Stygian

[stij-ee-uh n]

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adjective

of or relating to the river Styx or to Hades.

dark or gloomy.

infernal; hellish.

Also styg·i·an (for defs 2, 3).

Origin of Stygian

1560–70; < Latin Stygi(us) < Greek Stýgios (Styg-, stem of Stýx Styx + -ios adj. suffix) + -an

Related formstrans-Styg·i·an, adjective

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

Related Words for stygian

dim, misty, murky, shadowy, overcast, somber, cloudy, dingy, gloomy, black, drab, foggy, dull, darkened, jet, slate, onyx, coal, sable, pitch

Examples from the Web for stygian

Historical Examples of stygian

Justus Miles was the first to come to, and he found himself in Stygian blackness.
The Heads of Apex
Francis Flagg
She appealed by a gesture to Heaven against the Stygian darkness of my mind.
The Strolling Saint
Raphael Sabatini
They snapped off their torches and crouched in Stygian darkness.
The Seed of the Toc-Toc Birds
Francis Flagg
It was not the sort of night we know on earth, but a Stygian blackness.
The Fire People
Ray Cummings
The Stygian darkness of his hiatus refused to lift by questioning.
Desert Conquest
A. M. Chisholm

British Dictionary definitions for stygian

Stygian

adjective

of or relating to the river Styx

mainly literary

dark, gloomy, or hellish
completely inviolable, as a vow sworn by the river Styx

Word Origin for Stygian

C16: from Latin Stygius, from Greek Stugios, from Stux Styx; related to stugein to hate

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

Word Origin and History for stygian

Stygian

"pertaining to Styx or the nether world," 1560s, from Latin Stygius, from Greek Stygios, from Styx (genitive Stygos); see Styx.