Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
to act like a diva

to act like a diva

1 8.2
Behave in a very dramatic, demanding way to get special treatment
  • idiom
  • Offensive
translation icon : hacerse la diva
  • When Don said hi to him, he said Jonah acted like a diva and brushed him off.

Examples

  • After winning the award, he began to act like a diva, expecting everyone to cater to his every whim.

  • " Tarja acts like a diva."

    Blog text (19)

  • I make it hot when it's sundown, uh ♪ ♪ Fever, shawty wanna act like a diva

    Boogie (2021)

  • During the meeting, she started to act like a diva, demanding special treatment from everyone.

  • At the party, she really started to act like a diva, refusing to talk to anyone who didn't compliment her.

Synonyms

to queen it over
vsto act like a diva
  • UK
9.9

Behave as if others are less important

is more dramatic and demanding for attention rather than focused on dominating others
to act like a rockstar
vsto act like a diva
  • Informal
8.1

Behave in a loud, showy way to get attention

is more about demanding self-importance and drama rather than flashy attention seeking

How Flamboyant

to act like a diva
  • Offensive
1 8.2
to act like a rockstar
  • Informal
8.1

Surface Forms

act like a diva infinitive
acted like a diva past
acted like a diva past participle
acting like a diva present participle
acts like a diva third person singular

Morphology

act + like + a + diva

The meaning is directly derivable from 'act' (behave) + 'like' (similar to) + 'diva' (a demanding, self-important performer): the phrase literally means to behave in the way a diva does. This follows the common 'act like X' compositional pattern found across languages, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words will generally infer the intended meaning.

Etymology

Act like a diva comes from the world of opera. A diva was the star female singer who often expected special treatment and acted very dramatically, so to act like a diva now means 'to behave in an overly dramatic, demanding, or self-important way'.