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Circe

(Encyclopedia)Circe sûrˈsē [key], in Greek mythology, enchantress; daughter of Helios. She lived on an island, where she decoyed sailors and treacherously changed them into beasts. According to the Odyssey, she ...

Amalthaea

(Encyclopedia)Amalthaea ămˌəlthēˈə [key], in Greek mythology, the stepmother of Zeus, a she-goat or nymph who nursed the infant Zeus. It was said that Zeus made one of her magnificent horns into the cornucopi...

Castalia

(Encyclopedia)Castalia kăstāˈlyə [key], in Greek mythology, spring on Mt. Parnassós. Named for a nymph, it was sacred to the Muses and was said to give poetic inspiration to those who bathed in it. ...

Tithonus

(Encyclopedia)Tithonus tĭthōˈnəs [key], in Greek mythology, prince of Troy; son of Laomedon. He was loved by the dawn goddess, Eos, who bore him Memnon. When Eos begged Zeus to bestow immortality upon Tithonus,...

cornucopia

(Encyclopedia)cornucopia kôrˌnyo͞okōˈpēə [key], in Greek mythology, magnificent horn that filled itself with whatever meat or drink its owner requested. Some legends designate it as a horn of the river god A...

Priam

(Encyclopedia)Priam prīˈəm [key], in Greek mythology, king of Troy during the Trojan War, son of Laomedon. Priam had several wives and was the father of 50 sons and many daughters. His chief wife, Hecuba, bore h...

Pentheus

(Encyclopedia)Pentheus pĕnˈthēəs [key], in Greek mythology, king of Thebes, son of Cadmus' daughter Agave. When Dionysus came to Thebes, Pentheus denied his divinity and tried to prevent his ecstatic rites. The...

Eris, in astronomy

(Encyclopedia)Eris, in astronomy, the largest known dwarf planet. Eris, whose highly eccentric elliptical orbit ranges from 38 AU to 97 AU and is inclined more than 44°, is the largest known object of the Kuiper b...

hyacinth, in botany

(Encyclopedia)hyacinth, any plant of the genus Hyacinthus, bulbous herbs of the family Liliaceae (lily family) native to the Mediterranean region and South Africa. The common, or Dutch, hyacinth of house and garden...

Smith, Sir William

(Encyclopedia)Smith, Sir William, 1813–93, English editor and lexicographer. He was editor of the Quarterly Review from 1867 until his death and also edited reference works esteemed for their accuracy and compreh...