Aeschylus

American  

[es-kuh-luhs, ee-skuh-] / ˈɛs kə ləs, ˈi skə- /

noun

1. 525–456 b.c., Greek poet and dramatist.

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Aeschylus British  

/ ˈiːskələs, ˌiːskəˈliːən /

noun

1. ?525–?456 _bc , Greek dramatist, regarded as the father of Greek tragedy. Seven of his plays are extant, including Seven Against Thebes , The Persians , Prometheus Bound , and the trilogy of the Oresteia

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Aeschylus Cultural  

1. An ancient Greek poet, often considered the founder of tragedy. He was the first of the three great Greek authors of tragedies, preceding Sophocles and Euripides.

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Other Word Forms

• Aeschylean adjective

Example Sentences

Instead, the artwork reflects a different telling of the Trojan War that was made famous by the Greek playwright Aeschylus.

From Science Daily • Feb. 13, 2026

Plays by Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides illuminated how pride, injustice and failed leadership could threaten a community.

From Salon • Apr. 13, 2025

It should have read "Shakespeare is by no means inferior to Aeschylus".

From BBC • Jan. 23, 2025

Even Aristotle, who could be said to have launched literary criticism, set forth the precepts of tragedy by empirically studying the indelible examples of Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 4, 2024

How long it held the stage we do not know, but the next account we have, centuries later, written by Aeschylus about 450 B.C., is very different.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton