superhero

The word “superhero” means a fictional character with extraordinary powers who fights crime or evil. In plain terms, a hero with special powers (in fiction), or anyone praised for extraordinary real-world actions.

“Superhero” is pronounced SOOP-hih-roh (/ˈs(j)upɚhɪɹoʊ/ in IPA).

Here is “superhero” used in a sentence: “Kids love dressing up as their favourite superhero for Halloween.”

The opposite of “superhero” — its antonyms — is supervillain.

“Superhero” is a noun.

The word “superhero” dates back to around 1917. From super- + hero, first recorded around 1917, though the genre exploded with comic books from the 1930s onward.

“Superhero” is an uncommon word in modern English.

“Superhero” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: a fictional character with extraordinary powers who fights crime or evil.

A superhero is a fictional character with extraordinary powers who fights crime or evil, while a supervillain is the opposing figure who uses similar extraordinary abilities for wrongdoing. The two roles are typically defined in direct contrast to each other within a story.

"Superhero" is standardly written as a single word in modern English, without a space or hyphen. Older or stylistic usages occasionally hyphenate it as "super-hero," but the closed form is now the accepted standard.

A hero is simply someone admired for courage, noble acts, or accomplishments, without any requirement of special powers. A superhero is a specific type of hero, either fictional and endowed with extraordinary abilities, or, used loosely, a real person admired for doing something especially impressive.