Library / English Dictionary

HYDRA

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected form: hydrae   

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Small tubular solitary freshwater hydrozoan polyp

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Hypernyms ("hydra" is a kind of...):

hydroid; hydrozoan (colonial coelenterates having the polyp phase dominant)

Holonyms ("hydra" is a member of...):

genus Hydra (hydras)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Trouble that cannot be overcome by a single effort because of its many aspects or its persistent and pervasive quality

Example:

we may be facing a hydra that defies any easy solution

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Hypernyms ("hydra" is a kind of...):

problem; trouble (a source of difficulty)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A long faint constellation in the southern hemisphere near the equator stretching between Virgo and Cancer

Synonyms:

Hydra; Snake

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural objects (not man-made)

Instance hypernyms:

constellation (a configuration of stars as seen from the earth)

Sense 4

Meaning:

(Greek mythology) monster with nine heads; when struck off each head was replaced by two new ones

Example:

Hydra was slain by Hercules

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Hypernyms ("Hydra" is a kind of...):

mythical creature; mythical monster (a monster renowned in folklore and myth)

Domain category:

Greek mythology (the mythology of the ancient Greeks)

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