heroine
- 01 B1 Intermediate
a woman who does something very brave or important and is admired by others.
a woman admired for her courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities.
Simple“The nurse became a national heroine after saving dozens of people during the flood.”
In context“History books often overlook the local heroines who risked their lives to lead resistance movements during the occupation.”
UsageWhile 'heroine' specifically refers to a woman, many modern speakers use the gender-neutral 'hero' for everyone.
- 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
the most important woman or girl in a book, play, or movie.
the principal female character in a literary or dramatic work.
Simple“In the final chapter, the heroine finally discovers the secret of her past.”
In context“The author subverts traditional tropes by creating a heroine who is deeply flawed and occasionally unsympathetic to the reader.”
Teacher's tipIn contemporary literary criticism, 'protagonist' is often preferred over 'heroine' to avoid focusing on the character's gender.
SynonymsAntonyms
“Sarandon, who played the heroine Janet Weiss in movie, praised Curry as "a funny, sexy, original".”
“Many of the heroines in her books would rather throw a frog at a wall than kiss one, and are “very much more likely to rescue than be rescued”.”
From Latin hērōīna, from late Ancient Greek ἡρωΐνη (hērōḯnē) (2nd century), a feminine equivalent of ἥρως (hḗrōs, “hero, demigod”), equivalent to hero + -ine (suffix forming feminine nouns). * English from 1587. The sense of "female lead character" is from 1715.
Partly from the noun and partly from hero + -ine (suffix forming adjectives).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.