Eumenides

[ yoo-men-i-deez ]

noun

1. (used with a plural verb) Classical Mythology. a euphemistic name for the Furies, meaning “the Kindly Ones.”
2. (italics) (used with a singular verb) a tragedy (485 b.c.) by Aeschylus.

Eumenides

/ juːˈmɛnɪˌdiːz /

plural noun

1. another name for the Furies, used by the Greeks as a euphemism

Word History and Origins

Origin of Eumenides¹

from Greek, literally: the benevolent ones, from eumenēs benevolent, from eu- + menos spirit

Example Sentences

There is a savage ritual of purification from blood shed by a homicide (compare Eumenides, line 273).

From Project Gutenberg

Quin dir Eumenides monstraque Tartari His longe duce te finibus exulant.

From Project Gutenberg

The witches are not, it is true, divine Eumenides, and are not intended to be; they are ignoble and vulgar instruments of hell.

From Project Gutenberg

Since the "Eumenides" of Æschylus nothing so grand and terrible has ever been written.

From Project Gutenberg

When they came to Orestes and the Eumenides, Colin held out the drawing at arm's length for a moment lovingly.

From Project Gutenberg