medusa

[ muh-doo-suh, -zuh, -dyoo- ]

noun,plural me·du·sas, me·du·sae [muh-doo-see, -zee, -dyoo-]. /məˈdu si, -zi, -ˈdyu-/. Zoology.
  1. a saucer-shaped or dome-shaped, free-swimming jellyfish or hydra.

Origin of medusa

1
1750–60; special use of Medusa, alluding to the Gorgon's snaky locks

Other words from medusa

  • me·du·soid [muh-doo-soid, -dyoo-], /məˈdu sɔɪd, -ˈdyu-/, adjective

Other definitions for Medusa (2 of 2)

Medusa
[ muh-doo-suh, -zuh, -dyoo- ]

noun,plural Me·du·sas.Classical Mythology.
  1. the only mortal of the three Gorgons. She was killed by Perseus, and her head was mounted upon the aegis of Zeus and Athena.

Origin of Medusa

2
<Latin <Greek Médousa, special use of médousa, feminine of médōn ruling

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use medusa in a sentence

  • It has been said that the movement of neurons has been observed in certain of the Medusae.

    Psychotherapy | James J. Walsh
  • You will have seen his curious paper on certain medusae reproducing themselves by seminal generation at two periods of growth.

  • The germs of certain medusae seem to be equipotential in every respect, even in their cleavage stages.

  • The creatures the girls were admiring were medusae, beautifully transparent, which were floating along near the surface.

    In the Eastern Seas | W.H.G. Kingston
  • It was just when we had been having a very interesting conversation upon the medusae, especially those of a phosphorescent nature.

    The Ocean Cat's Paw | George Manville Fenn

British Dictionary definitions for medusa (1 of 2)

medusa

/ (mɪˈdjuːzə) /


nounplural -sas or -sae (-ziː)
  1. Also called: medusoid, medusan one of the two forms in which a coelenterate exists. It has a jelly-like umbrella-shaped body, is free swimming, and produces gametes: Compare polyp

Origin of medusa

1
C18: from the likeness of its tentacles to the snaky locks of Medusa

Derived forms of medusa

  • medusan, adjective

British Dictionary definitions for Medusa (2 of 2)

Medusa

/ (mɪˈdjuːzə) /


noun
  1. Greek myth a mortal woman who was transformed by Athena into one of the three Gorgons. Her appearance was so hideous that those who looked directly at her were turned to stone. Perseus eventually slew her: See also Pegasus 1

Derived forms of Medusa

  • Medusan, adjective

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

Scientific definitions for medusa

medusa

[ mĭ-dōō ]


Plural medusas medusae (mĭ-dōō)
  1. A cnidarian in its free-swimming stage. Medusas are bell-shaped, with tentacles hanging down around a central mouth. Jellyfish are medusas, while corals and sea anemones lack a medusa stage and exist only as polyps. Compare polyp.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Cultural definitions for Medusa

Medusa

[ (mi-dooh-suh, mi-dooh-zuh) ]


The best known of the monster Gorgons of classical mythology; people who looked at her would turn to stone. A hero, Perseus, was able to kill Medusa, aiming his sword by looking at her reflection in a highly polished shield.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.