Tantalus

Tantalus
Tantalus Tan"ta*lus, n. [L., from Gr. Ta`ntalos.] (Gr. Myth.) 1. A Phrygian king who was punished in the lower world by being placed in the midst of a lake whose waters reached to his chin but receded whenever he attempted to allay his thirst, while over his head hung branches laden with choice fruit which likewise receded whenever he stretched out his hand to grasp them. [1913 Webster]

2. (Zo["o]l.) A genus of wading birds comprising the wood ibises. [1913 Webster]

{Tantalus's cup} (Physics), a philosophical toy, consisting of a cup, within which is the figure of a man, and within the figure a siphon, the longer arm of which passes down through the bottom of the cup, and allows the escape of any liquid that may be poured in, when it reaches as high as the bend of the siphon, which is just below the level of the mouth of the figure in the cup. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • Tantalus — von Willi Glasauer, 1864 Tantalos (altgriechisch: Τάνταλος; lateinisch: Tantalus) ist in der griechischen Mythologie der Stammvater des Geschlechts der Tantaliden. Er frevelte gegen die Götter und zog damit einen Fluch auf sein Haus, der über… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Tantălus [1] — Tantălus, 1) s. Tantalos; 2) Anführer der Lusitanier nach dem Tode des Viriathus; bemächtigte sich Segontias, wurde aber bald von den Römern unter Servilius Cäpio eingeschlossen u. mußte sich ergeben …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Tantălus [2] — Tantălus, Vogel, s. Nimmersatt …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Tantălus — Tantălus, Vogel, s. Nimmersatt …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Tantalus — Tantalus, myth., reicher König von Phrygien, Vater des Atreus und Thyestes, ein Liebling der Götter, frevelte aber gegen sie und wurde dafür in die Unterwelt gestoßen, wo er bis an den Hals im Wasser steht, aber seinen glühenden Durst nicht… …   Herders Conversations-Lexikon

  • Tantalus — Gk. Tantalos, king of Phrygia, perhaps lit. the Bearer or the Sufferer, by dissimilation from *tal talos, a reduplication of PIE root *tel , *tol to bear, carry, support (see EXTOL (Cf. extol)). Cf. TANTALIZE (Cf. tantalize) …   Etymology dictionary

  • Tantalus — [tan′tə ləs] n. [L < Gr Tantalos] Gr. Myth. a king, son of Zeus, doomed in the lower world to stand in water that always recedes when he tries to drink it and under branches of fruit that always remain just out of reach …   English World dictionary

  • Tantalus — In Greek mythology Tantalus (Greek Τάνταλος) was a son of Zeus [Euripides, Orestes .] and the nymph Plouto. Thus he was a king in the primordial world, the father of a son Broteas whose very name signifies mortals ( brotoi ). [Noted by Kerenyi… …   Wikipedia

  • TANTALUS — I. TANTALUS Iovis et Nymphae Plotae filiteste Eusebiô, l. 2. Praep. Euang. cum tamen Io. Diaconus et Didymus Iovis et Plutus Nymphae filium fuisse arbitrantur: quem Tzetzes hist. 10. chil. 5. praedictâ quidem matre genitum, ac patre Imolo Lydiae… …   Hofmann J. Lexicon universale

  • tantalus — noun /ˈtæntələs/ a) A stork of the genus Mycteria (formerly Tantalus), especially the American wood ibis, Mycteria americana. ,1904: Yes, there was a tantalus containing brandy and whisky on the sea chest. Arthur Conan Doyle, ‘The Adventure of… …   Wiktionary

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