Dictionary
Thesaurus
Reference
Translate
Web
Related Searches
on Ask.com
Browse Nearby Entries
paean
5 dictionary results for: Paean
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
pae·an       [pee-uhn] Pronunciation Key
–noun
1.any song of praise, joy, or triumph.
2.a hymn of invocation or thanksgiving to Apollo or some other ancient Greek deity.
Also, pean.

[Origin: 1535–45; < L: religious or festive hymn, special use of Paean appellation of Apollo < Gk Pain physician of the gods]

—Related forms
pae·an·ism, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
pae·an also pe·an       (pē'ən)  Pronunciation Key 
n.  
  1. A song of joyful praise or exultation.
  2. A fervent expression of joy or praise: "The art . . . was a paean to paganism" (Will Durant).
  3. An ancient Greek hymn of thanksgiving or invocation, especially to Apollo.


[Latin paeān, hymn of thanksgiving, often addressed to Apollo, from Greek paiān, from Paiā, a title of Apollo.]

pae'an·is'tic (-ĭs'tĭk) adj.
(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
paean 
1592, from L. paean "hymn of deliverance," from Gk. paian "hymn to Apollo," from Paian, a name of the god; originally the physician of the gods (in Homer), later merged with Apollo; lit. "one who touches," from paio "to touch, strike."

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
paean

noun
1. a formal expression of praise [syn: encomium] 
2. (ancient Greece) a hymn of praise (especially one sung in ancient Greece to invoke or thank a deity) 

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Paean

P[ae]"an\ (p[=e]`an), n. [L. paean, Gr. paia`n, fr. Paia`n the physician of the gods, later, Apollo. Cf. P[ae]on, Peony.] [Written also pean.]

1. An ancient Greek hymn in honor of Apollo as a healing deity, and, later, a song addressed to other deities.

2. Any loud and joyous song; a song of triumph. --Dryden. "Public p[ae]ans of congratulation." --De Quincey.

3. See P[ae]on.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
Share This:Share This: digg.comShare This: ma.gnolia.comShare This: www.stumbleupon.comShare This: del.icio.usShare This: FacebookShare This: favorites.live.comShare This: www.technorati.comShare This: furl.netShare This: myweb2.search.yahoo.comShare This: www.google.com