Cyclops

American  

[sahy-klops] / ˈsaɪ klɒps /

noun

plural

Cyclopes

1. Classical Mythology. a member of a family of giants having a single round eye in the middle of the forehead.

2. (lowercase) a freshwater copepod of the genus Cyclops, having a median eye in the front of the head.

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cyclops ¹ British  

/ ˈsaɪklɒps /

noun

1. any copepod of the genus Cyclops, characterized by having one eye

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Cyclops ² British  

/ ˈsaɪklɒps /

noun

1. classical myth one of a race of giants having a single eye in the middle of the forehead, encountered by Odysseus in the Odyssey See also Polyphemus

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Cyclops Cultural  

1. plur. Cyclopes One-eyed giants in classical mythology. One Cyclops imprisoned Odysseus and his men during their voyage back to Greece after the Trojan War (see also Trojan War). Odysseus managed to trick the Cyclops and put out his eye. Odysseus and his men were then able to escape.

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Etymology

Origin of Cyclops

< Greek Kýklōps, literally, round-eye, equivalent to kýkl ( os ) a circle, round + ṓps eye

Example Sentences

“For some, a war becomes home,” he says at one point, his line readings so pungent you’ll barely miss the excitement of a Cyclops or a Calypso.

From New York Times • Dec. 5, 2024

Cyclops blasts powerful energy beams from his eyes.

From Los Angeles Times • May 15, 2024

Using cameras placed in the Cyclops Mountains in Indonesia’s West Papua province, the researchers captured it on video for the first time, proving it had not gone extinct.

From Washington Times • Nov. 10, 2023

Attenborough's long-beaked echidna, named after famed broadcaster Sir David Attenborough, was captured for the first time in photos and video footage using remote trail cameras set up in the Cyclops Mountains of Indonesia's Papua Province.

From Science Daily • Nov. 9, 2023

Ever after his father calls him Cyclops, who is in a Greek story.

From "Angela's Ashes: A Memoir" by Frank McCourt

Related Words

• behemoth
• titan