mythologize
|my-thol-o-gize|
🇺🇸
/mɪˈθɑːlədʒaɪz/
🇬🇧
/mɪˈθɒlədʒaɪz/
turn into myth; glorify
Etymology
'mythologize' originates from Greek, specifically the words 'muthos' (μῦθος) and 'logia' (λογία) via Late Latin/Medieval Latin 'mythologia', and the verbalizing suffix '-ize' from Greek '-izein' (through Latin/French), where 'muthos' meant 'story' or 'speech' and 'logia' meant 'study' or 'discourse'.
'mythologize' changed from Late Latin/Medieval Latin 'mythologia' (meaning 'study or collection of myths') plus the verb-forming suffix (via French/Latin formations) and eventually became the modern English verb 'mythologize' used from the 17th century onward.
Initially it was tied to 'study or tell myths' (the scholarly or narrative sense); over time it broadened to include 'to make legendary' or 'to idealize,' acquiring a more figurative, evaluative sense ('to glorify' or 'romanticize').
Meanings by Part of Speech
Verb 1
to tell, relate, or treat someone or something in terms of myth; to present as part of a body of myths.
Writers sometimes mythologize historical figures, turning complex people into simple legends.
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Verb 2
to idealize, glorify, or romanticize someone or something—making them seem larger-than-life.
The press can mythologize celebrities, overlooking their faults.
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Verb 3
to convert events, ideas, or people into material for myths or to incorporate them into a system of myths.
Some cultures mythologize natural phenomena to explain their origins.
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Last updated: 2025/08/23 03:57