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noun
a castrated man, especially one formerly employed by Oriental rulers as a harem guard or palace official.
Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English eunuk < Latin eunūchus < Greek eunoûchos eunuch, chamberlain, equivalent to eune-, stem of eunḗ bed, place of sleeping + -ochos keeping (akin to échein to hold
1350–1400; Middle English eunuk < Latin eunūchus < Greek eunoûchos eunuch, chamberlain, equivalent to eune-, stem of eunḗ bed, place of sleeping + -ochos keeping (akin to échein to hold
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Eunuch
is always a great word to know.
So is callithumpian. Does it mean:
| a fool or simpleton; ninny. |
| a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes. |
Example Sentences
- It was like being verbally assaulted by some sort of sleepy incoherent hippie eunuch.
- In this murder mystery set in 1836 Istanbul, the investigator is a court eunuch.
- Get out of my sight you childless eunuch.
Collins
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
eunuch
late 14c., from Gk. eunoukhos "castrated man," originally "guard of the bedchamber or harem," from euno-, comb. form of eune "bed" + -okhos, from stem of ekhein "to have, hold." The Gk. and L. forms of the word were used to transl. Heb. saris, which sometimes meant merely "palace official," in Septuagint
EXPANDand Vulgate, probably without an intended comment on the qualities of bureaucrats.
COLLAPSE
"Eunuches is he þat is i-gilded, and suche were somtyme i-made wardeynes of ladyes in Egipt." [Travisa, 1387]
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary
eunuch eu·nuch (y&oomacr;'nək)
n.
A man or boy whose testes have been removed or have never developed.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Easton
Bible Dictionary
Eunuch definition
literally bed-keeper or chamberlain, and not necessarily in all cases one who was mutilated, although the practice of employing such mutilated persons in Oriental courts was common (2 Kings 9:32; Esther 2:3). The law of Moses excluded them from the congregation (Deut. 23:1). They were common also among the Greeks and Romans. It is said that even to-day there are some in Rome who are employed in singing soprano in the Sistine Chapel. Three classes of eunuchs are mentioned in Matt. 19:12.
Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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