Words and Phrases Derived from Greek Mythology
29 entries in the Words and Phrases Derived from Greek Mythology compendium.
Achilles tendonThe body's thickest tendon, named for a Greek hero.Achilles' heelA single point of vulnerability in an otherwise invincible whole.Augeas stableThe filthy stables cleaned by Heracles in his fifth Labour.Between Scylla and CharybdisA dilemma of two equal dangers, from Greek sea monsters.Cassandra complexA person whose true warnings are disbelieved by others.Cassandra DiseaseA person whose valid warnings are disbelieved by others.Cassandra paradoxA valid warning that is disbelieved by others.Cassandra phenomenonA person whose valid warnings are disbelieved by others.Cassandra syndromeA person whose valid warnings are disbelieved by others.Cassandra's curseA curse of true prophecy that no one believes.Electra complexA girl's psychosexual rivalry with her mother for her father.Gaia hypothesisEarth as a self-regulating living system.GaianismEarth-centered philosophy viewing the planet as a superorganism.HerculeanOf or like Hercules; requiring great strength.Herculean taskA task requiring great strength or effort, from Heracles' labours.Jocasta complexA mother's incestuous desire for her son in psychoanalysis.Laius complexPaternal wish for filicide to prevent succession.Medea hypothesisHypothesis that multicellular life may be self-destructive.Medusa complexA psychological complex of petrified emotion from the Medusa myth.NarcissismExcessive self-focus named after a figure from Greek myth.Oedipus complexPsychoanalytic theory of child's desire for opposite-sex parent.Phaedra complexInformal term for a stepmother's desire for her stepson.Procrustean bedAn arbitrary standard enforced without regard for harm.SisypheanDescribes a futile, never-ending labor.Sisyphus coolingLaser cooling technique using polarization gradients to trap atoms.Tantalean punishmentAncient proverb for those unable to enjoy what they possess.Trojan horse (computing)Malware that deceives users by disguising itself as a normal program.Under the aegisUnder the protection of a powerful force.Wine-dark seaA Homeric epithet for the dark, stormy sea.
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