Sisyphus

English

Etymology

From Ancient Greek Σίσυφος (Sísuphos).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsɪsɪfəs/

Proper noun

Sisyphus

1. (Greek mythology) Son of Aeolus and Enarete, and king of Ephyra, as tragic figure doomed eternally to roll a boulder up a hill in Tartarus, a part of Hades.
   • 1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “A Proposal of Marriage”, in Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. […], volume I, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 132:

     Indeed, I have looked upon the fable of Sisyphus as an allegory, and that his wife was the stone which so perpetually rolled back upon his hands, effectually retarding his weary progress up-hill.

Derived terms

• Sisyphus cooling
• Sisyphean
• Sisyphus effect

Translations

figure

• Arabic: سِيزِيف m (sizif)
• Catalan: Sísif (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 西西弗斯 (Xīxīfúsī)

• Czech: Sisyfos (cs) m
• French: Sisyphe (fr) m
• German: Sisyphos m, Sisyphus m
• Greek: Σίσυφος (el) m (Sísyfos)

  Ancient: Σῑ́συφος m (Sī́suphos)

• Inuktitut: ᓰᓯᐳᔅ (siisipos)
• Italian: Sisifo m
• Japanese: シーシュポス (Shīshuposu)
• Polish: Syzyf (pl) m
• Portuguese: Sísifo (pt) m
• Romanian: Sisif
• Russian: Сизи́ф (ru) m (Sizíf)
• Spanish: Sísifo m
• Swedish: Sisyfos
• Turkish: Sisifos

See also

• Glaucus

Further reading

• Sisyphus on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Sisyphus in the Encyclopædia Britannica (11th edition, 1911)

German

Alternative forms

• Sisyphos

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin Sīsyphus, from Ancient Greek Σίσυφος (Sísuphos).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈziːzyfʊs/
• Hyphenation: Si‧sy‧phus

• Audio

  (file)

Proper noun

Sisyphus m (proper noun, strong, genitive Sisyphus)

1. (Greek mythology) Sisyphus

Derived terms

• Sisyphusarbeit

Related terms

• sisypheisch

Further reading

• “Sisyphus” in Duden online
• “Sisyphus” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache