Meaning of Siren in English

Table of contents
  1. Pronunciation
  2. Noun
    1. Etymology
    2. Definitions

  1. Pronunciation

    /ˈsaɪrən/

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  1. Noun

    Siren

    Etymology

    Middle English (denoting an imaginary type of snake): from Old French sirene, from late Latin Sirena, feminine of Latin Siren, from Greek Seirēn

    Definitions

    1. a sea nymph (part woman and part bird) supposed to lure sailors to destruction on the rocks where the nymphs lived

    Examples

    • « Odysseus ordered his crew to plug their ears so they would not hear the Siren's fatal song »
  2. 2. a woman who is considered to be dangerously seductive
  3. 3. a warning signal that is a loud wailing sound
  4. 4. an acoustic device producing a loud often wailing sound as a signal or warning
  5. 5. eel-like aquatic North American salamander with small forelimbs and no hind limbs

    Examples

    • « have permanent external gills »

Famous quotes

  • « My faith, inasmuch as I have any, is more like a kind of Joseph Campbell thing, and even that frequently finds itself tested to oblivion in siren waters. »
    David Knopfler
  • « It is natural to indulge in the illusions of hope. We are apt to shut our eyes to that siren until she allures us to our death. »
    Gertrude Stein

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