name
Meaning 1
A female given name from German.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Standard Lemma guide
lorelei
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
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/ˈlɔːɹəlaɪ/
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CMU ARPABET: L AO1 R IH0 L AY2 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
noun
Meaning 2
A siren; a temptress.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 3
a Siren of German legend who lured boatmen in the Rhine to destruction
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: Siren
History
Etymology
Borrowed from German Lorelei (“murmuring rock or lurking rock”), but not used as a given name in Germany. The Lorelei (or Lorelei, Loreleï, Lore Lay, Lore-Ley, Lurley, Lurelei, Lurlei) is an infamous maritime disaster site because of the Rhine's current and the surrounding terrain. The shipwrecks have been subject to mythological explanation attempts since around 900 AD.
From the Lorelei rock on the Rhine, which was haunted by one of these creatures according to German legend.
Across languages
Translations
1 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- German: Loreley — siren, temptress