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Goneril

American  
[gon-er-il] / ˈgɒn ər ɪl /

noun

  1. (in Shakespeare'sKing Lear ) the elder of Lear's two faithless daughters.


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.

We can add ageism, it seems, to the scroll of foul impulses harbored by the multiple baddies of the drama, who also noteworthily include Todd Scofield’s officious Oswald, Goneril’s butler, attired in the red uniform of a demonic concierge.

From Washington Post

I hadn’t read the book, so I had no idea what I was in for, but I certainly was not prepared for a very young Shakespearean actress trotting around snowy Chicago in her young Goneril costume as the world collapsed.

From Los Angeles Times

Most of those who resurrect her do so to account for the psychology of Goneril, Regan and Cordelia.

From Washington Post

Like Lear, Cox’s Logan seems to have “ever but slenderly known himself,” as Regan remarks to Goneril about their rash father.

From Los Angeles Times

In “Romeo and Juliet,” Mercutio famously declares, “A plague o’ both your houses,” while in “King Lear,” the doddering royal spits an insulting “plague-sore” at his daughter Goneril.

From New York Times