nepenthe
Americannoun
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a drug or drink, or the plant yielding it, mentioned by ancient writers as having the power to bring forgetfulness of sorrow or trouble.
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anything inducing a pleasurable sensation of forgetfulness, especially of sorrow or trouble.
noun
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a drug, or the plant providing it, that ancient writers referred to as a means of forgetting grief or trouble
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anything that produces sleep, forgetfulness, or pleasurable dreaminess
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of nepenthe
First recorded in 1590–1600; from Latin nēpenthes, from Greek nēpenthés “herb for soothing,” noun use of neuter of nēpenthḗs “banishing pain,” equivalent to nē- “un-” (negative prefix) + pénth(os) “grief, pain, sorrow” + -ēs adjective suffix
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.
And Nepenthe and the Henry Miller Memorial Library are just down the road.
From Los Angeles Times • May 16, 2024
“We’ve learned how to deal with events like this through hard-won experience,” said Kirk Gafill, the general manager of Nepenthe, a restaurant overlooking the Pacific that has been operated by his family for 74 years.
From New York Times • Feb. 8, 2023
While big names like Union, Denizens and Flying Dog are all pouring, the reason to go is to sample breweries you don’t see everywhere, such as Sapwood Cellars and Nepenthe.
From Washington Post • Apr. 29, 2022
“They are very blissed out,” said Erin Gafill, whose family owns the nearby Nepenthe restaurant.
From The Guardian • Jun. 19, 2017
On this account certainly it was, Pliny maintained that Nepenthe, whose virtues Homer so much exaggerates, was nothing in the world but generous wine.
From Ebrietatis Encomium or, the Praise of Drunkenness by Samber, Robert
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
