6 results for: Sisyphus

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

Sis·y·phus

Audio Help [sis-uh-fuh

–noun Classical Mythology.

a son of Aeolus and ruler of Corinth, noted for his trickery: he was punished in Tartarus by being compelled to roll a stone to the top of a slope, the stone always escaping him near the top and rolling down again.

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

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Sisyphus

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Sis·y·phus Audio Help (sĭs'ə-fəs) Pronunciation Key
n. Greek Mythology
A cruel king of Corinth condemned forever to roll a huge stone up a hill in Hades only to have it roll down again on nearing the top.

[Latin Sisyphus, from Greek Sisuphos.]

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
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WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

sisyphus
noun
(Greek legend) a king in ancient Greece who offended Zeus and whose punishment was to roll a huge boulder to the top of a steep hill; each time the boulder neared the top it rolled back down and Sisyphus was forced to start again

American Heritage New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition - Cite This Source - Share This
Sisyphus [(sis-uh-fuhs)]

A king in classical mythology who offended Zeus and was punished in Hades by being forced to roll an enormous boulder to the top of a steep hill. Every time the boulder neared the top, it would roll back down, and Sisyphus would have to start over.

Note: A difficult and futile endeavor may be called a “labor of Sisyphus” or a “Sisyphean task.”

[Chapter:] Mythology and Folklore

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Sisyphus

Sis"y*phus\, n. [L. Sisyphus, Sisyphus, fr. Gr. ????.] (Class. Myth.) A king of Corinth, son of [AE]olus, famed for his cunning. He was killed by Theseus, and in the lower world was condemned by Pluto to roll to the top of a hill a huge stone, which constantly rolled back again, making his task incessant.

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