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Aegisthus

American  
[ee-jis-thuhs] / iˈdʒɪs θəs /

noun

Classical Mythology.
  1. a cousin of Agamemnon who seduced Clytemnestra, Agamemnon's wife, and was later killed by Orestes.


Aegisthus British  
/ iːˈdʒɪsθəs /

noun

  1. Greek myth a cousin to and the murderer of Agamemnon, whose wife Clytemnestra he had seduced. He usurped the kingship of Mycenae until Orestes, Agamemnon's son, returned home and killed him

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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.

See Examples For:

It is left to Aegisthus, the poet, to rail against the war and what it has wrought.

From New York Times Apr. 3, 2022

The liberties the playwright and director take with the trilogy — completed in about 2½ hours, with one intermission — include eliminating some characters, such as Aegisthus, Clytemnestra’s lover, who is implicated in Agamemnon’s death.

From Washington Post May 7, 2019

She played the title role; Taylor was Aegisthus, her evil lover and second husband.

From New York Times Aug. 30, 2018

A 25-year-old playwright named Jack Richardson has written one of the best plays seen in Manhattan in many seasons, reaching with temerity into the house of Atreus for his central figures: Orestes, Agamemnon, Clytemnestra, Aegisthus.

From Time Magazine Archive

“No more blood for you and me,” Clytemnestra said to Aegisthus.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton

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