Standard Lemma guide

Hellenism

noun · 7 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˈhɛlənɪzm/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: HH EH1 L AH0 N IH2 Z AH0 M Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

Any of the characteristics of ancient Greek culture, civilization, principles and ideals, including humanism, reason, the pursuit of knowledge and the arts, moderation and civic responsibility.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

The national character or culture of Greece.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

The culture and civilization of the Hellenistic period.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

The culture and civilization of the Hellenistic period.

The admiration for and adoption of ancient Greek culture, ideas and civilization.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

A Greek idiom or turn of phrase.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, rhetoric, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

The modern-day revival of the polytheistic religious system of Ancient Greece.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: Dodekatheism

Antonyms: none provided

7

noun

Meaning 7

the principles and ideals associated with classical Greek civilization

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: principle

History

Etymology

Either via French hellénisme or Latin Hellēnismus or directly from Ancient Greek Ἑλληνισμός (Hellēnismós, “imitation of the Greeks”), from Ἕλλην (Héllēn, “a Greek”).

Across languages

Translations

31 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: hel·lenisme — characteristics of ancient Greek culture
  • Czech: helénismus — characteristics of ancient Greek culture
  • German: Hellenismus — characteristics of ancient Greek culture
  • Greek: ελληνισμός (ellinismós) — characteristics of ancient Greek culture
  • Hebrew: יונות — characteristics of ancient Greek culture
  • Irish: Heilléanachas — characteristics of ancient Greek culture
  • Irish: Gréagachas — characteristics of ancient Greek culture
  • Catalan: hel·lenisme — culture and civilization of the Hellenistic period
  • Czech: helénismus — culture and civilization of the Hellenistic period
  • Esperanto: helenismo — culture and civilization of the Hellenistic period
  • Finnish: hellenismi — culture and civilization of the Hellenistic period
  • Galician: helenismo — culture and civilization of the Hellenistic period
  • Georgian: ელინიზმი (elinizmi) — culture and civilization of the Hellenistic period
  • German: Hellenismus — culture and civilization of the Hellenistic period
  • Greek: ελληνισμός (ellinismós) — culture and civilization of the Hellenistic period
  • Kazakh: эллинизм (éllinizm) — culture and civilization of the Hellenistic period
  • Portuguese: helenismo — culture and civilization of the Hellenistic period
  • Spanish: helenismo — culture and civilization of the Hellenistic period
  • Catalan: hel·lenisme — admiration for and adoption of Greek culture
  • Finnish: hellenismi — admiration for and adoption of Greek culture
  • Galician: helenismo — admiration for and adoption of Greek culture
  • Georgian: ელენიზმი (elenizmi) — admiration for and adoption of Greek culture
  • Irish: Heilléanachas — admiration for and adoption of Greek culture
  • Portuguese: helenismo — admiration for and adoption of Greek culture
  • Spanish: helenismo — admiration for and adoption of Greek culture
  • Finnish: kreikkalaisuus — national character or culture of Greece
  • Greek: ελληνισμός (ellinismós) — national character or culture of Greece
  • French: hellénisme — modern religion
  • Portuguese: helenismo — modern religion
  • Finnish: kreikkalainen uskonto — belief in and worship of Greek gods
  • Finnish: hellenismi (neopagan) — belief in and worship of Greek gods