Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- adj. Gloomy and dark.
- adj. Infernal; hellish.
- adj. Of or relating to the river Styx.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- Pertaining to the Styx, a river, according to the ancient myth, flowing around the lower world, the waters of which were used as a symbol in the most binding oaths of the gods.
- Hence Infernal; hellish: as, Stygian vapors; a Stygian pool.
Wiktionary
GNU Webster's 1913
- adj. Of or pertaining to the river Styx; hence, hellish; infernal. See Styx.
WordNet 3.0
- adj. hellish.
- adj. dark and dismal as of the rivers Acheron and Styx in Hades
Etymologies
- From Latin stygius, from Ancient Greek Στύγιος (Stugios, "relating to Styx"), from Στύξ (Stux, "Styx, chief river of underworld"). (Wiktionary)
- From Latin Stygius, from Greek Stugios, from Stux, Stug-, Styx. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Too many words Kevin, too many adjectives chased down the 'stygian' gloom of your thought processes.”
“Entrances and exits were random, James F. Ingalls's lighting was mostly stygian and occasionally lurid, and several important interactions were staged entirely out of the light.”
“I leap from the side of the bridge down toward the stygian water, which hurtles up to meet me.”
Simon & Schuster: Secret History of Elizabeth Tudor, Vampire Slayer
“Voters, especially Republican voters, need to take note that many of your politicians have crossed the stygian River Batshit.”
The Huffington Post: Edward Murray: Dear Republicans, Your Media Is Making You Crazy
“Soon the abyss, and the strange denizens that inhabit its stygian depths, will be filled with packs of tiny submarines piloted by hedge-fund managers and venture capitalists.”
“The production has its strengths – its stygian atmosphere, dispelled by pools of light; Cracknell's ability to marshal intense performances from her six-strong cast.”
The Guardian: Review | Theatre | Electra | Gate | Brian Logan
“Sometimes, though, it's best simply to sit back and enjoy 99 minutes of stygian menace, grotesque humour and the coolest soundtrack in Hollywood history.”
The Guardian: A chilling and cruel tale of two cities | Kevin McKenna
“The third stygian, who had entered while Conan was occupied, rose up, a brass dagger dripping with blood in each hand.”
“I was born in the frozen wastelands of Cimmeria, in the stygian darkness of the Hyborian Age, between the sinking of Atlantis and the beginning of recorded history.”
The Huffington Post: Robert Brenner: Conan the Barbarian vs. Marcus Bachmann (in 3D)
“And later still, when ordinary life has permanently locked its lock, our dreams are full of fascinating trips through stygian regions where other people like the ones we know are crucified or slowly roasted on the shores of heaving rivers while we glide cautiously past in makeshift boats paddled by guides who say,”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘stygian’.
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GRE Barron's 800
zealot, wistful, welter, wary, whimsical, warranted, vortex, vivisection, volatile, vitiate, viscous, visage and 787 more...
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250 Extra Spelling Words
Some more words for intermediate and advanced spellers.
cultellarius, barouche, palanquin, badelaire, cavetto, tregetour, tergiversate, rhododendron, rhadamanthine, thyrsus, cappelletti, bradycardia and 238 more...
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Interesting words
A list of words that are odd or words that I have looked up.
concupiscence, brize, scree, scoria, forestaff, spanaemia, valetudinarianism, distasture, pyrethrum, laudanum, gentian, bicameral and 11184 more...
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phrontistery-s
from phrontistery.info
syzygy, systyle, systematology, systatic, syssitia, syrtic, systaltic, syrt, syrinx, syphilomania, syphilology, syntrierarch and 1593 more...
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Ballardian
All things descriptive from JG
Ballardoperation mindfuck, pataphysics, wahrheitssensible..., polymorphism, postprandial, covalent, stygian, lucus a non lucendo, kafkaesque, leitmotif, fugacious, ablate and 77 more...
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Deadwood Dick
venison, vim, sanguine, gulch, maudlin, hirsute, pare, cavalcade, twain, repast, cognomen, florid and 3 more...
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gre2
aberrant, aberration, aboveboard, abrasive, abstemious, acme, admonish, affable, affluent, alacrity, allegory, alleviate and 1907 more...
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♥
ambrosia, inamorata, gossamer, lily-white, hummingbird, roucoulement, poppy, daisy, calypso, lunula, lamb, dove and 1526 more...
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ADW1
obdurate, obstinate, behest, injunction, enjoin, circumspect, ensconce, discursive, lugubrious, doleful, somber, ken and 2476 more...
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Wordwild's Delights
Delightful words to read and use
plangent, ribald, titubant, sidereal, pelagic, improvident, dolorous, parlous, baleful, precatory, pied, mephitic and 247 more...
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GRE list 1
Bloviate, Bacchanalia, mirth, covet, inconsequential, prescient, heresy, revelry, modality, gentrify, vitiate, tantalize and 182 more...
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Resource
katabatic, clerestory, haslet, alpenglow, purl, scumble, jessant, spavined, wayworn, creach, dottle, solferino and 165 more...
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GRE
high frequent
industrious, feckless, debunk, quintessence, loquacious, obsequious, laconic, plethora, lugubrious, serendipity, facetious, turgid and 261 more...
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logophile
viresce, infinitum, transient, nonpareil, anon, therianthropy, lycomania, halcyon, unblinkered, seraphim, nephilim, moros and 160 more...
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Reading Random
Got unknown words randomly
delinquency, modicum, dissuade, incendiary, destitute, lachrymose, plight, ruse, empirical, pedantic, demography, giggle and 444 more...
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The Amulet of Samarkand
Words and phrases from Jonathan Stroud's The Amulet of Samarkand.
flunky, provenance, pare, rabbit in a covert, short shrift, bunker, trainers, tatty, lob, injunction, doss, bluster and 193 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for stygian.
sera "Dark and dismal as of the rivers Acheron and Styx in Hades. Hellish" Aug 13, 2007