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Orpheus was a hero of Greek mythology who was supposed to possess superhuman musical skills. With his legendary lyre, he was said to be able to make even the rocks and trees dance around. In fact, when his wife Eurydice died, he was nearly able to use his lyre to secure her return from the underworld. Later on, according to legend, he was killed at the bidding of Dionysus, and an oracle of Orpheus was established that came to rival the oracle of Apollo at Delphi. Because of the oracle of Orpheus, orphic can mean "oracular." Because of Orpheus' musical powers, orphic can also mean "entrancing."
Examples of orphic in a Sentence
Parul Sehgal, The New Yorker, 11 Sep. 2023
Their extreme difficulty, combined with an initially limited availability in print, led readers to construe Pound’s mind as the unapproachable source of an orphic craft.
—Kathryn Winner, The New Yorker, 6 Jan. 2023
Readers mystified by any of the author’s orphic lingo will find full explanations in the book’s extensive glossary.
—Meghan Cox Gurdon, WSJ, 23 Aug. 2018
As if fearing that too lyrical an approach to such an orphic figure would result in incoherence, Gooch describes this poet’s life in a decidedly unpoetic way.
—The Washington Post, The Denver Post, 20 Jan. 2017
Cite this Entry
“Orphic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/orphic. Accessed 3 May. 2025.
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