Adonis

American  

[uh-don-is, uh-doh-nis] / əˈdɒn ɪs, əˈdoʊ nɪs /

noun

• Adonises
  plural

1. Classical Mythology. a youth slain by a wild boar but permitted by Zeus to pass four months every year in the lower world with Persephone, four with Aphrodite, and four wherever he chose.

2. a very handsome young man.

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Adonis British  

/ əˈdəʊnɪs /

noun

1. Greek myth a handsome youth loved by Aphrodite. Killed by a wild boar, he was believed to spend part of the year in the underworld and part on earth, symbolizing the vegetative cycle

2. a handsome young man

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Adonis Cultural  

1. In classical mythology, an extremely beautiful boy who was loved by Aphrodite, the goddess of love.

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Discover More

By extension, an “Adonis” is any handsome young man.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• Adonises
  plural

Etymology

Origin of Adonis

1615–25 Adonis for def. 2

Explanation

An adonis is a very handsome man, especially a young one. You might secretly think of your good-looking neighbor as "a young adonis." You'll most commonly see this word capitalized: Adonis, though if you're using it to mean "handsome guy," it's okay to use a lower-case a. Its origin is the god Adonis, in Greek mythology the eternally youthful god of beauty and desire. When you call someone an adonis, there's an implication that he's a bit vain about his good looks: "He knows he's the adonis of the family."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Adonis Adonises

He also worked with emerging regional house music acts, helming A&R for the essential label Trax Records and booked acts like Marshall Jefferson and Adonis at globally prominent nightclubs.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026

AI health startup Adonis leased a 25,000-square-foot office at 3 World Trade Center during a time when it had only 25 employees.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 29, 2026

Until the 1990s, that is, when relentless tabloid coverage reinvented him as New York City’s Adonis.

From Salon ● Feb. 12, 2026

As Nacua walks away, teammate Adonis Alexander can be seen pointing at the fan and speaking toward him.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 29, 2025

But down in the black underworld Adonis could not hear them, nor see the crimson flower that sprang up where each drop of his blood had stained the earth.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton

The matchbooks on display at the library, nostalgic artifacts adorned with images of muscled Adonises and punning slogans, were everyday objects — used and discarded — at the time they were made.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 1, 2019

A stark difference between me and the zero-body-fat Adonises.

From New York Times ● Aug. 15, 2016

When a trend is embraced by both the baby-oiled Adonises of luxury fashion and the ruling-class matrons of the Old World, you know somebody’s doing something wrong.

From New York Times ● Jul. 29, 2010

In this alternate universe, the gods are bronzed-faced Adonises and everyone bleeds yellow and green.

From Washington Post

But after this portrait you must not figure to yourself one of those elegant young men, those Adonises of romance who excite the admiration of the drawing-room.

From Hortense Makers of History Series by John S. C. (John Stevens Cabot) Abbott

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