celebrity

From Middle English celebritē, from Old French celebrite (compare French célébrité), from Latin celēbritās.

• IPA^(key): /sɪˈlɛbɹɪti/

celebrity (countable and uncountable, plural celebrities)

1. (obsolete) A rite or ceremony. [17th-18th c.]
2. (uncountable) Fame, renown; the state of being famous or talked-about. [from 17th c.]

   Synonyms: big name, distinction, fame, eminence, renown

3. A person who has a high degree of recognition by the general population for his or her success or accomplishments; a famous person (Wikipedia). [from 19th c.]

   Synonyms: big name, star, celeb (informal), sleb (informal), luminary, notable, media darling

   • 1897, Winston Churchill, chapter 1, in The Celebrity‎:

     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.

• celebutard

celebrity m (plural celebritys)

1. celebrity