In classical mythology a satyr is a creature that is half man and half goat.
satyr in British English
(ˈsætə)
noun
1. Greek mythology
one of a class of sylvan deities, represented as goatlike men who drank and danced in the train of Dionysus and chased the nymphs
2.
a man who has strong sexual desires
3.
a man who has satyriasis
4.
any of various butterflies of the genus Satyrus and related genera, having dark wings often marked with eyespots: family Satyridae
Derived forms
satyric (səˈtɪrɪk) or satyrical (saˈtyrical)
adjective
satyr-like (ˈsatyr-ˌlike)
adjective
Word origin
C14: from Latin satyrus, from Greek saturos
satyr in American English
(ˈseɪtər; ˈsætər)
noun
1. Greek Mythology
any of a class of minor woodland deities, attendant on Dionysus, orig. represented as having the ears and tail of a horse, later as having pointed ears, short horns, the head and trunk of a man, and the hind legs of a goat, and as being fond of riotous merriment and lechery
see also faun
2.
a lustful or lecherous man
3.
a man having satyriasis
4.
any of a worldwide family (Satyridae) of butterflies with gray or brown wings, often with eyelike spots
: also called ˈsatyrid (ˈsætərɪd)
Derived forms
satyric (saˈtyric) (seɪˈtɪrɪk)
adjective
Word origin
ME satir < L satyrus < Gr satyros
Examples of 'satyr' in a sentence
satyr
Could Living and dying we feed the fire not have been a line from a satyr 's sermon?
Clive Barker SACRAMENT (2001)
As Helen sat, they stood, and with this the mood changed from purely pastoral to a hint of lurking satyr.
Delman, David DEATH OF A NYMPH (2001)
So if you stop projecting Lyle's image -' `- they'll all become resistible and my career as a satyr will end.
Howatch, Susan ABSOLUTE TRUTHS (2001)
Nora and L. M. began to nibble at one another, and I thought of a nymph and satyr at play.