Mythology Alussions

Achilles' heel

One spot that is most vulnerable; one weakness a person may have.

Adonis

Handsome young man; Aphrodite loved him.

Aeolian

Anything pertaining to wind; god who was Keeper of Wind.

Apollo

The God of music and light; known for his physical beauty.

Argus-eyed

Omniscient, all-seeing; from Argus, the 100-eyed monster that Hera had guarding Io.

Athena/Minerva

Goddess of wisdom, the city, and arts; patron goddess of the city of Athens.

Atlantean

Strong like Atlas - who carried the globe (world) on his shoulders.

Aurora

Early morning or sunrise; from the Roman personification of Dawn or Eos.

Bacchanal

Wild, drunken party or rowdy celebration; from god of wine Bacchus.

Bacchanalian

Pertaining to a wild, drunken party or celebration from god of wine, Bacchus (Roman), Dionysus (Greek).

Calliope

Series of whistles -- circus organ; from the Muse of eloquence or beautiful voice.

Cassandra

A person who continually predicts misfortune but often is not believed; from Greek legends.

Centaur

A monster that had the head, arms, and chest of a man, and the body and legs of a horse.

Chimera

A horrible creature of the imagination, an absurd or impossible idea; a monster with a lion's head, a goat's body, and a serpent's tail.

Cupidity

Eager 'desire' to possess something; greed or avarice; Roman god of love.

Erotic

Of or having to do with sexual passion or love; Greek god of love.

Furor

Wild enthusiasm or excitement, rage; fury.

Gorgon

A very ugly or terrible person, especially a repulsive woman; Medusa.

Halcyon

Calm, peaceful, tranquil; archaic bird supposed to breed in a nest on the sea.

Harpy

A predatory person or nagging woman; from harpy, a foul creature that was part woman, part bird.

Hector

To bully; from Hector, the son of Priam and the bravest Trojan warrior.

Helen (of Troy)

Symbol of a beautiful woman; from Helen of Troy, the daughter of Leda and Zeus.

Herculean

Very strong or of extraordinary power; from Hercules.

Hydra-Headed

Having many centers or branches, hard to bring under control; something bad you cannot eradicate.

Iridescent

A play of colors producing rainbow effects; from Iris, goddess of the rainbow.

Jovial

Good humored; from the word Jove.

Junoesque

Marked by stately beauty; comes from the word Juno.

Lethargy

Abnormal drowsiness or inertia; from the word Lethe, a river in Hades.

Martial

Suited for war or a warrior; from Mars, the Roman God of War.

Medea

Sorceress or enchantress; known for her revenge against Jason.

Mentor

A trusted counselor or guide; from Mentor, a friend of Odysseus' son.

Mercurial

Suddenly cranky or changeable; of or relating to the god Mercury.

Mercury/Hermes

Messenger of the gods, conductor of souls to the lower world.

Mnemonics

A device used to aid memory; personification of memory.

Morphine

A bitter white, crystalline alkaloid used to relieve pain and induce sleep.

Muse

Some creature of inspiration; the daughters of Mnemosyne and Zeus.

Narcissism

Being in love with our own self-image; named for Narcissus.

Nemesis

Just punishment, one who inflicts due punishment; goddess who punishes crime.

Neptune

The sea personified; the Roman god associated with Poseidon.

Niobe

Mournful woman; from Niobe, whose children were slain by Apollo and Artemis.

Odyssey

A long journey; named for Odysseus, the character in The Odyssey.

Olympian

Majestic in manner, superior to mundane affairs; named after 12 gods.

Paean

A song of joy; a ritual epithet of Apollo the healer.

Pandora's Box

Something that opens the door for bad occurrences, opened by someone known for curiosity.

Parnassus

Mountain was sacred to arts and literature; any center of poetic or artistic activity.

Pegasus

Poetic inspiration; named after a winged horse which sprang from the blood of Medusa.

Phoenix

A symbol of immortality or rebirth; named after the Egyptian Mythology phoenix, a long bird which lived in the Arabian desert and then consumed itself in fire, rising renewed from the flame to start another long life.

Plutocracy

A government by the wealthy; named after Pluton, the 'Rich Man,' a ritual title of Hades.

Promethean

Life-bringing, creative, or courageously original; named after a Titan who brought man the use of fire, which he had stolen from heaven for their benefit.

Protean

Taking many forms, versatile; named after Proteus, a god of the sea, charged with tending the flocks of the sea creatures belonging to Poseidon.

Psyche

The human soul, self, the mind; named after Psyche, a maiden who, after undergoing many hardships due to Aphrodite's jealousy, reunited with Cupid and was made immortal by Jupiter.

Pygmalion

Someone (usually a male) who tries to fashion someone into the person he desires; from a myth adapted into a play by George Bernard Shaw.

Pyrrhic victory

A too costly victory; from Pyrrhus, a Greek king who defeated the Romans in 279 BC, but suffered extremely heavy losses in the fight.

Saturnalia

A period of unrestrained revelry; named after the ancient Roman festival of Saturn, with general feasting in revelry in honor of the winter solstice.

Saturnine

Sluggish, gloomy, morose, inactive in winter months; named after the god Saturn, often associated with the god of the Underworld.

Sibyl

A witch or sorceress; a priestess who made known the oracles of Apollo and possessed the gift of prophecy.

Sisyphean

Greedy and avaricious; from the shrewd and greedy king of Corinth, Sisyphus, who was doomed forever in Hades to roll uphill a heavy stone.

Stentorian

Having a loud voice; after Stentor, a character in the Iliad who could shout as loudly as 50 men.

Stygian

Dark and gloomy; named after the river Styx, a river in the Underworld.

Tantalize

From King Tantalus, who was condemned to reside in a beautiful river with sumptuous fruits just out of reach and the water undrinkable.

Terpsichorean

Pertaining to dance; for Terpsichore, one of the nine muses, sometimes said to be the mother of the sirens and the protector of dance.

Titanic

Large, grand, enormous; after Tityus, a giant, the son of Zeus and Elara.

Volcanoes

Originated from Vulcan, the Roman god of fire, whose forge is said to be under mountains.

Vulcanize

To treat rubber with sulfur to increase strength and elasticity; from the Roman God of Fire and Metallurgy, Vulcan/Hephaestus.

Zeus

A powerful man; king of the gods, ruler of Mt. Olympus, vengeful hurler of thunderbolts.