[foust] 
| 1. | Jo⋅hann [yoh-hahn] , c1480–c1538, German magician, alchemist, and astrologer. |
| 2. | the chief character of a medieval legend, represented as selling his soul to the devil in exchange for knowledge and power. |
| 3. | (italics ) a tragedy by Goethe (Part 1, 1808; Part 2, 1832). |
| 4. | (italics) an opera (1859) by Charles Gounod. |
| Faust (foust) n. A magician and alchemist in German legend who sells his soul to the devil in exchange for power and knowledge. [German, after Johann Faust (1480?-1540?), German magician and alchemist.] Faust'i·an (fou'stē-ən) adj. |
A legendary sixteenth-century magician and practitioner of alchemy, who sold his soul to the devil in exchange for youth, knowledge, and power. Christopher Marlowe, a sixteenth-century English poet, and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe wrote famous plays about him.
Note: A “Faustian” bargain is one in which a person is willing to make extreme sacrifices for power or knowledge without considering the ultimate cost.
