succubus means A female demon which comes to men, especially monks, in their dreams to seduce them and have sexual intercourse, drawing energy from the men to sustain themselves, often until the point of exhaustion or death. It carries an Arena rating of 1709, earned across 6 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, succubus ranks #83 of 17,143 for Best Fossil-Poetry Words, #358 of 17,131 for Scariest Words, #377 of 17,127 for Most Vivid Words, #2,861 of 17,124 for Most Sublime Words.
succubus is pronounced /ˈsʌk.jʊ.bəs/.
Why “succubus” is a great word
A female demon believed to seduce men in their sleep, draining their vitality. From Middle English, an alteration (based on incubus) of Late Latin succuba (“strumpet, demon”), from Latin succubare (“to lie under”), from sub- (“under”) + cubare (“to lie down”). First attested in English in the late 14th century. Unlike the incubus, which lies upon its victims, or the siren, which lures from afar, the succubus is a predator of intimate, suffocating closeness. She is the cold breath on the neck in a dream, the lingering scent of damp earth on waking linen, and the profound, bone-deep weariness mistaken for illness—the ancient, personified fear that pleasure is a transaction that consumes the soul.
Etymology
Alteration in Middle English (based on incubus m) of Late Latin succuba (“strumpet, especially a mythological fiend in female form who has intercourse with men in their sleep”), from Latin succubo (“to lie under”), from sub- (“under”) + cubare (“to lie down”).
noun
- A female demon which comes to men, especially monks, in their dreams to seduce them and have sexual intercourse, drawing energy from the men to sustain themselves, often until the point of exhaustion or death.
- A strumpet, whore or prostitute.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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