Promethean

[pruh-mee-thee-uhn]

adjective

1. of or suggestive of Prometheus.

2. creative; boldly original.

noun

1. a person who resembles Prometheus in spirit or action.

Promethean

/ prəˈmiːθɪən /

adjective

1. of or relating to Prometheus

2. creative, original, or life-enhancing

noun

1. a person who resembles Prometheus

Word History and Origins

Origin of Promethean¹

First recorded in 1590–1600; Promethe(us) + -an

Example Sentences

The full Promethean power of their achievement would slowly emerge over decades of research by fellow geneticists.

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Yet the myth of him as a Promethean figure who suffered for unleashing the fundamental forces of nature onto a society unprepared to bear responsibility for it obscures the extent of his complicity.

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This frenzied devotion to freedom in its most perverted form, a kind of Promethean exultation in unbridled will and desire, sits in weird juxtaposition with a cultish, masochistic worship of leader figures.

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Let’s counter the ceaseless scorn from the right about members of the “liberal news media” by saying something uplifting, perhaps a bit grandiose, about journalists: Many of them, probably most, have been doing a Promethean job, working under greater and greater duress to present the fire of truth to the public.

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Yeah, I expect some hate mail for "Promethean," because it sounds so darned elitist and stupid all at once.

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