Charybdis

[ kuh-rib-dis ]

/ kəˈrɪb dɪs /

noun

a whirlpool in the Strait of Messina off the NE coast of Sicily.Modern name Galofalo, Garofalo.

Classical Mythology. a daughter of Gaea and Poseidon, a monster mentioned in Homer and later identified with the whirlpool Charybdis.Compare Scylla(def 2).

Related formsCha·ryb·di·an, adjective

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

Examples from the Web for charybdis

Meanwhile many ordinary Egyptians will find themselves back at square one, caught between Scylla and Charybdis.
Thy Hand, Great Anarch!|Hussein Ibish|August 14, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Placed between Scylla and Charybdis, between Manasseh and his manservant, he felt he could sooner face the former.
The King of Schnorrers|Israel Zangwill
But this was plunging from Scylla into Charybdis, for it inferred that the Stuarts inherited the heavenly-gifted touch by descent.
Calamities and Quarrels of Authors|Isaac Disraeli
Reverie, above all things, is forbidden by Scylla and Charybdis.
Modern Painters, Volume V (of 5)|John Ruskin

But escaping Scylla she fell into Charybdis; her uncanny practices came to the ears of the authorities, and she was apprehended.
Irish Witchcraft and Demonology|St. John D. (St. John Drelincourt) Seymour
Might it not well be that, escaping Scylla, they were sailing into the whirlpool of Charybdis?
House of Torment|Cyril Arthur Edward Ranger Gull

British Dictionary definitions for charybdis

Charybdis

/ (kəˈrɪbdɪs) /

noun

a ship-devouring monster in classical mythology, identified with a whirlpool off the north coast of Sicily, lying opposite Scylla on the Italian coastCompare Scylla

Derived FormsCharybdian, adjective

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

Word Origin and History for charybdis

Charybdis

whirlpool off the coast of Sicily, from Latinized form of Greek Kharybdis, of unknown origin. Cf. Scylla.