amphora
[am-fer-uh]
- a large two-handled storage jar having an oval body, usually tapering to a point at the base, with a pair of handles extending from immediately below the lip to the shoulder: used chiefly for oil, wine, etc., and, set on a foot, as a commemorative vase awarded the victors in contests such as the Panathenaic games.
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Origin of amphora
1300–50; Middle English < Latin < Greek amphoreús, equivalent to am(phi)- amphi- + phoreús bearer (i.e., handle), akin to phérein to bear
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for amphora
Contemporary Examples
And by the time the last American troops pulled out in 2011, the Iraqi amphora might not have looked like new.
Historical Examples
It was equal to one-third of the amphora, and therefore to nearly two gallons English.
The Fables of PhdrusPhaedrus
It was the custom to write the age of the wine and the vintage on the amphora, or cask.
The Fables of PhdrusPhaedrus
She was there, in the sun and surrounded by vermin, as pure as an amphora, fragrant as a flower.
The Red Lily, CompleteAnatole France
I should say an amphora, which is a Greek word and more high-sounding.
Letters to an UnknownProsper Mrime
And clapping the amphora to his lips, he drained it at one draught.
The Poniard's HiltEugne Sue
amphora
- an ancient Greek or Roman two-handled narrow-necked jar for oil, wine, etc
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Word Origin
C17: from Latin, from Greek amphoreus, from amphi- + phoreus bearer, from pherein to bear
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for amphora
n.
early 14c., "two-handled vessel for holding wine, oil, etc.," from Latin amphora from Greek amphoreus "an amphora, jar, urn," contraction of amphiphoreus, literally "two-handled," from amphi- "on both sides" (see amphi-) + phoreus "bearer," related to pherein "to bear" (see infer). Also a liquid measure in the ancient world, in Greece equal to 9 gallons, in Rome to 6 gallons, 7 pints.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper