Caliban

American  

[kal-uh-ban] / ˈkæl əˌbæn /

noun

1. a character in Shakespeare's The Tempest, described as the half-human native inhabitant of the island, who is enslaved by the character Prospero.

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Caliban British  

/ ˈkælɪˌbæn /

noun

1. a brutish or brutalized man

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Etymology

Origin of Caliban

First recorded in 1610–15; probably a variant of cannibal ( def. ) or Carib ( def. )

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Caliban

But Prospero is jolted into an awareness that Caliban and his confederates are plotting “a foul conspiracy” against his life, and he abruptly ends the show.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 13, 2025

“The isle is full of noises,” sings Caliban, and on Tuesday night it certainly was.

From New York Times ● Aug. 31, 2023

Jack Chadwick chanced upon an old copy of Jack Hilton's semi-autobiographical Caliban Shrieks in 2021.

From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2023

In the hit production of Shakespeare’s lyrical masterwork at Bethesda’s Round House Theatre — staged by the magician Teller and veteran director Aaron Posner — Caliban is portrayed as you’ve never seen him.

From Washington Post ● Jan. 26, 2023

I ran past the gym doors—“Can’t you go any faster?” from Coach Quatrini—and out into the parking lot, where the exterminator truck had pulled up to unload Sycorax and Caliban into their new cage.

From "The Wednesday Wars" by Gary D. Schmidt

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