Sisyphus

[ sis-uh-fuhs ]

noun

, Classical Mythology.

1. a son of Aeolus and ruler of Corinth, noted for his trickery: he was punished in Tartarus by being compelled to roll a stone to the top of a slope, the stone always escaping him near the top and rolling down again.

Sisyphus

/ ˈsɪsɪfəs /

noun

1. Greek myth a king of Corinth, punished in Hades for his misdeeds by eternally having to roll a heavy stone up a hill: every time he approached the top, the stone escaped his grasp and rolled to the bottom

Sisyphus

1. A king in classical mythology who offended Zeus and was punished in Hades by being forced to roll an enormous boulder to the top of a steep hill. Every time the boulder neared the top, it would roll back down, and Sisyphus would have to start over.

Notes

A difficult and futile endeavor may be called a “labor of Sisyphus” or a “Sisyphean task.”

Word History and Origins

Origin of Sisyphus¹

From Latin Sisyphus, from Greek Sísyphos; probably of pre-Greek origin

Example Sentences

Some computer scientists have suggested that the efforts might be better likened to those of Sisyphus, who labored without resolution.

From MIT Technology Review

The last line of The Myth of Sisyphus is, “One must imagine Sisyphus happy.”

From The Daily Beast

But for a while we were like Sisyphus pushing that rock up the mountain.

From The Daily Beast

Third, like Sisyphus, he could roll the boulder of a “grand bargain” back up Capitol Hill.

From The Daily Beast

And a deal becomes possible only after all sides are exhausted—just like Sisyphus on the Hill.

From The Daily Beast

In Sisyphus (1994), artist Luciano Fabro presents a marble cylinder on which he has etched a nude, caricature-like self-portrait.

From The Daily Beast

Those splendid faculties were worn, as he would sometimes own himself, in rolling the stone of Sisyphus.

From Project Gutenberg

Strong men have tried to lift that stone of Sisyphus, and to-day their bones whiten the cemeteries.

From Project Gutenberg

Beyond Sisyphus lies Tityus, a giant whose huge body covers nine acres of ground.

From Project Gutenberg

I feel like Sisyphus, forever rolling my stony burden uphill.

From Project Gutenberg

They would leave off repeating the fable of Sisyphus, and attain completion of endeavour.

From Project Gutenberg