Orpheus

American  

[awr-fee-uhs, -fyoos] / ˈɔr fi əs, -fjus /

noun

1. Greek Legend. a poet and musician, a son of Calliope, who followed his dead wife, Eurydice, to the underworld. By charming Hades, he obtained permission to lead her away, provided he did not look back at her until they returned to earth. But at the last moment he looked, and she was lost to him forever.

2. (italics) a ballet (1947) with music by Stravinsky and choreography by Balanchine.

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Orpheus British  

/ ˈɔːfɪəs, -fjuːs /

noun

1. Greek myth a poet and lyre-player credited with the authorship of the poems forming the basis of Orphism. He married Eurydice and sought her in Hades after her death. He failed to win her back and was killed by a band of bacchantes

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Other Word Forms

• Orphean
  adjective

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Orpheus

His farm in a meadow close by the village of Sofiytsi in southern Bulgaria backs onto the wooded slopes of the mountain range associated with the mythological musician Orpheus.

From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026

And she sings most of the Orpheus music from Gluck’s opera: I wish a complete recording, with equally sensitive artists taking on the roles of Eurydice and Amor, could have been put together.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 2, 2026

In what turns out to be a striking reminder of Wilson, Kosky employs acclaimed German actress Angela Winkler in the spoken role of Orpheus, who functions as a narrator for the opera.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2025

Other highlights include opera incorporating circus performers for a fusion of music and acrobatics in Orpheus And Eurydice, and Breaking Bach - where hip-hop meets 18th-century period instruments.

From BBC ● Mar. 13, 2025

Orpheus Fisher wanted to marry Marian, but she was too busy with her singing career to consider a serious romantic involvement.

From "The Voice That Challenged a Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights" by Russell Freedman