deus ex machina

[ dey-uhs eks mah-kuh-nuh, dee-uhs eks mak-uh-nuh ]

noun

1. (in ancient Greek and Roman drama) a god introduced into a play to resolve the entanglements of the plot.
2. any artificial or improbable device resolving the difficulties of a plot.

deus ex machina

/ ˈdeɪʊs ɛks ˈmækɪnə /

noun

1. (in ancient Greek and Roman drama) a god introduced into a play to resolve the plot
2. any unlikely or artificial device serving this purpose

Word History and Origins

Origin of deus ex machina¹

1690–1700; < New Latin literally, god from a machine (i.e., stage machinery from which a deity's statue was lowered), as translation of Greek apò mēchanês theós (Demosthenes), theòs ek mēchanês (Menander), etc.

Word History and Origins

Origin of deus ex machina¹

literally: god out of a machine, translating Greek theos ek mēkhanēs

Example Sentences

He made it all happen; the deus ex machina of the whole thing.

From The Daily Beast

Then out of the mist, a whirring of helicopter blades, and, deus ex machina, a man descends fromt he chopper to winch you aboard.

From The Daily Beast

By the end of each half hour, conflict has been quickly resolved, often by some deus ex machina.

From The Daily Beast

The nucleus, the only and true deus ex machina of many a modern botanist, was recognised as an organ of the cell.

From Project Gutenberg

This tail is a mysterious deus ex machina that directs all the thoughts of the Nassik Brahmans pro and contra.

From Project Gutenberg

It had come so quietly upon the scene—a deus ex machina, indeed, dropped from the clouds between us and our prey.

From Project Gutenberg

That deus ex machina from below the stage retired, unconscious of the imminent catastrophe he had averted.

From Project Gutenberg

It may seem surprising that the discoverer of the venous return felt the need of a deus ex machina to distend the right auricle.

From Project Gutenberg