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Glite Dictionary
Alger

Alger

4 8.8
An American writer of stories about boys who succeed through hard work and good behaviour
  • proper noun
  • /ˈæl.dʒər/
: Alger
  • Her ascent from poverty to prosperity is often likened to a classic Horatio Alger tale.
  • Horatio Alger
  • Alger story
  • Alger's heroes

And then the other thing I, I do is I work with a group called the Horatio Alger Society.

Examples

  • The charity dinner celebrates the achievements of individuals who embody the spirit of Horatio Alger with their success stories.

  • Many teenagers find inspiration in the stories written by Horatio Alger about overcoming adversity through hard work.

  • You obviously got the Horatio Alger award.

  • And then the other thing I, I do is I work with a group called the Horatio Alger Society.

    Team Coco

  • How would Horatio Alger have handled this situation?

    Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998)

  • No Horatio Alger hero could have improved on his iron determination to get ahead in this world.

    Academic text (2009)

  • Goldberg's childhood was less comfortable, and his success in life resembled that of a Horatio Alger character.

    Academic text (2003)

  • Cosmopolitan offers a modern mix of the Cinderella myth and a Horatio Alger story for working-class women.

    Academic text (1990)

  • Nathanson's remarkable career is a Horatio Alger story (CFW, June 2, 1943, 6).

    Academic text (2006)

  • In the United States, Valenzuela's image paralleled that of the late nineteenth-century Horatio Alger "rags-to-riches" hero.

    Academic text (1994)

Synonyms

Horatio Alger
vsAlger
4 8.6

A story about a poor young person who becomes successful by working hard and behaving well

is the shorter surname form used instead of the full name

Surface Forms

Alger main

Etymology

Alger comes from the American writer Horatio Alger, who in the 1800s wrote popular stories about boys who rose from poverty through hard work and 'virtue'. So an Alger story is a way to describe a 'rags-to-riches' or 'self-made' tale where hard work leads to success.