Eros

American  

[eer-os, er-os] / ˈɪər ɒs, ˈɛr ɒs /

noun

plural

Erotes

1. the ancient Greek god of love, identified by the Romans with Cupid.

2. a representation of this god.

3. a winged figure of a child representing love or the power of love.

4. (sometimes lowercase) physical love; sexual desire.

5. Astronomy. an asteroid that approaches to within 14 million miles (22.5 million km) of the earth once every 44 years.

6. Psychiatry.

   1. the libido.

   2. instincts for self-preservation collectively.

---

Eros British  

/ ˈɛrɒs, ˈɪərɒs /

noun

1. Roman counterpart: Cupid.  Greek myth the god of love, son of Aphrodite

2. Also called: life instinct.  (in Freudian theory) the group of instincts, esp sexual, that govern acts of self-preservation and that tend towards uninhibited enjoyment of life Compare Thanatos

---

Eros Cultural  

1. A Greek and Roman god of love, often called the son of Aphrodite. He is better known by his Roman name.

---

Discover More

The word erotic comes from the Greek word eros, which is the term for sexual love itself, as well as the god's name.

Etymology

Origin of Eros

Greek: desire, sexual love

Example Sentences

Some took refuge on the plinth of Prince Mihajlo's statue - the traditional spot for Belgraders to meet, the equivalent of Eros in London's Piccadilly.

From BBC • Mar. 15, 2025

The burning question facing America is: Will the other basic drive, which Freud called Eros and Harris and Walz call joy, provide us with an alternative?

From Slate • Oct. 1, 2024

But “Extreme Private Eros: Love Song 1974,” an eyebrow-raising exercise in oversharing that Hara made the previous decade, warrants a look of its own.

From New York Times • Feb. 29, 2024

And now it is to be expected that the other of the two "Heavenly Powers," eternal Eros, will make an effort to assert himself in the struggle with his equally immortal adversary.

From Salon • Jan. 21, 2024

Here is my palindrome poem on the subject: Eros, eyesore.

From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver