View synonyms for aeon

aeon

[ ee-uhn, ee-on ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

Also Ae·on. (in Gnosticism) one of a class of powers or beings conceived as emanating from the Supreme Being and performing various functions in the operations of the universe.
eon.

aeon

/ ˈiːən; ˈiːɒn /

an immeasurably long period of time; age
a period of one thousand million years
often capital gnosticism one of the powers emanating from the supreme being and culminating in the demiurge

Origin of aeon¹

First recorded in 1580–90; from Late Latin, from Greek aiṓn “age, long period of time, eternity”

Origin of aeon¹

C17: from Greek aiōn an infinitely long time

In a January piece in Aeon Magazine, science writer Philip Ball identifies the dangers of “instrument-worship” among scientists.

After what seemed an aeon, they saw that it was daylight outside.

Don't you remember what happened to the passengers of the Aeon, when that steamer was wrecked on Christmas Island?

The Mesozoic time certainly terminated with the Cretaceous, and what follows belongs to a distinct aeon.

He himself hopes along with his followers to live to see the decisive turn of things, the dawn of the new and better aeon.

Given such a culture-hero, the common herd was capable of carrying on more or less mechanically for an aeon or so.

April 17, 2024axolotl

[ak-suh-lot-l ]

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