From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishherohe‧ro /ˈhɪərəʊ $ ˈhɪroʊ/ ●●● W3 noun (plural heroes) [countable] 1 ADMIREBRAVEa man who is admired for doing something extremely brave → heroine He had dared to speak out against injustice, and overnight he became a national hero. His father was a war hero, a former fighter pilot. the unsung heroes who drove convoys of aid to Bosniahero of a hero of the Great War A man hailed as a hero for 50 years has been unmasked as a traitor.2 PERSON/PEOPLEthe man or boy who is the main character in a book, film, play etc → heroinehero of Phileas Fogg, hero of Jules Verne’s ‘Around the World in Eighty Days’3 ADMIREMANa man who is admired very much for a particular skill or quality → heroinesomebody’s hero When I was small, Uncle Fred was my hero.hero of Einstein is the hero of those who explore science at its deepest level.4 American EnglishDFF a long thin sandwich filled with meat, cheese etc5 → from hero to zeroCOLLOCATIONS – Meanings 1 & 3ADJECTIVES/NOUN + hero a real/true heroThe real heroes were the guys who fought in the front lines.a great heroHe finally got to meet his great hero, the Brazilian footballer, Pele.a national heroThey regard Aung San as a national hero and martyr.a local heroRichards was a local hero, a star of the football club.a popular hero (=someone whom many people admire)Ross was an arctic explorer and popular hero.a cult hero (=someone who a particular group of people admire)He became a cult hero among surfers.a war hero (=a soldier who was very brave in a war)Coming home, he was hailed as a war hero.an unsung hero (=someone whose bravery or effort is not noticed or recognized)These volunteers are the unsung heroes of the campaign.an unlikely hero (=someone who you did not expect to be brave or did not expect to admire )Baxter was the unlikely hero of the game.a sporting hero (=someone who people admire in a sport)Tiger Woods was his sporting hero.a folk hero (=an ordinary person who does something brave and becomes a hero in a particular place)Cesar Chavez has folk hero status in the Latino community.an accidental hero (=someone who becomes a hero by chance)He became an accidental hero after discovering the injured child while out walking.a conquering hero (=someone who has defeated someone else)Team members were greeted like conquering heroes on their return.somebody’s boyhood/childhood hero (=someone who was your hero when you were a boy/child)McEnroe had been one of his boyhood heroes.verbsbecome a heroHe became a national hero for his part in the war. be hailed (as) a hero (=people say you are a hero)He was hailed a hero after saving the young girl’s life.phrasesget/be given a hero’s welcome (=be treated as a hero when you arrive somewhere)The team were given a hero’s welcome when they returned to the city.
Examples from the Corpus
hero• Conway returned home, hailed as a hero of the war.• Defense attorney Ana Ortiz, who referred to her client as Billyjack, said he is a hero by any name.• It is counterproductive to be derogatory about hairstyle, clothing, or current countercultural heroes.• Because Masten was his hero, he was a little nervous.• Racing drivers appear to be larger-than-life heroes.• His legend, like the stories of most heroes, begins badly.• One is that the shelf life of heroes is short.• sports heroes• In cinema, the hero always got the girl and the bad guy was always punished.• Indiana Jones is the hero of the film.• Here we have the concept of the maverick, the hero innovator, the streetwise entrepreneur, that several speakers have described.• Who was the hero of "The Catcher in the Rye"?• The hero of the story is a young soldier.• Hamlet is Shakespeare's most famous tragic hero.• Shakespeare's best-known tragic hero is probably Hamlet.hailed as a hero• Read in studio A man hailed as a hero for fifty years has been unmasked as a traitor.Origin hero (1500-1600) Latin heros, from Greek 