Tereus

[teer-ee-uhs, teer-yoos]

noun

Classical Mythology.

1. a Thracian prince, the husband of Procne, who raped his sister-in-law Philomela and was changed into a hoopoe as a punishment.

Tereus

/ ˈtɪərɪəs /

noun

1. Greek myth a prince of Thrace, who raped Philomela, sister of his wife Procne, and was punished by being turned into a hoopoe

Example Sentences

Procne, the elder of the two, was married to Tereus of Thrace, a son of Ares, who proved to have inherited all his father’s detestable qualities.

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All went well on the voyage, but when they disembarked and started overland for the palace, Tereus told Philomela that he had received news of Procne’s death and he forced her into a pretended marriage.

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There she saw Philomela, her very face and form, and Tereus equally unmistakable.

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Because of Procne’s and Philomela’s sad fate and the fact that the wicked Tereus came from the North, they had conceived a hatred for all who lived there and they refused to give the maiden to Boreas.

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The two had a son, Itys, and when he was five years old Procne, who had all this while been living in Thrace separated from her family, begged Tereus to let her invite her sister Philomela to visit her.

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