Definitions for Macbeth
məkˈbɛθ, mæk-mac·beth

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:2.3 / 3 votes

1. Macbethnoun

   king of Scotland (died in 1057)

WiktionaryRate this definition:3.3 / 3 votes

1. Macbethnoun

   A Shakespeare play, about the Scottish royal family

WikipediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Macbeth

   Macbeth (, full title The Tragedie of Macbeth) is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those who seek power. Of all the plays that Shakespeare wrote during the reign of James I, Macbeth most clearly reflects his relationship with King James, patron of Shakespeare's acting company. It was first published in the Folio of 1623, possibly from a prompt book, and is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy.A brave Scottish general named Macbeth receives a prophecy from a trio of witches that one day he will become King of Scotland. Consumed by ambition and spurred to action by his wife, Macbeth murders King Duncan and takes the Scottish throne for himself. He is then wracked with guilt and paranoia. Forced to commit more and more murders to protect himself from enmity and suspicion, he soon becomes a tyrannical ruler. The bloodbath and consequent civil war swiftly take Macbeth and Lady Macbeth into the realms of madness and death. Shakespeare's source for the story is the account of Macbeth, King of Scotland, Macduff, and Duncan in Holinshed's Chronicles (1587), a history of England, Scotland, and Ireland familiar to Shakespeare and his contemporaries, although the events in the play differ extensively from the history of the real Macbeth. The events of the tragedy are usually associated with the execution of Henry Garnet for complicity in the Gunpowder Plot of 1605.In the backstage world of theatre, some believe that the play is cursed, and will not mention its title aloud, referring to it instead as "The Scottish Play". The play has attracted some of the most renowned actors to the roles of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, and has been adapted to film, television, opera, novels, comics, and other media.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. macbeth

   "Macbeth" is a tragedy play written by renowned English playwright William Shakespeare. It is one of Shakespeare's most famous works and tells the story of a Scottish nobleman, Macbeth, who receives a prophecy from three witches that he will become King of Scotland. Driven by ambition and incited to action by his wife, Macbeth murders the king and takes the throne for himself. However, guilt and paranoia consume him and his reign is marked by tyranny and bloody deeds. The term 'Macbeth' commonly refers to this play or the main character in the play.

WikidataRate this definition:3.4 / 5 votes

1. Macbeth

   Macbeth is a play written by William Shakespeare. It is considered one of his darkest and most powerful tragedies. Set in Scotland, the play dramatizes the corrosive psychological and political effects produced when its protagonist, the Scottish lord Macbeth, chooses evil as the way to fulfill his ambition for power. He commits regicide to become king and then furthers his moral descent with a reign of murderous terror to stay in power, eventually plunging the country into civil war. In the end, he loses everything that gives meaning and purpose to his life, before losing his life itself. The play is believed to have been written between 1603 and 1607, and is most commonly dated 1606. The earliest account of a performance of what was probably Shakespeare's play is April 1611, when Simon Forman recorded seeing such a play at the Globe Theatre. It was first published in the Folio of 1623, possibly from a prompt book. It was most likely written during the reign of James I, who had been James VI of Scotland before he succeeded to the English throne in 1603. James was a patron of Shakespeare’s acting company, and of all the plays Shakespeare wrote during James’s reign, Macbeth most clearly reflects the playwright’s relationship with the sovereign.

The Nuttall EncyclopediaRate this definition:2.0 / 3 votes

1. Macbeth

   a thane of the north of Scotland who, by assassination of King Duncan, became king; reigned 17 years, but his right was disputed by Malcolm, Duncan's son, and he was defeated by him and fell at Lumphanan, December 5, 1056.

Suggested ResourcesRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. macbeth

   Song lyrics by macbeth -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by macbeth on the Lyrics.com website.

Surnames Frequency by Census RecordsRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. MACBETH

   According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Macbeth is ranked #23714 in terms of the most common surnames in America.
   
   The Macbeth surname appeared 1,068 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 would have the surname Macbeth.
   
   91.4% or 977 total occurrences were White.
   4% or 43 total occurrences were Black.
   2.1% or 23 total occurrences were of Hispanic origin.
   1.2% or 13 total occurrences were Asian.
   1.1% or 12 total occurrences were of two or more races.

Matched Categories

1. • King

How to pronounce Macbeth?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say Macbeth in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of Macbeth in Chaldean Numerology is: 6

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of Macbeth in Pythagorean Numerology is: 7

Examples of Macbeth in a Sentence

1. Dr. Joyce Brothers:

   If Shakespeare had to go on an author tour to promote Romeo and Juliet, he never would have written Macbeth.

2. Hayley Atwell:

   For me… just being part of that canon of great female parts that all actresses like to play, whether it be having your Lady Macbeth moment, your Cleopatra moment, those classic, iconic roles for women, for me, Margaret Schlegel in literature was very much that. Em [Thompson] knows all about it, and was very delighted for me.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=Macbeth
2. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Macbeth
3. ^ Wikipedia
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macbeth
4. ^ ChatGPT
   https://chat.openai.com
5. ^ Wikidata
   https://www.wikidata.org/w/index.php?search=Macbeth
6. ^ The Nuttall Encyclopedia
   https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/12342/pg12342-images.html#Macbeth
7. ^ Surnames Frequency by Census Records
   https://www.census.gov/topics/population/genealogy/data/2010_surnames.html