Euripides

American  

[yoo-rip-i-deez, yuh-] / yʊˈrɪp ɪˌdiz, yə- /

noun

1. c480–406? b.c., Greek dramatist.

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Euripides British  

/ jʊˈrɪpɪˌdiːz /

noun

1. ?480–406 _bc , Greek tragic dramatist. His plays, 18 of which are extant, include Alcestis, Medea, Hippolytus, Hecuba, Trojan Women, Electra, Iphigeneia in Tauris, Iphigeneia in Aulis, and Bacchae

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Euripides Cultural  

1. An ancient Greek dramatist. He was the author of numerous tragedies, including the Bacchae, Medea, and The Trojan Women. He often used the device of deus ex machina (literally, “a god from the machine”) to resolve his plots.

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Today, a “deus ex machina” refers to any person or event that provides a sudden, unexpected solution to a problem or situation.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• Euripidean
  adjective

Example Sentences

The matricide trial of Orestes, portrayed as a shining moment for Athens by Aeschylus in “The Oresteia,” becomes a nihilistic farce in the hands of Euripides.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 6, 2026

It depicts Dionysus journeying to Hades to retrieve a poet who can help Athens in crisis, culminating in a contest between Aeschylus and Euripides.

From Salon • Apr. 13, 2025

Jackson is part of a long tradition of dissenting, critical-minded dramatists, dating back to Euripides and extending through George Bernard Shaw to the present.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 6, 2024

He studied Greek and quoted freely from Homer and Euripides.

From National Geographic • Nov. 16, 2023

Cleopatra read Homer’s epics, The Iliad and The Odyssey, poetry by Hesiod and Pindar; and plays by Euripides and Menander.

From "Sterling Biographies®: Cleopatra: Egypt's Last and Greatest Queen" by Susan Blackaby