Thebes
Americannoun
-
an ancient city in Upper Egypt, on the Nile, whose ruins are located in the modern towns of Karnak and Luxor: a former capital of Egypt.
-
a city of ancient Greece, in Boeotia: a rival of ancient Athens.
noun
-
(in ancient Greece) the chief city of Boeotia, destroyed by Alexander the Great (336 bc )
-
(in ancient Egypt) a city on the Nile: at various times capital of Upper Egypt or of the entire country
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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.
We value surprise in film and televised drama; the Greeks can surprise us as well, once we look beyond Thebes.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 6, 2026
Today, Karnak Temple sits about 500 meters east of the Nile near Luxor, once the religious capital of ancient Egypt known as Thebes.
From Science Daily • Jan. 4, 2026
In Sophocles’ play, Oedipus confronts a plague that has been laying waste to Thebes.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 13, 2025
A vulture is used as the hieroglyph for mother, mut being the word for them both, and for the mother goddess of Thebes.
From Salon • May 11, 2025
With the aid of the five Cadmus made Thebes a glorious city and ruled over it in great prosperity and with great wisdom.
From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton
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.
