phoenix1
/ˈfiːnɪks
/noun
1(In classical mythology) a unique bird that lived for five or six centuries in the Arabian desert, after this time burning itself on a funeral pyre and rising from the ashes with renewed youth to live through another cycle.The award is named in recognition of the mythological phoenix, a bird that lived five centuries, died and was reborn from its own ashes....
- Unicorns, elves, leprechauns, phoenixes, griffins, and humans all existed very peacefully together on Earth, until evil was set loose.
- The phoenix was a mythical bird of ancient Egypt which reputedly burned every 500 years and rose rejuvenated from its ashes.
1.1A person or thing regarded as uniquely remarkable in some respect: I’m that phoenix, the old-fashioned family doctor...
- It would be wonderful if city planning in Sofia could strike out on a unique, radical path creating a phoenix of a capital suitable for third millennium urban living.
- He is a phoenix rising from mediocrity, an actor in perpetual renaissance.
Phrases
rise like a phoenix from the ashes
Origin
From Old French fenix, via Latin from Greek phoinix 'Phoenician, reddish purple, or phoenix'. The relationship between the Greek senses is obscure: it could not be ‘the Phoenician bird’ because the legend centres on the temple at Heliopolis in Egypt, where the phoenix is said to have burnt itself on the altar. Perhaps the basic sense is 'purple', symbolic of fire and possibly the primary sense of Phoenicia as the purple land (or land of the sunrise).
Phoenix2
/ˈfiːnɪks/Astronomy
A southern constellation (the Phoenix), west of Grus.
Origin
Latin.
Phoenix3
/ˈfiːnɪks/The state capital of Arizona; population 1,567,924 (est. 2008). Its dry climate makes it a popular winter resort.