to martyrize
1
9.9
- verb
- /ˈmɑːrtəraɪz/
- Offensive
- Writers have described how oppressive regimes martyrize dissidents to instill fear in others.
Examples
-
They tried to martyrize him for his beliefs.
-
She felt as though fate had chosen to martyrize her with one hardship after another.
-
The unjust ruler sought to martyrize anyone who spoke out against his regime.
-
Don't martyrize yourself for others!
-
The oppressive regime sought to martyrize political dissenters to instill fear in the populace.
-
She felt that the media was trying to martyrize the victim, exaggerating their suffering for sensationalism.
-
The way they martyrize their heroes makes it hard to separate fact from fiction.
Synonyms
478
5.7
To cause someone to feel severe physical or emotional pain, often on purpose
119
6.7
To frighten someone very much by using threats or violence
102
6.9
To cause someone to feel very shocked and upset
63
6.0
Treat someone cruelly or unfairly so they suffer
34
8.0
To criticize someone or something very harshly, often in public
31
7.7
Treat someone cruelly with violence or make them numb to suffering
17
8.0
To punish or kill someone for their beliefs
Antonyms
How Severe
- Offensive
1
9.9
- NSFW
83
7.2
91
7.0
- NSFW
238
3.7
59
2.9
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
Martyrize comes from the word martyr, which originally came from a Greek word meaning 'witness' and later described someone who suffers or dies for a belief, and the ending -ize means 'to make'. So to martyrize someone is to treat or hurt them as if to make them a martyr, often to punish or frighten others.