Contextualizebeta

chimera

noun
/kaɪˈmɪɹə/US/kaɪˈmɪəɹə/UK/kʌɪˈmɪəɹə/UK

Etymology

Variant of Middle English chimere, chymere, & chymera under renewed Latin influence from the 16th century, from French chimère, from Latin Chimaera, from Ancient Greek Χίμαιρα (Khímaira, “fire-breathing mythological monster, fire-spewing Lycian or Cilician mountain”), from χίμαιρα (khímaira, “she-goat”, from χίμαρος (khímaros, “male goat”) + -α (-a)), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰey-. In reference to the fish, directly from Latin Chimaera, used by Linnaeus. In reference to organisms with distinct areas of different genetic makeups, a calque of German Chimäre, used by Hans Winkler in 1907.

  1. derived from Chimäre
  2. derived from *ǵʰey-✻
  3. derived from Χίμαιρα
  4. derived from Chimaera
  5. derived from chimère
  6. inherited from chimere

Definitions

  1. Alternative letter-case form of Chimera, a supposed monster in Lycia with the head of a…

    Alternative letter-case form of Chimera, a supposed monster in Lycia with the head of a lion, body of a goat, and tail of a dragon or serpent, killed by the hero Bellerophon.

    • ...beestis clepid chymeres, that han a part of ech beest, and suche ben not, no but oonly in opynyoun...
    • Bellerophon was commanded to destroy this monster, and with the assistance of the flying horse, Pegasus, he slew the chimera.
    • The game includes a bunch of chimeras, with the lion heads shooting fire and the snake tails whipping around trying to bite the player.

  2. Any fantastic creature combining parts from different animals.

  3. A foolish, incongruous, or vain thought or product of the imagination.

  4. ›+ 9 more definitions

    1. Anything composed of very disparate parts.

      • He built his car one piece at a time, producing a chimera with the head of a Volkswagen, the body of a Geely, and the tail of an aftermarket Porsche.

    2. A grotesque like a gargoyle, but without a spout for rainwater.

    3. An organism with genetically distinct cells originating from two or more zygotes.

      • The DNA test returned a false negative because the killer was a chimera, having absorbed her twin in utero.

    4. Alternative form of chimaera, a cartilaginous marine fish in the subclass Holocephali and…

      Alternative form of chimaera, a cartilaginous marine fish in the subclass Holocephali and especially the order Chimaeriformes, with a blunt snout, long tail, and a spine before the first dorsal fin.

    5. Synonym of bogeyman

      Synonym of bogeyman: any terrifying thing, especially as an unreal, imagined threat.

      • How could that Chymera haue come in any mannes mynd?
      • ...full of pale fancies, and chimeras huge...

    6. A supposed fire-breathing monster in Lycia with the head of a lion, body of a goat, and…

      A supposed fire-breathing monster in Lycia with the head of a lion, body of a goat, and tail of a dragon or snake, killed by the hero Bellerophon.

      • CHIMERA, a fabulous monſter...

    7. A fire-spewing mountain in Lycia or Cilicia, presumed to be an ancient name for the…

      A fire-spewing mountain in Lycia or Cilicia, presumed to be an ancient name for the Yanartaş region of Turkey's Antalya Province.

    8. Former name of Himara, a port town in southern Albania.

    9. Former name of Ceraunian Mountains, the Albanian mountain range near Himara.

The neighborhood

Derived

allochimera, bichimera, the name of one of the ships of Æneas, chimeragenesis, chimeral, chimeralike, chimeric, chimerical, chimerise, chimerism, chimerization, microchimera, multichimera, tetragametic chimera, xenochimera

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for chimera. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA