Danaides

American  

[duh-ney-i-deez] / dəˈneɪ ɪˌdiz /

Also Danaidae

plural noun

Classical Mythology.

1. the 50 daughters of Danaus, 49 of whom were condemned to pour water forever into a leaky vessel for having murdered their husbands.

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Danaides British  

/ ˌdænɪˈɪdɪən, dəˈneɪɪˌdiːz, ˌdænɪəˈdiːən /

plural noun

1. the fifty daughters of Danaüs. All but Hypermnestra murdered their bridegrooms and were punished in Hades by having to pour water perpetually into a jar with a hole in the bottom

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• Danaidean
  adjective

Example Sentences

The history of practical medicine had been like the story of the Danaides.

From Medical Essays, 1842-1882 by Holmes, Oliver Wendell

Then she trudged off to the railway station; and went home, like Sisyphus or the Danaides, to take up her apparently impossible task.

From Mrs. Thompson A Novel by Maxwell, W. B. (William Babington)

But, looking aside from these channels, what has it effected for philosophy, that great burden, which constantly recalls the fabled labors of Sisyphus and the Danaides?

From Beulah by Evans, Augusta J. (Augusta Jane)

The fate of the Danaides is his, and he draws long with a bottomless bucket.

From The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 02, No. 11, September, 1858 by Various

It was like the cask of Danaides into which the public had been pleased to pour its deposits.

From Chance A Tale in Two Parts by Conrad, Joseph