chaos means in Greek mythology, the primordial state of disorder that exists before the creation of the world, or the first being or deity to exist.
chaos is pronounced /ˈkeɪ.ɒs/.
Why “chaos” is a great word
A state of utter confusion, disorder, and lack of organization. From Latin chaos, from Ancient Greek χάος (kháos, "abyss, chasm, void, primordial state"). Unlike "disorder," which suggests a mere breakdown of arrangement, or "cosmos," its direct and harmonious antithesis, chaos implies an absolute, overwhelming tumult. It is the cacophonous roar of a collapsing market, the frenzied scattering of papers in a sudden gale, and the primal soup of conflicting emotions before a decision—the abyssal ground from which all order must, and inevitably will, be wrested.
Etymology
From Latin chaos (“chaos”), from Ancient Greek χάος (kháos).
name
- In Greek mythology, the primordial state of disorder that exists before the creation of the world, or the first being or deity to exist.
- A planetoid and cubewano orbiting in the Kuiper belt.
- In the Warhammer franchise, a demonic antagonist that sends demons, monsters, warriors, and beasts to wage war on the games' setting.“Chaos warrior, Chaos daemon”
noun
- The unordered state of matter in classical accounts of cosmogony.
- Any state of disorder; a confused or amorphous mixture or conglomeration.“to descend into chaos”
- A behaviour of iterative non-linear systems in which arbitrarily small variations in initial conditions become magnified over time.
- One of the two metaphysical forces of the world in some fantasy settings, as opposed to law.
- A vast chasm or abyss.
- A given medium; a space in which something exists or lives; an environment.“What is in the centre of the earth, or is it pure element only, as Ariſtotle decrees inhabited as Paracelſus thinks with creatures, whoſe Chaos is the earth with Fairies, as the woods and waters according to him, are with Nymphes or as the ayre with ſpirits.”
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.
- cosmos 89% match — The universe regarded as a system with harmony and order. vs chaos →
- abyss 86% match — Hell; the bottomless pit; primeval chaos; a confined subterranean ocean. vs chaos →
- disarray 86% match — To throw into disorder; to break the array of. vs chaos →
- turmoil 85% match — A state of great disorder or uncertainty. vs chaos →
- abysm 85% match — Hell; the infernal pit; the great deep; the primal chaos. vs chaos →
- pandemonium 85% match — A loud, wild, tumultuous protest, disorder, or chaotic situation, usually of a crowd, often violent. vs chaos →
- haphazard 85% match — Random; chaotic; incomplete; not thorough, constant, or consistent. vs chaos →
- shambles 84% match — A scene of great disorder or ruin. vs chaos →