as in to idealize
to represent or think of as better than reality would warrant
he romanticized what life in a small town would be like, only to be later disappointed when reality intruded
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Recent Examples of romanticize
In the fight to save Wikie and Keijo, the idea of a sanctuary is the enemy of the existing marine park — both options are still captivity, yet one is romanticized and one vilified — and more importantly one form is a fantasy, the other a reality.
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Valerie Greene, The Orlando Sentinel, 14 Mar. 2026
While the rest of the world romanticizes drifting in Japan, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department has had its fill of smoky skids.
—Caleb Jacobs, The Drive, 4 Mar. 2026
Holi has also been romanticized and popularized over the decades in Bollywood films.
—ABC News, 3 Mar. 2026
Maybe if Robinson had 31-inch arms the Dolphins wouldn’t have romanticized him so much, and avoided selecting him with the 21st overall pick.
—Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 25 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for romanticize
Valerie Greene, The Orlando Sentinel, 14 Mar. 2026
While the rest of the world romanticizes drifting in Japan, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department has had its fill of smoky skids.
—Caleb Jacobs, The Drive, 4 Mar. 2026
Holi has also been romanticized and popularized over the decades in Bollywood films.
—ABC News, 3 Mar. 2026
Maybe if Robinson had 31-inch arms the Dolphins wouldn’t have romanticized him so much, and avoided selecting him with the 21st overall pick.
—Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 25 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for romanticize
Recent Examples of Synonyms for romanticize
Verb
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California Adventure, at its most idealized, stood for more than an assortment of film properties.—
Todd Martens,
Los Angeles Times,
24 Feb. 2026
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Many love songs idealize; here, John Prine and Iris DeMent sweetly rattle off a list of each other’s endearing imperfections.—
Rachel Syme,
New Yorker,
13 Feb. 2026
Verb
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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
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The song was seen as glamorizing Nazi ideology, antisemitism and Hitler.—
Kevin Dolak,
HollywoodReporter,
26 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Romanticize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/romanticize. Accessed 22 Mar. 2026.
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