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Messalina

American  
[mes-uh-lahy-nuh] / ˌmɛs əˈlaɪ nə /

noun

  1. Valeria, died a.d. 48, third wife of Claudius I.


Messalina British  
/ ˌmɛsəˈliːnə /

noun

  1. Valeria (vəˈlɪərɪə). died 48 ad , wife of the Roman emperor Claudius, notorious for her debauchery and cruelty

"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

Example Sentences

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According to Suetonius, the Emperor Claudius was so absent-minded that “shortly after he had had Messalina put to death he reclined at table in the dining room and inquired why the empress had not come.”

From Washington Post

Besides “I Claudius,” a compelling “autobiography” of the Roman emperor, which appeared in 1934, and “Claudius the God and His Wife Messalina,” a sequel that came out the following year, Graves produced at his island home a torrent of novels including “Count Belisarius,” “Seven Days in New Crete” and “The Golden Fleece.”

From New York Times

Later we meet Messalina, who remains a byword for manipulative awfulness.

From The Guardian

Messalina, third wife of Claudius.

From Project Gutenberg

It was here, just within the Ostian Gate, that the Emperor Claudius, returning from Ostia to take vengeance upon Messalina, was met by their two children, Octavia and Britannicus, accompanied by a vestal, who insisted upon the rights of her Order, and imperiously demanded that the empress should not be condemned undefended.

From Project Gutenberg