Thesaurus.com
Dictionary.com
Definitions

idealize

[ahy-dee-uh-lahyz] / aɪˈdi əˌlaɪz /
VERB
romanticize
Synonyms


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

It’s easy to idealize the ’60s, but I wonder how it compares to today, in terms of your ability to get things done as an activist?

From Los Angeles Times Oct. 11, 2023

A number of Googlers I spoke with framed January’s job cuts—which took place via email—as a wake-up call for Googlers who still idealize their employer.

From Slate Feb. 9, 2023

“I am going to speak out against those who praise fascist murderers and idealize extremists. I am going to speak out against Holocaust deniers. I’m going to call those out who won’t do it.”

From Seattle Times Jan. 12, 2023

Letting go of a lost cause has two difficult and complicated steps, oversimplified as follows: Fill up your life meaningfully without this person, and resist the temptation to idealize what isn’t there.

From Washington Post Jan. 9, 2022

Not much to idealize when you know your aunt is crying herself to sleep next door and nothing can be done.

From "Where Things Come Back" by John Corey Whaley

Called "splitting," Behr defined this as "the person devalues and idealizes you or others."

From Salon Jan. 26, 2023

But then, “The Offer” also idealizes Evans, who did a pretty good job of that himself in his memoir and subsequent documentary “The Kid Stays in the Picture.”

From Los Angeles Times Apr. 27, 2022

Like her, he idealizes love, remembering Bronco Henry as part of a bygone generation of “real men” and attributing all his ranching success to his deceased lover.

From Washington Post Dec. 25, 2021

We live in a culture that idealizes the idea of love, and the idea that there is one true person who will complete you, fulfill all your dreams and love you forever.

From New York Times Oct. 18, 2018

Just as he idealizes Caroline, he paints the Loyers as the perfect mother and daughter.

From "Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers" by Deborah Heiligman

The concept is illustrated by the Carnot cycle, an idealized model that defines the maximum theoretical efficiency of a heat engine by carefully regulating the movement of heat between hot and cold regions.

From Science Daily Jul. 11, 2026

But “Do the Right Thing” remains with us, its urgency and relevance undiminished, waiting for an America open to listen and live up to its idealized aspirations.

From Los Angeles Times Jun. 29, 2026

According to Cottrill, the group pushed for repeated aesthetic changes to make Trump appear slimmer and more idealized than the photographic references he was initially using.

From Salon May 17, 2026

Inside these irregular geometric shapes, delicately painted images depict happy black families in idealized scenes.

From The Wall Street Journal May 14, 2026

If a motion picture location scout were searching for an idealized chess club, the Marshall might be his pick.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

“They start idealizing their old culture; suddenly things seem much nicer than when they lived at home,” she said.

From Salon Jul. 11, 2026

This verdict is in keeping with the tenor of the last 50 years of classical scholarship, which has moved past—perhaps too far past—any idealizing visions of Pericles and Athens.

From The Wall Street Journal Apr. 10, 2026

As Eloise gets pulled more into Sandie’s life, things get progressively darker, and the film becomes a cautionary tale about the dangers of idealizing a time and place, and about female rage.

From Seattle Times Oct. 26, 2021

Think of her Birch Society works as history paintings minus the traditional idealizing gloss.

From Los Angeles Times Feb. 12, 2020

Also, Theo thinks, Vincent is too focused on Mauve and is idealizing him, as he is wont to do with people.

From "Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers" by Deborah Heiligman




Vocabulary lists containing idealize


Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Dictionary.com's Learning Companion

Go beyond just looking up words.
Remember them forever with VocabTrainer.

Start training