celebrity

Noun

celebrity (countable and uncountable, plural celebrities)

1. (obsolete) A rite or ceremony.
2. (uncountable, uncommon outside high registers) Fame, renown; the state of being famous or talked-about.
   • Many of those that envy celebrities aspire to celebrity themselves.

   Synonyms:

   big name, distinction, fame, eminence, renown

3. (countable) A person who has a high degree of recognition by the general population for his or her success or accomplishments; a famous person.
   • "What do you put in your paper?" I asked, […] "Oh, news," said he, "and dull articles, and things about Celebrities. If you know any Celebrities, now?" Noël asked him what Celebrities were. "Oh, the Queen and the Princes, and people with titles, and people who write, or sing, or act—or do something...1899, E. Nesbit, The Story of the Treasure Seekers
   • I liked the man for his own sake, and even had he promised to turn out a celebrity it would have had no weight with me. I look upon notoriety with the same indifference as on the buttons on a man's shirt-front, or the crest on his note-paper.1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter I, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC

   Synonyms:

   big name, star, celeb, sleb, luminary, notable, media darling