Definitions for damocles
ˈdæm əˌklizdamo·cles

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Damoclesnoun

   the Greek courtier to Dionysius the Elder who (according to legend) was condemned to sit under a naked sword that was suspended by a hair in order to demonstrate to him that being a king was not the happy state Damocles had said it was (4th century BC)

WikipediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Damocles

   Damocles is a character who appears in an (likely apocryphal) anecdote commonly referred to as "the sword of Damocles", an allusion to the imminent and ever-present peril faced by those in positions of power. Damocles was a courtier in the court of Dionysius II of Syracuse, a 4th-century BC ruler of Syracuse, Sicily. The anecdote apparently figured in the lost history of Sicily by Timaeus of Tauromenium (c. 356 – c. 260 BC). The Roman orator Cicero (c. 106 – c. 43 BC) may have read it in the texts of Greek historian Diodorus Siculus and used it in his Tusculanae Disputationes, 5. 61, by which means it passed into the European cultural mainstream.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. damocles

   Damocles is a figure from Greek mythology. He was a courtier in the court of Dionysius II, a 4th-century BC tyrant of Syracuse, Sicily. He is known for the story "The Sword of Damocles" which is used as a metaphor to represent the insecurity that comes with positions of power, fortune, or high status, referring to an ever-present danger or threat one faces as a consequence of being in such a position.

WikidataRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Damocles

   Damocles is a figure featured in a single moral anecdote commonly referred to as "the Sword of Damocles", which was a late addition to classical Greek culture. The figure belongs properly to legend rather than Greek myth. The anecdote apparently figured in the lost history of Sicily by Timaeus of Tauromenium. The Roman orator Cicero may have read it in Diodorus Siculus. He made use of it in his Tusculanae Disputationes, V. 61–2, by which means it passed into the European cultural mainstream.

The Nuttall EncyclopediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Damocles

   a flatterer at the court of the elder Dionysius, tyrant of Syracuse, whom, after one day extravagantly extolling the happiness of kings, Dionysius set down to a magnificent banquet, but who, when seated at it, looked up and saw a sword hanging over his head suspended by a single hair; a lesson this which admonished him, and led him to change his views of the happiness of kings.

Matched Categories

1. • Courtier

Usage in printed sourcesFrom: 

1. [["1887","1"],["1889","1"],["1891","4"],["1896","2"],["1902","5"],["1906","2"],["1910","1"],["1913","1"],["1930","1"],["1951","3"],["1952","1"],["1956","2"],["1960","1"],["1962","2"],["1964","14"],["1965","2"],["1966","3"],["1968","2"],["1969","3"],["1970","3"],["1971","2"],["1972","3"],["1974","1"],["1976","3"],["1977","3"],["1978","8"],["1979","9"],["1982","6"],["1983","1"],["1985","3"],["1986","3"],["1987","1"],["1988","5"],["1989","4"],["1990","8"],["1991","3"],["1992","3"],["1993","7"],["1994","9"],["1995","4"],["1996","4"],["1997","11"],["1998","6"],["1999","11"],["2000","3"],["2001","5"],["2002","8"],["2003","3"],["2004","6"],["2005","21"],["2006","11"],["2007","4"],["2008","6"]]

How to pronounce damocles?

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 damocles in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of damocles in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of damocles in Pythagorean Numerology is: 9

Examples of damocles in a Sentence

1. Carlos Pascual:

   Mexico is weak economically and it's always going to be vulnerable if the United States is willing to use economic policy to enforce national security policy, there's no doubt this leaves a Damocles sword hanging over Lopez Obrador's head.

2. Seth Kretzer:

   What the Respondents really seek is to hold a Sword of Damocles over Pastor Moore during this execution.

3. Rafael Molina:

   It was done with the sword of Damocles hanging over them.

4. Josh Matz:

   A lot of folks think that impeachment is this mechanical process and that when the president commits high crimes and misdemeanors, [ it ] just falls out of the sky like some kind of sword of Damocles, i'm here to tell you that it doesn't. Congress has to decide whether impeachment is the right move.

5. Carlos Pascual:

   There's no doubt this leaves a Damocles sword hanging over Lopez Obrador's head.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=damocles
2. ^ Wikipedia
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Damocles
3. ^ ChatGPT
   https://chat.openai.com
4. ^ Wikidata
   https://www.wikidata.org/w/index.php?search=damocles
5. ^ The Nuttall Encyclopedia
   https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/12342/pg12342-images.html#Damocles
6. ^ Usage in printed sources
   https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=damocles