Stygian
Americanadjective
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of or relating to the river Styx or to Hades.
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dark or gloomy.
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infernal; hellish.
adjective
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of or relating to the river Styx
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literary
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dark, gloomy, or hellish
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completely inviolable, as a vow sworn by the river Styx
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Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of Stygian
1560–70; < Latin Stygi ( us ) < Greek Stýgios ( Styg-, stem of Stýx Styx + -ios adj. suffix) + -an
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He parked next to a dimly lit footbridge, which wobbled with our passage above a Stygian chasm.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 22, 2022
Reynolds helped supply Melville with a more Stygian idea, by exhorting his men to attack Mocha Dick as “though he were Beelzebub himself!” — a demon rather than a whale.
From New York Times ● May 2, 2020
There, Levi conjured a Stygian exoplanet of glissandos and microtones and processed percussive sounds, evoking the truly alien better than the most lavish special effects ever could have done.
From The New Yorker ● Feb. 23, 2017
Is the name a nod to the local passion for the Stygian side of the beer world?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 22, 2016
His Stygian iron sword lay by his side, next to Hazel’s spatha.
From "The Son of Neptune" by Rick Riordan
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