petasus

[ pet-uh-suh s ]

/ ˈpɛt ə səs /

noun, plural pet·a·sus·es.

a broad-brimmed hat worn by ancient Greek travelers and hunters, often represented in art as a winged hat worn by Hermes or Mercury.

Nearby words

Also pet·a·sos

[pet-uh-suh s, -sos] /ˈpɛt ə səs, -ˌsɒs/.

Origin of petasus

1590–1600; < Latin < Greek pétasos, akin to petannýnai to spread out

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for petasos

He also wore a petasos, part of which is seen behind the shoulders.
A Catalogue of Sculpture in the Department of Greek and Roman Antiquities, British Museum, Volume I (of 2)|A. H. Smith
A boy emerging into manhood leaves his petasos and strigil and chlamys to Hermes, the god of games.
Studies of the Greek Poets (Vol II of 2)|John Addington Symonds
Youthful beardless head wearing a petasos and looking to the right.
A Catalogue of Sculpture in the Department of Greek and Roman Antiquities, British Museum, Volume I (of 2)|A. H. Smith
One of these (No. 17) wears the petasos, a flapping, broad-brimmed hat used by travellers.
A Catalogue of Sculpture in the Department of Greek and Roman Antiquities, British Museum, Volume I (of 2)|A. H. Smith

No. 53, a figure wearing a petasos, does not appear in the plate of Michaelis.
A Catalogue of Sculpture in the Department of Greek and Roman Antiquities, British Museum, Volume I (of 2)|A. H. Smith

British Dictionary definitions for petasos

petasus

petasos (ˈpɛtəsəs, -ˌsɒs)

/ (ˈpɛtəsəs) /

noun

a broad-brimmed hat worn by the ancient Greeks, such as one with wings on either side as traditionally worn by Mercury

Word Origin for petasus

C16: via Latin from Greek petasos

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