Philoctetes
noun
Phi·loc·te·tes
fi-ˈläk-tə-ˌtēz 
ˌfi-läk-ˈtē-tēz
: a Greek archer who uses the bow of Hercules to slay Paris at Troy
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Then the Trojan War dragged on for a decade, and a seer told Odysseus that the Greeks couldn’t win without Philoctetes.
—
Elif Batuman, The New Yorker, 1 Sep. 2020
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Elif Batuman, The New Yorker, 1 Sep. 2020
Cite this Entry
“Philoctetes.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Philoctetes. Accessed 11 Jul. 2025.
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