Spartan - Definitions from Dictionary.com

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

Spar·tan

Audio Help [spahr-tn] Pronunciation Key

–adjective

1.	Also, Spar·tan·ic Audio Help [spahr-tan-ik] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation. of or pertaining to Sparta or its people.

2.	suggestive of the ancient Spartans; sternly disciplined and rigorously simple, frugal, or austere.

3.	brave; undaunted.

–noun

4.	a native or inhabitant of Sparta.

5.	a person of Spartan characteristics.

[Origin: 1375–1425; late ME < L Spartānus, equiv. to Spart(a) Sparta (< Doric Gk Spártā) + -ānus -an

]

—Related forms

Spar·tan·ism, noun

Spar·tan·ly, Spar·tan·i·cal·ly, adverb

—Synonyms 1. See austere.

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

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Spartan

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Spar·tan Audio Help (spär'tn) Pronunciation Key
adj.

Of or relating to Sparta or its people.
also spartan
1. Rigorously self-disciplined or self-restrained.
2. Simple, frugal, or austere: a Spartan diet; a spartan lifestyle.
3. Marked by brevity of speech; laconic.
4. Courageous in the face of pain, danger, or adversity.

A citizen of Sparta.
One of Spartan character.

Spar'tan·ism n., Spar'tan·ly adv.

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Spartan

c.1425, "of or pertaining to the classical Gk. city of Sparta," from Sparta capital of Laconia, famed for severity of its social order, the frugality of its people, the valor of its army, and the brevity of its speech. Meaning "characterized by frugality or courage" is from 1644.

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

spartan
adjective
1.	of or relating to or characteristic of Sparta or its people
2.	resolute in the face of pain or danger or adversity; "spartan courage"
3.	unsparing and uncompromising in discipline or judgment; "a parent severe to the pitch of hostility"- H.G.Wells; "a hefty six-footer with a rather severe mien"; "a strict disciplinarian"; "a Spartan upbringing" [syn: severe]
4.	practicing great self-denial; "Be systematically ascetic...do...something for no other reason than that you would rather not do it"- William James; "a desert nomad's austere life"; "a spartan diet"; "a spartan existence" [syn: ascetic]
noun
1.	a resident of Sparta

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

Spartan

Spar"tan\, a. [L. Spartanus.] Of or pertaining to Sparta, especially to ancient Sparta; hence, hardy; undaunted; as, Spartan souls; Spartan bravey. -- n. A native or inhabitant of Sparta; figuratively, a person of great courage and fortitude.

Acronym Finder - Cite This Source - Share This

SPARTAN

SPARTAN: in Acronym Finder

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