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Glite Dictionary
to be a martyr

to be a martyr

7 8.3
Act like you suffer or give up things for others to get sympathy
  • idiom
translation icon : ser un mártir
  • Many believe that to be a martyr is to sacrifice oneself for a noble cause.
  • want to be a martyr
  • try not to be a martyr
  • just won't be a martyr

I also refuse to be a martyr to an antiquated idea of motherhood.

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Examples

  • If they kill me, then I'm a martyr.

    Night Call Nurses (1972)

  • Thomas Ball is a martyr for men's rights.

    Blog text (28)

  • You want to be a martyr?

    Dangerous Game (1993)

  • I could at least be a martyr.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • Ryan, you need to stop being a martyr, okay?

    Night of the Living Deb (2015)

  • Sarah, don't be a martyr.

    Soul Man (1986)

  • No, I'm not; I just won't be a martyr and spend my life cleaning up after other members of my family.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • Revolution is a mindset that needs those involved to sacrifice what they have for the good of others and the change of rule; any revolutionary is prepared to be a martyr.

    Blog text (30)

  • I don’t want to be a martyr.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • He decided to be a martyr for his friends by taking the blame for a mistake he didn't make.

Synonyms

to sacrifice
vsto be a martyr
394 3.4

Give up something important to help someone or reach a goal

is similar but often involves unnecessary suffering to gain sympathy
to make a sacrifice
vsto be a martyr
37 3.9

To give up something important to help other people or reach a long-term goal

is similar but often uses needless suffering to attract sympathy
to fall on a grenade
vsto be a martyr
8.2

Accept a big risk to protect other people

is similar but can be done unnecessarily to gain sympathy

Antonyms

indifferent
46 4.4

Not interested or showing no strong feeling about something

How Self-Sacrificing

to be a martyr
7 8.3
helpfulness
3 2.3

Surface Forms

be a martyr infinitive
was a martyr past
been a martyr past participle
being a martyr present participle
is a martyr third person singular

Morphology

be + a + martyr

This is a simple predicative combination: knowing 'martyr' (a person who suffers or sacrifices) together with 'be' and the article 'a' allows a learner to infer 'to be a martyr' as to act or suffer as a martyr. The modern nuance of suffering unnecessarily or to gain sympathy is a direct, predictable extension of the noun's meaning and is cross-linguistically common, so the expression is transparent.

Etymology

Be a martyr comes from the old idea of a martyr, someone who suffered or died for a belief or cause. So today, when someone chooses to be a martyr by refusing help or doing all the work, it means they are 'suffering' or 'giving up things' often to 'get sympathy'.