Heroine and Heroin: One Letter, Two Different Words
A heroine is a female hero or the main character of a story. Heroin, without the final e, is a drug named by a pharmaceutical company.
A heroine is a woman admired for courage, or the central female character of a story. The near-identical *heroin* is unrelated in meaning: it was a trade name coined at the end of the nineteenth century, reportedly because early testers said the drug made them feel heroic. One silent letter separates them, and spellcheckers rarely help.
- A woman admired for her deeds. *A wartime heroine.*
- The main female character. *The heroine of the novel.*
- A woman greatly admired by someone. *She was my heroine.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | heroine | A local heroine. |
| Plural | heroines | Two heroines. |
| Male | hero | A war hero. |
| Adjective | heroic | A heroic effort. |
| Noun | heroism | Quiet heroism. |
How it is used in a sentence
- The heroine refuses the offer in chapter one.Literary use.
- She was hailed as a heroine after the rescue.Real events.
- Many writers now use hero for women too.A growing preference.
Story roles
- Protagonist — the central character, neutral about gender or virtue
- Hero / heroine — the admirable central character
- Antagonist — the force opposing them
- Antihero — a protagonist without heroic qualities
- Foil — a character whose contrast reveals another
From Latin *heroina*, from Greek *heroine*, the feminine of *heros*. The drug name was registered as a trademark by Bayer in 1898.
Should women be called heroes or heroines?
Both are correct. Many writers now use hero for everyone, keeping heroine for older or literary contexts.
How do I keep the spellings apart?
The person ends in -ine, like *feminine*. The drug ends in -in, like other chemical names.