heroine

noun

her·​o·​ine ˈher-ə-wən How to pronounce heroine (audio)
ˈhir-,
ˈhe-rə- How to pronounce heroine (audio)
1
a
: a mythological or legendary woman often of divine descent having great strength or ability
b
: a woman admired and emulated for her achievements and qualities
American heroines such as Eleanor Roosevelt and Rosa Parks
remembered as the heroine of the flood
2
a
: the principal female character in a literary or dramatic work
the heroine of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet
b
: the central female figure in an event or period

Examples of heroine in a Sentence

The town remembered her as the heroine of the flood and erected a statue in her honor.
Recent Examples on the Web Pushed out by an unloving foster family, our heroine bounces from one unhappy situation to another, blithely rising above a string of temporary jobs, unreliable boyfriends, and a stint of streetwalking. Danny Horn, EW.com, 7 Mar. 2024 And although the Coens have put more than a few luminous heroines on-screen—think Fargo or True Grit—Jamie and Marian are the kind of appreciably flawed, semi-charmed goofballs that are usually written as men in the brothers’ capers. David Sims, The Atlantic, 21 Feb. 2024 But here Williams focuses the story on the young heroine’s search for belonging. Naveen Kumar, New York Times, 24 Feb. 2024 Dakota Johnson may play the titular heroine in Madame Web, but the film also introduces a whole squad of new superheroes. Devan Coggan, EW.com, 14 Feb. 2024 Photo: Shoot Digital for Style.com Laird Borrelli-Persson, Senior Archive Editor There are so many types of women playing the heroine in Prada’s fall 2002 ready-to-wear collection. Nicole Phelps, Vogue, 13 Feb. 2024 Priggish Fanny Price has never been as popular an Austen heroine as Elizabeth Bennet or the Dashwood sisters. The Week Us, theweek, 18 Jan. 2024 This helps explain why, back in Barbie Land, our heroine is experiencing symptoms of imperfection, from flat feet to bad breath. Chris Vognar, Los Angeles Times, 13 Feb. 2024 The Mean Girls star plays mousy book editor Maddie Kelly in the story, which follows our plucky heroine on a journey to find love by learning to advocate for herself first. Hanna Lustig, Glamour, 6 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'heroine.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Latin heroina, from Greek hērōinē, feminine of hērōs

First Known Use

1587, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of heroine was in 1587

Dictionary Entries Near heroine

Cite this Entry

“Heroine.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/heroine. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

heroine

noun
her·​o·​ine ˈher-ə-wən How to pronounce heroine (audio)
1
: a woman in legends or myths who has great courage and daring
2
: a woman admired for her achievements and qualities
3
: the chief female figure in a literary work or in an event or period
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!