cornucopia
Americannoun
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cornucopias
plural
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Classical Mythology. a horn containing food, drink, etc., in endless supply, said to have been a horn of the goat Amalthaea.
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a representation of this horn, used as a symbol of abundance.
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an abundant, overflowing supply.
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a horn-shaped or conical receptacle or ornament.
noun
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Greek myth the horn of Amalthea, the goat that suckled Zeus
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a representation of such a horn in painting, sculpture, etc, overflowing with fruit, vegetables, etc; horn of plenty
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a great abundance; overflowing supply
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a horn-shaped container
Usage
What is a cornucopia? Cornucopia refers to an abundance or an overflowing supply, as in Santa Claus’ workshop has a cornucopia of toys, everything from alphabet blocks to stuffed zebras. A cornucopia is a horned-shaped container filled with food or a decoration resembling this. You might commonly see images of a straw cornucopia with fruits and vegetables in it around Thanksgiving. The original cornucopia comes from Greek mythology. It was an empty goat horn that spilled out an endless supply of food and drink. The adjective cornucopian describes something related to a cornucopia, usually a large amount of something, as in The warehouse was stocked with a cornucopian amount of food and drinks. Example: We were amazed by the cornucopia of foods and desserts available at the bustling marketplace.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of cornucopia
First recorded in 1585–95; from Late Latin cornū cōpiae “horn of plenty,” from Latin cornū “horn” + cōpiae (genitive singular of cōpia “abundance”); see origin at horn, cornu, copious
Explanation
A grocery store with a large selection of fruits and vegetables could be said to have a cornucopia of produce. A cornucopia is a lot of good stuff. Around Thanksgiving in the United States, you'll often see cornucopias or horn-shaped baskets filled with fruit and other goodies as centerpieces. Originally, a cornucopia was a goat's horn filled with corn and fruit to symbolize plenty. Nowadays, a cornucopia is probably made of some kind of plaster or wicker, but it still symbolizes the same thing — a good harvest season.
Vocabulary lists containing cornucopia
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The Blood of Olympus
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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:
The cornucopia of debt has often been longer term, sometimes issued by companies with higher ratings than the U.S. government.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 19, 2026
Nobody wants to order mozzarella sticks anymore, they want the adventure of finding the best secret combo of mozzarella sticks dipped into various sauces in the cornucopia of a Chili’s Triple Dipper.
From Slate ● Aug. 14, 2026
The premiere opens with Kennedy standing inside a low-budget digital cornucopia.
From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026
Critics say it has outlived its usefulness, as today’s media landscape offers a cornucopia of platforms unknown in 1920s America.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 8, 2026
For nine-year-old Joe, Boulder City offered an astounding cornucopia of delights.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
And out of the animals’ mouths, like cornucopias, flow gleaming vines, leaves and bunches of grapes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2025
The great Medfly cafeterias of the Central Valley and the Imperial Valley, the fecund cornucopias of the nation, lay vulnerable — but arguably out of reach, Brown calculated.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2024
American Thanksgiving conjures images of ginormous turkey legs and cornucopias spilling with grapes, gourds, and multi-colored corn.
From Salon ● Oct. 10, 2021
Guiding their carts past the glittering Christmas tree, the customers make their selections down an aisle of opened boxes that overflow like cardboard cornucopias.
From New York Times ● Dec. 24, 2011
His memory was short; already human beings were back on their rightful pedestals, cornucopias of dog food in their hands.
From "The Incredible Journey" by Sheila Burnford
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
