lionizes

verb

present tense third-person singular of lionize
as in admires
to treat (someone) as a very important and famous person She was lionized everywhere after her novel won the Pulitzer Prize.

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of lionizes Weberman’s early release would place him back into a community that not only protects, but lionizes him. — Guila Benchimol, New York Daily News, 26 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lionizes
  1. admires
  2. honors
  3. venerates
  4. reveres
  5. respects
  6. exalts
  7. praises
  8. dignifies
Verb
  • Bucci admires the modern show’s scale, organization and ambition, describing it as a festival of show jumping, with world-class facilities, footing, hospitality and stabling.
    — Gemma Redrup, New York Times, 26 Aug. 2026
  • The backstory Once upon a time, there was a Spanish family blessed with a talent for finding historic buildings and transforming them into hotels that anyone who admires beauty and nature would want to visit.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of admires
Verb
  • Thus this year’s list honors those who do more than wear clothes well or live their lives in head-to-toe ensembles handed to them by eager PR apparatchiks.
    — Vanity Fair, Vanity Fair, 25 Aug. 2026
  • The organization also supports first responders and their families and honors those who have died by suicide.
    — Charna Flam, PEOPLE, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of honors
Verb
  • Kin Coedel collaborated with Meti and Hijra women in Nepal in the creation of Between Reverence and Refusal, giving them recognition and exposing the paradox of a culture that venerates femininity in myth but doesn’t acknowledge those who embody it in everyday life.
    — Vogue, Vogue, 1 June 2026
  • Redemptive suffering Shared sorrow is a key part of Iran’s Twelver Shiite identity, which venerates the Prophet Muhammad’s family through daughter Fatima and cousin and son-in-law, Ali.
    — Mary Thurlkill, The Conversation, 30 Mar. 2026
Definition of venerates
Verb
  • While Western climbers regard Everest as a peak to be conquered, Tenzing reveres it as a sacred mother goddess.
    — Diana Lodderhose, Deadline, 25 Aug. 2026
  • Harbaugh reveres the Giants and their ownership and their brand for their tradition and their landmark status in the NFL, dating back to their founding in 1925.
    — Pat Leonard, New York Daily News, 25 July 2026
Definition of reveres
Verb
  • Jon Sasser, a spokesperson for Westlake, said the town respects the court’s decision to take more time to consider the matters presented at Wednesday’s hearing.
    — Fousia Abdullahi, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 Aug. 2026
  • The underlying and often reiterated vibe is that this dude respects women and works out.
    — CT Jones, Rolling Stone, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of respects
Verb
  • At a time when our right to protest is under siege, this sci-fi yarn exalts the way an individual’s conviction can plant seeds of change, leading to a stronger sense of community.
    — Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2026
  • Boyes, too, exalts the elephants like a man possessed.
    — Justin Chang, New Yorker, 27 Feb. 2026
Definition of exalts
Verb
  • Continue reading … GOSPEL TRUTH — 'Office' actor praises Dem candidate's faith as 'achingly close to Jesus' Christianity'.
    — , FOXNews.com, 24 Aug. 2026
  • Brett Freedman, makeup artist to the likes of Lisa Kudrow and Catherine Zeta-Jones, also praises the formula.
    — Jenny Berg, Vogue, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of praises
Verb
  • The recognizing states will have to step up, too, by making their security guarantees concrete and by helping shape a Palestinian state that does not threaten its neighbors and dignifies its people by providing functioning institutions and proper services.
    — SHIRA EFRON, Foreign Affairs, 23 Sep. 2025
Definition of dignifies

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Cite this Entry

“Lionizes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lionizes. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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