mythopoeic
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of mythopoeic
1840–50; < Greek mȳthopoi ( ós ) making tales ( mȳtho- mytho- + -poios making ( poi ( eîn ) to make + -os adj. suffix) + -ic
Explanation
Anything mythopoeic is related to the creation of foundational cultural stories. These stories usually feature heroes or gods, and while not historically or scientifically "true," they capture profound human truths. The adjective mythopoeic is often used to describe modern works of epic fantasy that appeal to many people because they effectively express a culture’s core values. However, the word also applies to the study and recording of ancient and indigenous literature and sacred stories. The word stems from the Greek mythopoios, meaning "myth-making," from mytho-, "myth," and poiein, "to make."
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.
More than three decades after his final game—a pain-wracked cameo in the United States’s gold-medal win over Croatia in the 1992 Olympics—Larry Bird retains a mythopoeic quality.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 25, 2026
Gloria Steinem’s New York is a bit like everyone’s: a mythopoeic territory at the intersection of real estate, restaurants and workaholism, with bits of love, sex and ambition thrown in.
From New York Times ● Oct. 10, 2016
The whole so-called Celtic fringe, of areas in the west and north of Great Britain that were not invaded by the Saxons, is far more genetically diverse than its mythopoeic appellation suggests.
From Economist ● Mar. 18, 2015
Like Blood Simple, Fargo is set in a mythopoeic midwest peopled by tight-lipped and duplicitous off-cuts from Grant Wood's painting American Gothic.
From The Guardian ● Feb. 11, 2011
Maximus has the same faith as Plutarch that the mythopoeic age possessed, along with an enthralling artistic skill, all the speculative depth and subtlety of later ages.
From Roman Society from Nero to Marcus Aurelius by Dill, Samuel
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
