Sometimes Phoenix a mythical bird of great beauty fabled to live 500 or 600 years in the Arabian wilderness, to burn itself on a funeral pyre, and to rise from its ashes in the freshness of youth and live through another cycle of years: often an emblem of immortality or of reborn idealism or hope.
(initial capital letter) a southern constellation between Hydrus and Sculptor.
a person or thing of peerless beauty or excellence; paragon.
a person or thing that has become renewed or restored after suffering calamity or apparent annihilation.
Classical Mythology.
the brother of Cadmus and Europa, and eponymous ancestor of the Phoenicians.
a son of Amyntor and Cleobule who became the foster father of Achilles and who fought with the Greek forces in the Trojan War.
a city in and the capital of Arizona, in the central part.
Military. a 13-foot (4-meter), 989-pound (445-kilogram) U.S. Navy air-to-air missile with radar guidance and a range of over 120 nautical miles.
a legendary Arabian bird said to set fire to itself and rise anew from the ashes every 500 years
a person or thing of surpassing beauty or quality
To “rise like a phoenix from the ashes” is to overcome a seemingly insurmountable setback.
First recorded before 900; from Latin, from Greek phoînix “a mythical bird, purple-red color,” Phoenician, “date palm”; replacing Middle English, Old English fēnix, from Medieval Latin; Latin as above
If you want to see a phoenix, simply locate a unicorn or a centaur, and then you'll be in the right neighborhood. A phoenix is a mythical bird known for rising from its ashes. Don't try that at home! Accordingly to ancient legend, the phoenix is a bird that cyclically burns to death and is reborn from its own ashes. For this reason, the phoenix often serves as a symbol of renewal and rebirth. The name of Phoenix, Arizona is a direct reference to this idea; Phoenix was built upon the ruins of a civilization that had collapsed long before, apparently due to drought.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Humbled manager Leopold Aschenbrenner, whose surname means ash burner, probably will rise like a phoenix.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
“I’m at a place now where I feel like, in a way, it’s sort of a phoenix situation,” Hollis said about his post-fire rise from the ashes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 24, 2025
"He's come back and returned, rising from the ashes, the Jamaican phoenix."
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2025
Other former employees also hold out for a phoenix rising from the ashes.
From BBC ● Jun. 2, 2025
No Fawkes the phoenix — no whirring silver contraptions.
From "Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets" by J. K. Rowling
There, an extreme heat warning has been issued, with Las Vegas expecting highs up to 108 degrees, the Phoenix area up to 112 degrees and Death Valley potentially 118 degrees.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
Astronomers around the world observed the extreme encounter, and the event was presented at the AAS conference in Phoenix, Arizona.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026
The last X-Men movie Dark Phoenix, which featured the likes of Jennifer Lawrence and Sophie Turner, came out in June 2019.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
The Sparks pulled ahead in the fourth, but Phoenix tied it 81-81 with 3:33 remaining after a bucket from the Mercury’s top scorer Noémie Brochant.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
Nathan didn’t like the monsoon rains in Phoenix that flooded the streets.
From "Healer of the Water Monster" by Brian Young
You may know about dragons and phoenixes, but have you heard of the tarand, a reindeerlike animal who changes color at will?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 16, 2026
Ma has won awards with his full body tattoos depicting swashbuckling outlaws and heroes from ancient Chinese literature, mythical creatures like dragons and phoenixes and auspicious symbols such as koi fish.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 16, 2019
Yeah definitely, phoenixes are a popular image to get.
From Slate ● Mar. 27, 2018
Judd said women's voices had been "squelched" in the past, but that they were emerging as "phoenixes".
From BBC ● Mar. 4, 2018
He was wearing the plain black cap and robes of his station, but they were made of the finest silk, embroidered all over with phoenixes in black thread.
From "Huntress" by Malinda Lo
Galaxies that appear near bright stars like Beta Phoenicis might be impossible for some observatories on Earth to see, but Euclid’s sharp eyes are able to resolve them.
From New York Times ● May 23, 2024
"No, sir, nor to Phoenicis, either," answered Fancher.
From Rebels of the Red Planet by Charles Louis Fontenay
For example, seven are seen to converge in Lacus Phoenicis, eight in Trivium Charontis, six in Lunae Lacus, and six in Ismenius Lacus.
From The Certainty of a Future Life in Mars by L. P. Gratacap
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.
