a hagiography about a famous politician The book gives a good idea of his virtues without resorting to hagiography.

Recent Examples on the Web

Like many biopics, the film has the glossy veneer of hagiography—down to one of its final scenes, which finds Jones’s version of Ginsburg walking up the steps of the Supreme Court Building, only to morph into the real Ginsburg doing the same. Megan Garber, The Atlantic, "What the Ruth Bader Ginsburg Fandom Knew," 19 Sep. 2020

As Trump’s presidency drags on and Ginsburg’s hospital visits arrive with ever greater frequency, all this hagiography appears increasingly misplaced. Amanda Hess, New York Times, "The Fandom Around R.B.G. Is Out of Step With Reality," 12 Aug. 2020

Others criticized him as selfish, wondering where his then-wife and children were in the hagiography. Nancy Armour, USA TODAY, "Opinion: 'The Last Dance' showed Michael Jordan to be both otherworldly and deeply human," 18 May 2020

The early hagiographies, the images etched into those cathedrals, still hold lessons for us today. Matthew Gabriele, Time, "Christian Groups That Resist Public-Health Guidelines Are Forgetting a Key Part of the Religion's History," 20 Apr. 2020

Trump’s perceived glories or evils drove sales of exposés, hagiographies and memoirs, almost all designed to confirm rather than inform or challenge one’s fealty. Ron Charles, Washington Post, "11 trends that changed the way we read this decade," 24 Dec. 2019

Catholic hagiography says that a sample of Januarius’s blood was supposedly preserved by a woman named Eusebia, who gave it to the local church authorities for safekeeping. Michael Hardy, Wired, "In Naples, Faith Substitutes for What Science Can’t Foresee," 28 Feb. 2020

When a revered man dies, the lines between hagiography and history are blurred. Eliott C. Mclaughlin, CNN, "Fans will pack Staples Center Monday to honor Kobe Bryant and his daughter," 23 Feb. 2020

Such an attack was a specialty of FDR’s, despite the all the hagiographies written about his imperial presidency. David Harsanyi, National Review, "Presidential Misconduct: Some Historical Perspective," 5 Dec. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hagiography.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.