Adonis
[ uh-don-is, uh-doh-nis ]
/ əˈdɒn ɪs, əˈdoʊ nɪs /
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noun
Classical Mythology. a youth slain by a wild boar but permitted by Zeus to pass four months every year in the lower world with Persephone, four with Aphrodite, and four wherever he chose.
a very handsome young man.
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Origin of Adonis
1615–25 for def. 2
Words nearby Adonis
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022
How to use Adonis in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for Adonis
Adonis
/ (əˈdəʊnɪs) /
noun
Greek myth a handsome youth loved by Aphrodite. Killed by a wild boar, he was believed to spend part of the year in the underworld and part on earth, symbolizing the vegetative cycle
a handsome young man
Word Origin for Adonis
C16: from Latin, via Greek Adōnis from Phoenician adōni my lord, a title of the god Tammuz; related to Hebrew Adonai
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Cultural definitions for Adonis
Adonis
In classical mythology, an extremely beautiful boy who was loved by Aphrodite, the goddess of love.
notes for Adonis
By extension, an “Adonis” is any handsome young man.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.