Main Entry: Pyr·rhic

Pronunciation: \ˈpir-ik\

Function: adjective

Etymology: Pyrrhus, king of Epirus who sustained heavy losses in defeating the Romans

Date: 1838

: achieved at excessive cost <a Pyrrhic victory>; also : costly to the point of negating or outweighing expected benefits <a great but Pyrrhic act of ingenuity>