Avernus

American  

[uh-vur-nuhs] / əˈvɜr nəs /

noun

1. a lake near Naples, Italy, looked upon in ancient times as an entrance to hell, from whose waters vile-smelling vapors arose, supposedly killing birds flying over it.

2. hell.

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Other Word Forms

• Avernal adjective

Etymology

Origin of Avernus

< Latin < Greek áornos birdless, equivalent to a- a- ⁶ + órn ( is ) bird + -os adj. suffix

Example Sentences

Trojan, Anchises’ son, the descent of Avernus is easy.

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

The Lake Avernus, the fabled entrance to the infernal regions, was, as its name implies, bird-less, because the birds, while flying over it, were poisoned by the gas and fell dead into its waters.

From A Treatise on Physiology and Hygiene For Educational Institutions and General Readers by Hutchison, Joseph Chrisman

According to Roman traditions, it could only be entered at Avernus, but the Greeks asserted that there was another entrance near the Promontory of Tænarum.

From Myths of Greece and Rome Narrated with Special Reference to Literature and Art by Guerber, H. A. (H?l?ne Adeline)

The Grotto della Pace leads to the shores of Avernus.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 8 "Cube" to "Daguerre, Louis" by Various

The scene of Aeneas’s descent to the underworld is laid by the lake of Avernus, where, buried amid gloomy woods, was the cave of the Cumaean Sibyl.

From Roman Society from Nero to Marcus Aurelius by Dill, Samuel