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The Gorgons were three monstrous sisters in Greek mythology, the most famous of whom was Medusa. They had snakes for hair, and anyone who looked directly at them was immediately turned to stone. Medusa herself was finally beheaded by the hero Perseus, who avoided looking straight at her by instead watching her reflection in his mirrorlike shield. Today the familiar types of jellyfish, with long snakelike tentacles descending from their headlike bodies, are known as medusas.
Examples of gorgon in a Sentence
John Coffren, Baltimore Sun, 9 Feb. 2023
Instead of an evil monster, Haynes’s Medusa is a beloved gorgon sister with a keen intellect and a curiosity about the human world.
—Becky Meloan, Washington Post, 1 Feb. 2023
The premise features Frankenstein’s monster teaming up with a werewolf, a vampire and a gorgon to fight Nazis in World War II.
—Adam B. Vary, Variety, 31 Jan. 2023
Georgie Farmer plays Ajax, a gorgon who can turn people into stone.
—Jasmine Washington, Seventeen, 1 Dec. 2022
Kennedy will guest star as Medusa, the infamous gorgon.
—Joe Otterson, Variety, 13 Oct. 2022
Cherry Jones pops in for a brief moment as Vivi's mother, a semi-gorgon who seems deeply terrorized by Vivi's father (David Rasche).
—Leah Greenblatt, EW.com, 10 June 2022
Gone are the days when Kratos, the protagonist of Sony’s top franchise, slaughters and grunts his way through endless hordes of minotaurs and gorgons.
—Popular Science, 13 Apr. 2020
Pan/Carcosa's companion Nagaina is a gorgon, like the mythological Medusa.
—Leah Marilla Thomas, refinery29.com, 27 Jan. 2020
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These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gorgon.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Latin Gorgon-, Gorgo, from Greek Gorgōn
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Dictionary Entries Near gorgon
Cite this Entry
“Gorgon.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gorgon. Accessed 28 Nov. 2023.
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Kids Definition
Gorgon
noun
More from Merriam-Webster on gorgon
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Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about gorgon
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