as in to idealize
to represent or think of as better than reality would warrant
he romanticized what life in a small town would be like, only to be later disappointed when reality intruded
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Recent Examples of romanticize
Such images were tools of propaganda that romanticized the Caribbean as a utopia after decades of associating the region with savagery and malady.
—
Shameekia Shantel Johnson, ARTnews.com, 3 Sep. 2024
Embedded in those songs, at least, was the idea that alcoholism should not be an aspirational thing, even if the songwriters’ wicked wit did have a way of romanticizing it.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 12 Oct. 2024
As the United States and the United Kingdom shifted rapidly from rural, agrarian societies to urban and industrial economies during the 19th century, the transformation played out in paintings and literature that romanticized and idealized nature for the newly urbanized classes.
—Anne Wallentine, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Oct. 2024
By Elizabeth Logan Ryan Murphy—who was accused of romanticizing serial killers with the first iteration of this project, Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, back in 2022—has been criticized for his depictions of Erik and Lyle Menendez.
—Emily Tannenbaum, Glamour, 26 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for romanticize 
Shameekia Shantel Johnson, ARTnews.com, 3 Sep. 2024
Embedded in those songs, at least, was the idea that alcoholism should not be an aspirational thing, even if the songwriters’ wicked wit did have a way of romanticizing it.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 12 Oct. 2024
As the United States and the United Kingdom shifted rapidly from rural, agrarian societies to urban and industrial economies during the 19th century, the transformation played out in paintings and literature that romanticized and idealized nature for the newly urbanized classes.
—Anne Wallentine, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Oct. 2024
By Elizabeth Logan Ryan Murphy—who was accused of romanticizing serial killers with the first iteration of this project, Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, back in 2022—has been criticized for his depictions of Erik and Lyle Menendez.
—Emily Tannenbaum, Glamour, 26 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for romanticize
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Cite this Entry
“Romanticize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/romanticize. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
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