Xanthippe

or Xan·tip·pe

[ zan-tip-ee ]

noun
  1. flourished late 5th century b.c., wife of Socrates.

  2. a scolding or ill-tempered wife; a shrewish woman.

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

How to use Xanthippe in a sentence

  • The host served Gilbert scantily, as Therese was watching, took the same sized piece and passed the plate to his Xantippe.

    Balsamo, The Magician | Alexander Dumas
  • Is it to be presumed that even Socrates chose Xantippe for her remarkable contrariety to himself?

    The Soul of the Far East | Percival Lowell
  • He hopped up, gathered a handful of rocks and made at his Xantippe.

  • The good Lord who is always on my side sent you especially to deliver me out of the hands of that unspeakable Xantippe.

  • Xantippe's life must have been one long misery, tied to that calmly irritating man, Socrates.

British Dictionary definitions for Xanthippe

Xanthippe

Xantippe (zænˈtɪpɪ)

/ (zænˈθɪpɪ) /


noun
  1. the wife of Socrates, proverbial as a scolding and quarrelsome woman

  2. any nagging, peevish, or irritable woman

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