heroine

/ˈhɛrəwən/

/ˈhɛrəʊɪn/

Other forms: heroines

A heroine is a real-life or fictional woman who has lots of courage and fights on the side of good, maybe by rescuing a kitten from a tree, slaying an evil dragon, or helping you with your science fair project.

In books and movies, the heroine is the woman who is the main character, and in comic books and fantasy novels, heroines often have superpowers that help them accomplish incredible feats. There are heroines in regular life too, like women’s rights activists who fight against sexism, or a brave mother who rescues her child from a burning building. Heroine sounds the same as the addictive drug heroin, but a heroine will save your life, while heroin will probably end it.

Definitions of heroine

1. noun

   the main good female character in a work of fiction
   type of:

   character, part, persona, role, theatrical role

   an actor's portrayal of someone in a play, film, etc...
2. noun

   a woman possessing heroic qualities or a woman who has performed heroic deeds
   examples:

   Judith

   Jewish heroine in one of the books of the Apocrypha; she saved her people by decapitating the Assyrian general Holofernes

   Mary Ludwig Hays McCauley

   heroine of the American Revolution who carried water to soldiers during the Battle of Monmouth Court House and took over her husband's gun when he was overcome by heat (1754-1832)

   type of:

   adult female, woman

   an adult female person (as opposed to a man)