Phrase guide
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
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noun
A word or statement which is very apt for an occasion, or memorable.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: idiomatic, in-plural, literary
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: mot juste
Antonyms: none provided
History
Calque of Ancient Greek ἔπεα πτερόεντα (épea pteróenta), often used by Homer (said to have been born c. 750 B.C.E.), to whom the Iliad and Odyssey are attributed: from ἔπεᾰ (épeă) (plural of ἔπος (épos, “something spoken: song, speech, story”)) + πτερόεντα (pteróenta) (plural of πτερόεις (pteróeis, “feathered; winged”), from πτερόν (pterón, “feather; wing”) + -εις (-eis, suffix forming adjectives with the sense of being full of, tending to, or thoroughly possessing a quality)).
Across languages
10 source translations are retained for this English entry.
