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adonis

noun

Simple meaning

A handsome youth loved by both Aphrodite and Persephone.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

uhdahnuhs

Say the bold part a little louder.

US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

əˈdɑnəs

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

noun

  1. Greek mythology

    A handsome youth loved by both Aphrodite and Persephone

    “When Adonis died Zeus decreed that he should spend winters in the underworld with Persephone and spend summers with Aphrodite.”

  2. Greek mythology

    A beautiful young man loved by Aphrodite.

  3. Greek mythology

    Any handsome young man

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
C2 · Proficient
Frequency
Uncommon
Typical Use
Primarily written

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: (Greek mythology) a handsome youth loved by both Aphrodite and Persephone

Used this way, adonis is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Heard in a sentence
“When Adonis died Zeus decreed that he should spend winters in the underworld with Persephone and spend summers with Aphrodite.”
Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Common
Connotation
Matter-of-fact
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use adonis

  • “When Adonis died Zeus decreed that he should spend winters in the underworld with Persephone and spend summers with Aphrodite.”noun

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

young adonislike adonismichael adonisandrew adonisdead adonisadonis myth

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • adonis annuanounCompound term

    Eurasian herb cultivated for its deep red flowers with dark centers.

  • genus adonisnounCompound term

    Annual or perennial herbs.

Related words

Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.

  • adonic linenounRelated term

    A verse line with a dactyl followed by a spondee or trochee.

Related Words

Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.