Dictionary.com

eureka

[ yoo-ree-kuh, yuh- ]
/ yʊˈri kə, yə- /
Save This Word!

interjection
(initial capital letter) I have found (it): the reputed exclamation of Archimedes when, after long study, he discovered a method of detecting the amount of alloy mixed with the gold in the crown of the king of Syracuse.
(used as an exclamation of triumph at a discovery.)
QUIZ
CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?
There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?
Question 1 of 7
Which sentence is correct?

Origin of eureka

1560–70; <Greek heúrēka, 1st person singular perfect indicative of heurískein to find, discover

Other definitions for eureka (2 of 2)

Eureka
[ yoo-ree-kuh, yuh- ]
/ yʊˈri kə, yə- /

noun
a city in NW California.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use eureka in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for eureka

eureka
/ (jʊˈriːkə) /

interjection
an exclamation of triumph on discovering or solving something

Word Origin for eureka

C17: from Greek heurēka I have found (it), from heuriskein to find; traditionally the exclamation of Archimedes when he realized, during bathing, that the volume of an irregular solid could be calculated by measuring the water displaced when it was immersed
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for eureka

Eureka!
[ (yoo-ree-kuh) ]

A Greek word meaning “I have found it!” An exclamation that accompanies a discovery: “When she finally located the rare book, the scholar cried, ‘Eureka!’” (See Archimedes.)

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
FEEDBACK