Standard Lemma guide

pnigalion

noun · 2 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

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1

noun

Meaning 1

A nocturnal monster in Ancient Greece that would choke its victims; incubus; nightmare.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: historical, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

sleep paralysis; nightmare

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: archaic, uncountable

Topics: medicine, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From New Latin pnīgalion, from Ancient Greek πνῑγαλίων (pnīgalíōn, “nightmare”), from πνῑ́γω (pnī́gō, “to throttle, strangle”).