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Webster 1913 Edition

Tantalus

Tan′ta-lus

,
Noun.
[L., from Gr.
Τάνταλος
.]
(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.
2.
(Zool.)
A genus of wading birds comprising the wood ibises.
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.

Definition 2024

Tantalus

Tantalus

See also: tantalus

Translingual

Wikispecies

Proper noun

Tantalus m

  1. (obsolete) Mycteria, the genus of certain storks.

Hypernyms

  • (genus):

Hyponyms

English

Proper noun

Tantalus

  1. (Greek mythology) A Phrygian king who was condemned to remain in Tartarus, chin deep in water, with fruit-laden branches hanging above his head; whenever he tried to drink or eat, the water and fruit receded out of reach.

Related terms

tantalus

tantalus

See also: Tantalus

English

Noun

tantalus ‎(plural tantaluses)

  1. A stork of the genus Mycteria (formerly Tantalus), especially the American wood stork, Mycteria americana.
  2. A stand in which to lock up drink decanters while keeping them visible.
    • 1904, Arthur Conan Doyle, The Adventure of Black Peter (Norton 2005, p.984)
      Yes, there was a tantalus containing brandy and whisky on the sea-chest.
    • 1920, Herman Cyril McNeile, Bulldog Drummond Chapter 1
      “A small boy, sir. Said I was to be sure and see you got it most particular.” He unlocked a cupboard near the window and produced a tantalus. “Whisky, sir, or cocktail?”
    • 1960, John Betjeman, Summoned by Bells (John Murray 1960, p.10)
      And stockrooms heavy with the Tantalus
      on which the family fortune has been made
  3. Something of an evasive or retreating nature, something consistently out of reach; a tantalising thing.
    • 1953, Ian Fleming, Casino Royale (Penguin Classics 2004, p.149)
      Over all, there brooded the shadow of his injuries and the tantalus of their slow healing.

See also

Etymology

From Latin Tantalus, from Ancient Greek Τανταλος ‎(Tantalos, “Tantalus”), a Phrygian king in Greek mythology who was condemned to stand in a pool of water which receded every time he tried to drink, and with overhanging branches of fruit which pulled back whenever he tried to eat.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈtæntələs/

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