eunuch

[ yoo-nuhk ]

noun
  1. a castrated man, especially one formerly employed by rulers in the Middle East and Asia as a harem guard or palace official.

Origin of eunuch

1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English eunuk, from Latin eunūchus, from Greek eunoûchos “eunuch, chamberlain,” equivalent to eune-, stem of eunḗ “bed, place of sleeping” + -ochos “keeping” (akin to échein “to have, hold, keep”; cf. hectic )

Words Nearby eunuch

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use eunuch in a sentence

  • Even compared with his personage in Casino Royale, the 007 of Quantum is basically a grunting eunuch.

    Has Bond Lost His Balls? | Matthew Oshinsky | November 3, 2008 | THE DAILY BEAST
  • There were eunuchs too, black frock-coated—and the chief eunuch, an important personage who ranks very high.

  • Iftikhar went on, and with only the eunuch and Mary Kurkuas, the emir advanced within the palace.

    God Wills It! | William Stearns Davis
  • Then at last the eunuch spoke, his imperturbable smile swelling to a fulsome grin.

    God Wills It! | William Stearns Davis
  • Enough; the good eunuch Hakem thought me a true welee, and brought out one of his cagelings to see my magic.

    God Wills It! | William Stearns Davis
  • The body of the eunuch dropped from her arms, lay upon the rugs, the blood spurting from the neck.

    God Wills It! | William Stearns Davis

British Dictionary definitions for eunuch

eunuch

/ (ˈjuːnək) /


noun
  1. a man who has been castrated, esp (formerly) for some office such as a guard in a harem

  2. informal an ineffective man: a political eunuch

Origin of eunuch

1
C15: via Latin from Greek eunoukhos attendant of the bedchamber, from eunē bed + ekhein to have, keep

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012