Thermopylae
[ther-mop-uh-lee]
- a pass in E Greece, between the cliffs of Mt. Oeta and the Gulf of Lamia: Persian defeat of the Spartans 480 b.c.
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Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for thermopylae
Contemporary Examples
Foreign-policy experts rush to compare Libya to Bosnia, the Punic Wars, Iraq, Kosovo, Thermopylae, and so forth.
Historical Examples
When they came to the pass of Thermopylae, they found a new cause for fear.
Journeys Through Bookland, Vol. 8Charles H. Sylvester
Let us take, as example, Leonidas and his devotion at Thermopylae.
The Aesthetical EssaysFriedrich Schiller
Near the Warm Wells—the Thermopylae—a terrible battle was fought.
The Story of MankindHendrik van Loon
It was to have been the Thermopylae of Mormondom—but it wasn't.
The Complete Works of Artemus WardCharles Farrar Browne (AKA Artemus Ward)
They were first stopped at Thermopylae by Leonidas and his three hundred Spartans.
Thoughts on ManWilliam Godwin
Thermopylae
- (in ancient Greece) a narrow pass between the mountains and the sea linking Locris and Thessaly: a defensible position on a traditional invasion route from N Greece; scene of a famous battle (480 bc) in which a greatly outnumbered Greek army under Leonidas fought to the death to delay the advance of the Persians during their attempted conquest of Greece
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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Word Origin and History for thermopylae
Thermopylae
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper