Theocritus

American  

[thee-ok-ri-tuhs] / θiˈɒk rɪ təs /

noun

1. flourished c270 b.c., Greek poet.

---

Theocritus British  

/ θɪˈɒkrɪtəs, θɪˌɒkrɪˈtiːən /

noun

1. ?310–?250 _bc , Greek poet, born in Syracuse. He wrote the first pastoral poems in Greek literature and was closely imitated by Virgil

---

Other Word Forms

• Theocritan adjective
• Theocritean adjective

Example Sentences

In my account I have followed the stories given by the two tragic poets and by Theocritus, rather than Pindar, one of the most difficult of poets to translate or even to paraphrase.

From Literature

Adonis I have taken from two third-century poets, Theocritus and Bion.

From Literature

He and three other Alexandrians, who also wrote about mythology, the pastoral poets Theocritus, Bion and Moschus, have lost the simplicity of Hesiod’s and Pindar’s belief in the gods, and are far removed from the depth and gravity of the tragic poets’ view of religion; but they are not frivolous like Ovid.

From Literature

The first part of this story goes back to the Odyssey; the second part is told only by the third-century Alexandrian poet Theocritus; the last part could have been written by no one except the satirist Lucian, in the second century A.D.

From Literature

Homer’s vigor and power of storytelling, the pretty fancies of Theocritus, the smart cynicism of Lucian, illustrate in their degree the course of Greek literature.

From Literature