dryad

[ drahy-uhd, -ad ]

noun

, (often initial capital letter)

, plural dry·ads, dry·a·des [drahy, -, uh, -deez].

1. a deity or nymph of the woods.

dryad

/ ˈdraɪəd; -æd; draɪˈædɪk /

noun

1. Greek myth a nymph or divinity of the woods

Derived Forms

• dryadic, adjective

Other Words From

• dry·ad·ic [drahy-, ad, -ik], adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of dryad¹

1545–55; extracted from Greek Dryádes, plural of Dryás, derivative of drŷ ( s ) tree, oak

Word History and Origins

Origin of dryad¹

C14: from Latin Dryas, from Greek Druas, from drus tree

Example Sentences

"It should have opened and imprisoned you, as a truant dryad," said he.

From Project Gutenberg

Then in a flash Rhcus remembered his promise to the Dryad, and throwing away his dice, he hurried to the trysting-place.

From Project Gutenberg

Dryad spun about and threw her head far on one side to scan the whole bare room.

From Project Gutenberg

"You can't help not being a dryad," she said, and now she smiled, and her smile transformed her face as sunlight does a landscape.

From Project Gutenberg

You can almost fancy it some dryad decked for her bridal, in maidenly day-dreaming too lovely to last.

From Project Gutenberg