – and possible misuse – of GLP-1s.—
Sam Woodward,
USA Today,
1 May 2026
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Novels like Rachel Yoder’s Nightbitch depict the surreal and alienating days of early parenthood with an eye to de-glamorizing the post-partum experience.—
Brittany Allen,
Literary Hub,
16 Mar. 2026
Verb
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With inflation surging, wages softening and borrowing costs high thanks to elevated interest rates, the incentive to protect this money is particularly strong now.—
Matt Richardson,
CBS News,
1 June 2026
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But softening Republican support on specific policy matters — including top voter priorities, such as the economy — have begun raising questions among experts whether further erosion is possible.—
Ana Ceballos,
Los Angeles Times,
31 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Idealizing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/idealizing. Accessed 4 Jun. 2026.
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