corybantic

adjective cor·y·ban·tic \ ˌkȯr-ē-ˈban-tik , ˌkär- \

Definition of corybantic

: being in the spirit or manner of a Corybant; especially : wild, frenzied

corybantic dancing

corybantic was our Word of the Day on 05/16/2007. Hear the podcast!

Did You Know?

The big name in goddesses in Phrygia (Asia Minor) in the fifth century B.C. was Cybele (also called Cybebe or Agdistis), the "Great Mother of the Gods." According to Oriental and Greco-Roman mythology, she was the mother of it all: gods, humans, animals . . . even nature itself. The Corybants were Cybele's attendants and priests, and they worshipped her with an unrestrained frenzy of wildly emotional processions, rites, and dances. "Corybantic," the adjective based on the name of Cybele's attendants, can be used to describe anything characterized by a similarly unrestrained abandon.