ennead

American  

[en-ee-ad] / ˈɛn iˌæd /

noun

1. a group of nine persons or things.

2. Egyptian Religion.

   1. (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.

   2. any group of deities arranged in a similar way, often more or less than nine in number.

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ennead British  

/ ˈɛnɪˌæd /

noun

1. a group or series of nine

2. the sum of or number nine

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Other Word Forms

• enneadic adjective

Etymology

Origin of ennead

1645–55; < Greek ennead- (stem of enneás ), equivalent to enné ( a ) nine + -ad- -ad ¹

Example Sentences

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

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 Menzies, Allan

Set, 34. ---- crocodile, 25. ---- ennead of Heliopolis, 80. ---- god of Asiatic invaders, 41. ---- hippopotamus, 24.

From The Religion of Ancient Egypt by Petrie, W. M. Flinders (William Matthew Flinders), Sir