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Sphinx
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
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See also: sphinx
Translingual
Etymology
From Ancient Greek Σφίγξ (Sphínx).
Proper noun
Sphinx f
- A taxonomic genus within the family Sphingidae – many species of moths.
Hypernyms
- (genus): Eukaryota – superkingdom; Animalia – kingdom; Bilateria – subkingdom; Protostomia – infrakingdom; Ecdysozoa – superphylum; Arthropoda – phylum; Hexapoda – subphylum; Insecta – class; Pterygota – subclass; Neoptera – infraclass; Lepidoptera – order; Glossata – suborder; Heteroneura – infraorder; Ditrysia – division; Cossina – section; Bombycina – subsection; Bombycoidea – superfamily; Sphingidae – family; Sphinginae – subfamily
Hyponyms
- (genus): Sphinx ligustri – type species; for the many others see
Sphinx on Wikispecies.Wikispecies
References
Sphinx (moth) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia - Sphinx on Wikispecies.Wikispecies
Category:Sphinx (Sphingidae) on Wikimedia Commons.Wikimedia Commons
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English
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Middle English Spynx, from Ancient Greek Σφίγξ (Sphínx), perhaps from σφίγγω (sphíngō, “bind tightly, to strangle”). The appurtenance of Egyptian
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(šzp, “image, statue, sphinx”) or
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(šzp-ꜥnḫ, “living image”) remains unclear.
Pronunciation
Proper noun
the Sphinx
- An ancient, large statue in Egypt, with the face of a man and the body of a lion, lying near the Great Pyramids.
- Synonyms: the Great Sphinx, the Great Sphinx of Giza
- (Greek mythology) One of the many offspring of Typhon and Echidna, a winged lion-like creature with a woman's face, who dwelt near the city of Thebes in Boeotia and terrorized travelers by posing riddles, killing those who failed to answer correctly; after Oedipus solved her riddle, she committed suicide out of frustration.
- Synonyms: the Theban Sphinx, the Thebean Sphinx, the Sphinx of Thebes
Derived terms
Related terms
- Sphingian
- Sphingine
Translations
large monument in Egypt
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Greek mythological creature
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Noun
Sphinx (plural Sphinxes or Sphinges)
- Alternative letter-case form of sphinx (“a sculpture representing the Theban Sphinx”)
- 1776, Coryat’s Crudities, page 35:
- In the third, which leadeth to the fonts and walkes, are two Sphinges very curiouſly carued in braſſe […]
Translations
sphinx — see sphinx
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German
Etymology
From Ancient Greek Σφῐ́γξ (Sphĭ́nx).
Pronunciation
Noun
Sphinx f (genitive Sphinx, plural Sphinxe) or
Sphinx (sometimes in scientific usage with male beings/statues) m (strong, genitive Sphinx or Sphinxes, plural Sphinxe or Sphingen)
Usage notes
- Generally speaking, the word is feminine like its Greek etymon. The masculine is sometimes used in scientific usage when the being or statue in question is male. Since this is the case of the Sphinx of Giza, a hypercorrect belief that the masculine is generally more appropriate may exist in some semi-educated speakers.
Declension
Declension of Sphinx [feminine]
Declension of Sphinx [masculine (sometimes in scientific usage with male beings/statues), strong]
1Now rare, see notes.
Latin
Alternative forms
Etymology
Borrowed from Ancient Greek Σφίγξ (Sphínx).
Noun
Sphinx f (genitive Sphingis); third declension
Declension
Third-declension noun (non-Greek-type or Greek-type, normal variant).
Descendants
References
- “Sphinx”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- “Sphinx”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
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