he ‧ ro W3 /ˈhɪərəʊ $ ˈhɪroʊ/ BrE AmE noun ( plural heroes ) [countable]
[ Date: 1500-1600 ; Language: Latin ; Origin: heros , from Greek ]
1 . a man who is admired for doing something extremely brave ⇨ heroine :
He had dared to speak out against injustice, and overnight he became a national hero.
His father was a war hero, a former fighter pilot.
the unsung heroes who drove convoys of aid to Bosnia
hero of
a hero of the Great War
A man hailed as a hero for 50 years has been unmasked as a traitor.
2 . the man or boy who is the main character in a book, film, play etc ⇨ heroine
hero of
Phileas Fogg, hero of Jules Verne’s ‘Around the World in Eighty Days’
3 . a man who is admired very much for a particular skill or quality ⇨ heroine
sb’s hero
When I was small, Uncle Fred was my hero.
hero of
Einstein is the hero of those who explore science at its deepest level.
4 . American English a long thin ↑ sandwich filled with meat, cheese etc
• • •
COLLOCATIONS (for Meanings 1 & 3)
■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + hero
▪ a real/true hero
The real heroes were the guys who fought in the front lines.
▪ a great hero
He finally got to meet his great hero, the Brazilian footballer, Pele.
▪ a national hero
They regard Aung San as a national hero and martyr.
▪ a local hero
Richards was a local hero, a star of the football club.
▪ a popular hero (=someone whom many people admire)
Ross was an arctic explorer and popular hero.
▪ a cult hero (=someone who a particular group of people admire)
He became a cult hero among surfers.
▪ a war hero (=a soldier who was very brave in a war)
Coming home, he was hailed as a war hero.
▪ an unsung hero (=someone whose bravery or effort is not noticed or recognized)
These volunteers are the unsung heroes of the campaign.
▪ an unlikely hero (=someone who you did not expect to be brave or did not expect to admire )
Baxter was the unlikely hero of the game.
▪ a sporting hero (=someone who people admire in a sport)
Tiger Woods was his sporting hero.
▪ a folk hero (=an ordinary person who does something brave and becomes a hero in a particular place)
Cesar Chavez has folk hero status in the Latino community.
▪ an accidental hero (=someone who becomes a hero by chance)
He became an accidental hero after discovering the injured child while out walking.
▪ a conquering hero (=someone who has defeated someone else)
Team members were greeted like conquering heroes on their return.
▪ sb’s boyhood/childhood hero (=someone who was your hero when you were a boy/child)
McEnroe had been one of his boyhood heroes.
■ verbs
▪ become a hero
He became a national hero for his part in the war.
▪ be hailed (as) a hero (=people say you are a hero)
He was hailed a hero after saving the young girl’s life.
■ phrases
▪ get/be given a hero’s welcome (=be treated as a hero when you arrive somewhere)
The team were given a hero’s welcome when they returned to the city.