Stygian

[ stij-ee-uhn ]

adjective

1. of or relating to the river Styx or to Hades.
2. dark or gloomy.
3. infernal; hellish.

Stygian

/ ˈstɪdʒɪən /

adjective

1. of or relating to the river Styx
2. literary.
   1. dark, gloomy, or hellish
   2. completely inviolable, as a vow sworn by the river Styx

Other Words From

• trans-Stygi·an adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of Stygian¹

1560–70; < Latin Stygi ( us ) < Greek Stýgios ( Styg-, stem of Stýx Styx + -ios adj. suffix) + -an

Word History and Origins

Origin of Stygian¹

C16: from Latin Stygius, from Greek Stugios, from Stux Styx ; related to stugein to hate

Example Sentences

Sometimes we come to a fuller reckoning of ourselves through the most Stygian passageways.

From New York Times

He parked next to a dimly lit footbridge, which wobbled with our passage above a Stygian chasm.

From Washington Post

He sat back in his leather aviator jacket, his black T-shirt and jeans, that wicked silver skull ring on his finger, and the Stygian sword at his side.

From Literature

The actors are shot in separate gloomy interiors, and from stationary positions, so as to appear in Stygian Zoom-like frames as if at a virtual meeting of hobbits.

From New York Times

The protagonist, Nephthys Kinwell, is, in one light, an alcoholic taxi driver, and, in another, a Stygian ferrywoman haunted by the violent death of her twin brother, Osiris.

From New York Times

Related Words

• black
• cloudy
• darkened
• dim
• dingy
• drab
• dull
• foggy
• gloomy
• misty
• murky
• overcast
• shadowy
• somber