ennead
Americannoun
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a group of nine persons or things.
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Egyptian Religion.
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(initial capital letter) a group of nine related deities, including Osiris, Isis, and Set, whose lineage and functions were arranged and explained by the theologians of Heliopolis.
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any group of deities arranged in a similar way, often more or less than nine in number.
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noun
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a group or series of nine
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the sum of or number nine
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ennead
1645–55; < Greek ennead- (stem of enneás ), equivalent to enné ( a ) nine + -ad- -ad 1
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.
An ennead could mean any group of nine deities that operate together, but the most well known is the Great Ennead of Heliopolis.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 2022
A group of nine is called an ennead.
From BBC ● Aug. 23, 2017
Finally, an ennead of gorillas--four bachelors on one side of a waterfall, a family of five safely on the other--scuff their knuckles as they proudly prowl.
From Time Magazine Archive
To the east of them I beheld another ennead.
From The Harvard Classics, Volume 49, Epic and Saga With Introductions And Notes by Charles William Eliot
Generally there are three; in many places there is an ennead, a nine of gods, but the nine is a round number; there might be one or two less or more.
From History of Religion A Sketch of Primitive Religious Beliefs and Practices, and of the Origin and Character of the Great Systems by Allan Menzies
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