pyrrhic
Use Pyrrhic in a sentence
ɪkDictionary.com Unabridged
noun
1.
an ancient Greek warlike dance in which the motions of actual warfare were imitated.
adjective
2.
of, pertaining to, or denoting this dance.
Origin:
1590–1600; < Latin pyrrhicha < Greek pyrrhíchē a dance; said to be named after Pyrrhichus, the inventor
1590–1600; < Latin pyrrhicha < Greek pyrrhíchē a dance; said to be named after Pyrrhichus, the inventor
00:10
Pyrrhic
is always a great word to know.
So is ort. Does it mean:
| a scrap or morsel of food left at a meal. |
| a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc. |
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
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Link To pyrrhic
Collins
World English Dictionary
pyrrhic1 (ˈpɪrɪk) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | a metrical foot of two short or unstressed syllables |
| —adj | |
| 2. | of or relating to such a metrical foot |
| 3. | (of poetry) composed in pyrrhics |
| [C16: via Latin, from Greek purrhikhē, traditionally said to be named after its inventor Purrhikhos] | |
| pyrrhic2 (ˈpɪrɪk) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | a war dance of ancient Greece |
| —adj | |
| 2. | of or relating to this dance |
| [C17: Latin from Greek purrhikhios belonging to the purrhikhē war dance performed in armour; see | |
| Pyrrhus (ˈpɪrəs) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | 319--272 |
| 2. | another name for Neoptolemus |
| 'Pyrrhic | |
| —adj | |
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
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History
Pyrrhic
1885, from Pyrrhus, king of Epirus, who defeated Roman armies at Asculum, 280 B.C.E., but at such cost to his own troops that he was unable to follow up and attack Rome itself, and is said to have remarked, "one more such victory and we are lost."
pyrrhic
"dance in armor" (1597), also a type of metrical foot (1626), from L. pyrrhicha, from Gk. pyrrikhe orkhesis, the war-dance of ancient Greece, traditionally named for its inventor, Pyrrikhos. The name lit. means "reddish," from pyrros "flame-colored," from pyr "fire" (see pyre).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
And let's not forgot its string of pyrrhic victories.
The greens' victory is already looking rather pyrrhic, however.
In due time, the victories of nationalists may prove of pyrrhic type: their ethnically pure fiefdoms dying out slowly.
And often, the costs of defense can be high and the legal victories can be pyrrhic.
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