Thersites

[ ther-sahy-teez ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

(in the Iliad ) a Greek who accused Agamemnon of greed and Achilles of cowardice during the Trojan War.

Thersites

/ θəˈsaɪtiːz /

the ugliest and most evil-tongued fighter on the Greek side in the Trojan War, killed by Achilles when he mocked him

Thersites would have been at once pulled down and beaten; the host would not have rushed to the ships on his motion.

We never hear again of Thersites, or of any one of the commonalty, daring to open his mouth in an assembly.

Before Agamemnon thus displayed his ineptitude, as he often does later, Thersites had no chance.

The assembly meets again in great confusion; Thersites seizes the chance to be insolent, and is beaten by Odysseus.

Favorinus extolled Thersites, and wrote in praise of a quartan ague.

April 24, 2024gallimaufry

[gal-uh-maw-free ]

Start each day with the Word of the Day in your inbox!

By clicking "Sign Up", you are accepting Dictionary.com Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policies.

Browse