as in honoring
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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Recent Examples of lionizing
Gelles avoids lionizing Patagonia’s leader, describing Chouinard’s mercurial leadership style that often bewildered his staff at Patagonia.
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Maya Silver, Outside, 20 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lionizing
Verb
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Thomas Jefferson, as secretary of state, passionately advocated honoring the treaty, viewing it as a debt of gratitude to a nation that shared republican ideals and had sacrificed much for American liberty.—
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Glaser made history last year as the first solo female host of the Golden Globes and is once again set to guide the show through a night honoring the year's top performances and productions.—
Verb
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Celebrini is among many players his age who grew up admiring Jonathan Toews, who signed a one-year deal with his hometown Jets in July.—
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The Orbán-admiring Hungarian press is full of stories about how Orbán will be staying at Blair House, the official guest residence of the White House, a sign of how much things have changed since Orbán was persona non grata during the Biden years.—
Verb
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Hudson has heard from studio heads, producers and other past collaborators praising her work.—
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In a post on X, Huberman shared the White House’s graphic of the new pyramid, praising the decisions that were made.—
Verb
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Chu sits at the center of Hollywood, and grew up in Silicon Valley revering engineers.—
Verb
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In this country, states should consider what those experiences reveal about respecting autonomy at the end of life.—
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Crawford said the Mexican ended up respecting his punching power and his ability to control the exchanges.—
Verb
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Explain to the woman that not everyone in the group is comfortable displaying their religiosity in public, and some may prefer to do their worshiping privately.—
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Filmed aboard an operational replica of an actual 18th-century ship, the Götheborg of Sweden, the sequence sees Lee and her congregation worshipping through movement daily on the ship’s deck, rain or shine.—
Verb
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The executive is looking to bring the Kate Somerville brand back to a strong position by leaning into its clinical roots and exalting its hero ExfoliKate line of cleansers and treatments, priced between $46 for a foaming wash and $85 for an exfoliating treatment.—
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Summer is usually the time of long days and longer vacations, but summer 2025 was a season where the business world’s inviolable godhead, the chief executive officer, looked less and less like a position worth exalting.—
Cite this Entry
“Lionizing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lionizing. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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