Circean

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

Circe +‎ -an

Adjective

Circean (comparative more Circean, superlative most Circean)

  1. Of or pertaining to Circe, the Greek goddess, a mythological enchantress who first charmed her victims and then changed them into animals.
  2. (by extension) alluring but dangerous or degrading
    • 2004, David Mitchell, Cloud Atlas
      Returned to the château just before it got dark, ate cold meats in Mrs Willems's kitchen. Learnt that J. and her Circean caresses were in Brussels on estate business […]
    • 2016, Robert Henke, ‎Eric Nicholson, Transnational Mobilities in Early Modern Theater (page 130)
      Another set of blinders stems from what might be called the Duessa syndrome: Protestant England associated hypertheatrical women with exotic foreignness, rhetorical display, physical allure, and Circean sexuality.

Derived terms
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