halcyon

[ hal-see-uhn ]

/ ˈhæl si ən /

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adjective Also hal·cy·o·ni·an

[hal-see-oh-nee-uhn], /ˌhæl siˈoʊ ni ən/, hal·cy·on·ic

[hal-see-on-ik]. /ˌhæl siˈɒn ɪk/.

calm; peaceful; tranquil: halcyon weather.

happy; blissful; carefree: halcyon days of youth.

prosperous; wealthy: halcyon times of peace.

of or relating to the halcyon or kingfisher.

noun

a mythical bird, usually identified with the kingfisher, said to breed about the time of the winter solstice in a nest floating on the sea, and to have the power of charming winds and waves into calmness.

any of various kingfishers, especially of the genus Halcyon.

Halcyon, Classical Mythology. Alcyone (def. 2).

OTHER WORDS FOR halcyon

1 pacific, placid, quiet, serene, still, unruffled; balmy, mild, pleasant, stormless, temperate, windless.

2 contented, golden, joyful, joyous.

3 booming, flourishing, palmy, roaring; rich, moneyed, well-off, well-to-do.

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QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of halcyon

First recorded in 1350–1400; from Latin, from Greek halkyṓn, pseudo-etymological variant of alkyṓn “kingfisher”; replacing Middle English alceon, alicion, from Latin alcyōn, from Greek

Words nearby halcyon

halberd, halberdier, Halberstadt, Halberstam, Halcion, halcyon, Halcyone, Haldane, Haldimand, Haldol, hale

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use halcyon in a sentence

Voters, many too young remember, were partly seduced by the 64-year-old’s misleading presentation of his late father’s dictatorial rule as a halcyon economic age to be revived.
Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s Vague Approach to the Philippine Economy Is Making Investors Nervous|Chad de Guzman / Manila|May 13, 2022|Time
The tracks take me back to my youth and to simpler days, a complete halcyon era.
Pandemic playlists: Songs (and podcasts) that got us through coronavirus lockdown|Seb Joseph|July 26, 2021|Digiday
Back in the halcyon pre-pandemic days of summer 2019, 69 percent of Americans said they planned to attend a barbecue to celebrate the Fourth of July according to a Monmouth University poll from June of that year.
It’s A ‘Shot Girl Summer.’ But America Is Still Not Fully Back To Normal.|Kaleigh Rogers|July 2, 2021|FiveThirtyEight
As we start to see the possible glimmer of a light at the end of the pandemic tunnel, another summer is nearly upon us in all its halcyon glory.
Eight thrillers and mysteries to read this summer|S.A. Cosby|May 27, 2021|Washington Post

Now, The Lyle Hotel and Lyle’s evoke the former halcyon days as the Hotel Carlyle.
There’s no place like Lyle’s|Tom Sommers|May 27, 2021|Washington Blade
In retrospect, 2009 and 2010 were halcyon days in the Middle East, now that we seem just one horseman short of an apocalypse.
The Myth of the Central Park Five|Edward Conlon|October 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The halcyon days of Wolf, the third-wave feminist revolutionary and author of The Beauty Myth (1990), seem far, far away.
From ISIS to Ebola, What Has Made Naomi Wolf So Paranoid?|Michael Moynihan|October 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Without a bribed official, a halcyon, or eagle, will watch the entry point with binoculars for patterns and opportunities.
The Devil’s Drug: The True Story of Meth in New Mexico|Nick Romeo|August 24, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The mixed-media collection evokes nostalgia for halcyon days through fragmented images of the past.
Karen Kilimnik’s Magical Fantasyland, From Ballet to Baroque|Claire Stern|March 10, 2013|DAILY BEAST
On the Impossible Past will transport you back to your halcyon, angsty teenage years.
Best Music Albums of 2012: Frank Ocean, Taylor Swift, and More|Marlow Stern|December 26, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Relatively, it touches those old times when religious houses, with their quaintly-trimmed orders, were in their halcyon days.
Our Churches and Chapels|Atticus
And yet subsequent generations have viewed with unconcern this halcyon period in the history of art.
The History of Modern Painting, Volume 1 (of 4)|Richard Muther
This is the halcyon period of primers, introductions, handbooks, manuals.
The Contemporary Review, January 1883|Various
Do you know the periods when the Mediterranean is troubled, and when the wintry halcyon days come?
The Life and Letters of Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, Volume I (of 2)|Florence A. Thomas Marshall
Sleighing parties from Wheeling frequented this old tavern in the halcyon days of the road, and were handsomely entertained.
The Old Pike|Thomas B. Searight

British Dictionary definitions for halcyon

halcyon

/ (ˈhælsɪən) /

adjective also: halcyonian (ˌhælsɪˈəʊnɪən), halcyonic (ˌhælsɪˈɒnɪk)

peaceful, gentle, and calm

happy and carefree

noun

Greek myth a fabulous bird associated with the winter solstice

a poetic name for the kingfisher

halcyon days

a fortnight of calm weather during the winter solstice
a period of peace and happiness

Word Origin for halcyon

C14: from Latin alcyon, from Greek alkuōn kingfisher, of uncertain origin

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

halcyon

OTHER WORDS FOR halcyon

Origin of halcyon

Words nearby halcyon

Words related to halcyon

How to use halcyon in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for halcyon

Word Origin for halcyon