Apotheosizes

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Raises someone or something to the level of a god or treats as perfect or ideal
2. Exalts a person or concept by portraying them as godlike or supremely admirable
3. Glorifies an individual or idea by depicting them as divine or flawless

Etymology: "Apotheosizes" is the third-person singular form of "apotheosize," which means to raise someone to divine status or to treat them as flawless. The root goes back to ancient Greek "apotheoun," built from "apo-" (away from) and "theos" (god), so the core idea is a person being moved away from the mortal sphere into the company of the gods. Greek writers used the related noun "apotheosis" for the deification of a human, a practice associated especially with Roman emperors, who were officially declared gods after death. English borrowed the noun "apotheosis" from Latin, which had itself taken it from Greek. The verb came later: English formed "apotheosize" by adding the suffix "-ize" to the noun, a pattern that allowed writers to turn any elevated concept into an action. The "-ize" ending traces back through Late Latin and Middle French to a Greek verb-forming suffix, so the verb is a Greek word passed through several languages before it reached English.

Synonyms: deifies, glorifies, idolizes, exalts, worships

Antonyms: demeans, disparages, devalues, denigrates, belittles