From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishdeifyde‧i‧fy /ˈdiːəfaɪ, ˈdeɪ-/ verb (deified, deifying, deifies) [transitive] ADMIREto treat someone or something with extreme respect and admiration —deification /ˌdiːəfəˈkeɪʃən, ˌdeɪ-/ noun [uncountable]→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
deify• It would not do to deify a rebel against Rome.• But Albert Einstein has been deified by the scientific community and society at large.• If they ruled well, emperors were deified - consigned to the place where the gods lived.• He was deified in the Middle Kingdom and a shrine for his cult was build on Elephantine Island.• But because both systems deify one aspect of reality they produce problems which are insoluble within their own terms of reference.• Again we have seen only too clearly in some other countries what can happen if you personify and almost deify the State.• There was already by now a political and religious system, whose primitive beliefs deified the various forces of nature.• Nothing could have been more natural than to deify this powerful and benevolent force.Origin deify (1300-1400) French déifier, from Latin deus “god” 