Agamemnon

[ ag-uh-mem-non, -nuh n ]

/ ˌæg əˈmɛm nɒn, -nən /

noun

Classical Mythology. a king of Mycenae, a son of Atreus and brother of Menelaus. He led the Greeks in the Trojan War and was murdered by Clytemnestra, his wife, upon his return from Troy.

(italics) a tragedy (458 b.c.) by Aeschylus.

Compare Oresteia.

Origin of Agamemnon

< Greek Agamémnon- (stem of Agamémnōn), < *Agaménmon-, equivalent to aga- great + men- (truncation of Menelaus, meaning king) + -mon- suffix used in shortened names

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for agamemnon

We amplified the scene with Agamemnon to let people understand that Achilles is not acting out of pettiness.
Denis O’Hare Talks About One-Man Show “An Iliad”|Janice Kaplan|March 25, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Will not one of you run down to the camp, and ask Agamemnon to send us further succour?'
Stories from the Odyssey|H. L. Havell
With these words he moved the hearts of the multitude, so many of them as knew not the cunning counsel of Agamemnon.
The Iliad|Homer
Agamemnon agreed to go over to the bookstore to get a quill.
The Peterkin Papers|Lucretia P Hale

Agamemnon and the other wounded chiefs visit the battle with Nestor.
The Iliad of Homer (1873)|Homer
Agamemnon wished to grant him this favour, but he would not do so until Helen consented.
Hesiod, The Homeric Hymns, and Homerica|Homer and Hesiod

British Dictionary definitions for agamemnon

Agamemnon

/ (ˌæɡəˈmɛmnɒn) /

noun

Greek myth a king of Mycenae who led the Greeks at the siege of Troy. On his return home he was murdered by his wife Clytemnestra and her lover AegisthusSee also Menelaus

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

Culture definitions for agamemnon

Agamemnon

[ (ag-uh-mem-non) ]

In classical mythology, the king who led the Greeks against Troy in the Trojan War (see also Trojan War). To obtain favorable winds for the Greek fleet sailing to Troy, Agamemnon sacrificed his daughter Iphigenia to the goddess Artemis and so came under a curse. After he returned home victorious, he was murdered by his wife, Clytemnestra, and her lover, Aegisthus.