Lorelei

noun

Lo·re·lei ˈlȯr-ə-ˌlī

: a siren of Germanic legend whose singing lures Rhine River boatmen to destruction on a reef

Word History

Etymology

German

First Known Use

1865, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of Lorelei was in 1865

See more words from the same year

Browse Nearby Words

lorel

Lorelei

loreless

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Lorelei.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Lorelei. Accessed 4 Jul. 2025.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster

Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.

Can you solve 4 words at once?

Can you solve 4 words at once?

Word of the Day

Yankee

Listen to the pronunciation of Yankee

See Definitions and Examples »

Get Word of the Day daily email!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

More Words You Always Have to Look Up

Using Bullet Points ( • )

Should that word have a hyphen?

Words You Always Have to Look Up

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

Popular in Wordplay

How 'Namaste' Entered The English Language

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

10 Hella Good U.S. Regionalisms

Better Ways to Say 'This Sucks'

8 Words with Fascinating Histories

Popular

More Words You Always Have to Look Up

How 'Namaste' Entered The English Language

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World