Menelaus

noun

Men·e·la·us ˌme-nə-ˈlā-əs

: a king of Sparta, brother of Agamemnon, and husband of the abducted Helen of Troy

Word History

Etymology

Latin, from Greek Menelaos

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of Menelaus was in the 13th century

See more words from the same century

Browse Nearby Words

menel

Menelaus

Menelaus' theorem

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Menelaus.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Menelaus. Accessed 11 Sep. 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

zoomorphic

Listen to the pronunciation of zoomorphic

See Definitions and Examples »

Get Word of the Day daily email!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Using Bullet Points ( • )

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

A Guide to Using Semicolons

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Popular in Wordplay

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 3

Our Best Historical Slang Terms

Birds Say the Darndest Things

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

Better Ways to Say 'This Sucks'

Popular

Using Bullet Points ( • )

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 3

Our Best Historical Slang Terms