pegasus means A winged horse fabled to have sprung from the blood of Medusa when she was slain. He is noted for causing, with a blow of his hoof, Hippocrene, the inspiring fountain of the Muses, to spring from Mount Helicon. Bellerophon tamed and rode upon Pegasus when he defeated the Chimaera. It carries an Arena rating of 1363, earned across 3 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, pegasus ranks #55 of 17,104 for Most Storied Words, #1,242 of 17,124 for Most Sublime Words, #1,246 of 17,127 for Most Vivid Words, #2,468 of 17,130 for Most Beautiful Words.
pegasus is pronounced /ˈpɛɡ.ə.səs/.
Why “pegasus” is a great word
A divine, winged horse of Greek myth, born from the spilled blood of the Gorgon Medusa. From Late Middle English Pegase, Pegasus, from Latin Pēgasus, from Ancient Greek Πήγασος (Pḗgasos), traditionally associated with πηγή (pēgḗ, "spring, fountain"), first attested in the 14th century. Unlike the unicorn, a terrestrial emblem of purity defined by its singular horn, or the hippogriff, a later medieval hybrid of eagle and horse, Pegasus is violence transfigured into grace—the instant of terror become the means of ascent. He is the thunder of white wings against a mountain peak, the glint of a golden bit against a star-flecked mane, the moment a hoof strikes rock and water gushes forth—proof that beauty and danger share the same source: the same blood that petrifies the watcher also launches the rider skyward.
Etymology
From Late Middle English Pegase, Pegasus, from Latin Pēgasus, from Ancient Greek Πήγασος (Pḗgasos), traditionally associated with πηγή (pēgḗ, “spring, fountain, fountain fed by a spring”), especially used to denote springs of Ocean, where Perseus killed Medusa, from whose blood Pegasus sprang. Some have dismissed this as folk etymology and suggest a pre-Greek origin because of the -ασος suffix. First attested in the 14th century.
name
- A winged horse fabled to have sprung from the blood of Medusa when she was slain. He is noted for causing, with a blow of his hoof, Hippocrene, the inspiring fountain of the Muses, to spring from Mount Helicon. Bellerophon tamed and rode upon Pegasus when he defeated the Chimaera.
- A winged horse fabled to have sprung from the blood of Medusa when she was slain. He is noted for causing, with a blow of his hoof, Hippocrene, the inspiring fountain of the Muses, to spring from Mount Helicon. Bellerophon tamed and rode upon Pegasus when he defeated the Chimaera.; A constellation of the northern sky, near the vernal equinoctial point, representing the winged horse. Its three brightest stars, with the brightest star of Andromeda, form the asterism of the Great Square of Pegasus.
noun
- Any winged horse; a pterippus.
- Any winged horse; a pterippus.; A coin of ancient Corinth with a winged horse depicted on the obverse.e.g.“Confidence in Corinthian Pegasi grew up in the Greek zone of the island in such a way that Pegasi became the accepted coin of the realm.” — 2007 February 15, R. J. A. Talbert, Timoleon and the Revival of Greek Sicily: 344-317 B.C., Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, →OL, page 167:
- Poetic inspiration; muse.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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