Icarus

[ ik-er-uhs, ahy-ker- ]

/ ˈɪk ər əs, ˈaɪ kər- /

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noun

Also Ik·a·ros

[ik-er-uhs, ‐uh-ros] /ˈɪk ər əs, ‐əˌrɒs/ .Classical Mythology. a youth who attempted to escape from Crete with wings of wax and feathers but flew so high that his wings melted from the heat of the sun, and he plunged to his death in the sea.

Astronomy. an asteroid whose eccentric orbit brings it closer to the sun than any other known asteroid.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Words nearby Icarus

I cannot tell a lie, ICAO, Icaria, Icarian, Icarian Sea, Icarus, ICBM, ICC, ice, ice age, ice ages

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Icarus in a sentence

A paper published in the journal Icarus documents the first simulations to find out.
NASA is going to slam a spacecraft into an asteroid. Things might get chaotic.|Jonathan O'Callaghan|September 9, 2021|MIT Technology Review
But like the Icarus of her poems, Sor Juana ended up flying too close to the sun.
Sor Juana: Mexico’s Most Erotic Poet and Its Most Dangerous Nun|Katie Baker|November 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“The Fall of Icarus”, by Hendrick Goltzius, is one of my all-time favorite images by one of my all-time favorite artists.
Icarus Needed a Higher SPF|Blake Gopnik|May 1, 2013|DAILY BEAST
In Greek mythology, Icarus was a young lad being held in prison with his father by an evil King.
‘Law & Order’ Spoofs ‘Spider-Man’|Jacob Bernstein|June 17, 2011|DAILY BEAST

His latest book is The Icarus Syndrome: A History of American Hubris .
Putting America on Democracy's Side|Peter Beinart|May 19, 2011|DAILY BEAST
His latest book, The Icarus Syndrome: A History of American Hubris, is available from HarperCollins.
How Wisconsin Helps Obama|Peter Beinart|March 14, 2011|DAILY BEAST
The present moment was not exciting; she had no plans and projects in her head; she was not about to court the fate of Icarus.
The Daughters of Danaus|Mona Caird
The next morning after the visit of the officer from the Icarus, the little girl rose early.
Napoleon's Young Neighbor|Helen Leah Reed
How many things I took for facts,— Icarus and his conduct lax, And how he sealed his fate with wax!
East and West: Poems|Bret Harte
Let us now return the pinions we borrowed from Icarus, and prepare to bid farewell to the wilds.
Wanderings in South America|Charles Waterton
He fastened them on with wax, and Icarus flying too near the sun, his wings melted and he fell into the Aegean.
The Aeneid of Virgil|Virgil

British Dictionary definitions for Icarus

Icarus

/ (ˈɪkərəs, ˈaɪ-) /

noun

Greek myth the son of Daedalus, with whom he escaped from Crete, flying with wings made of wax and feathers. Heedless of his father's warning he flew too near the sun, causing the wax to melt, and fell into the Aegean and drowned

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for Icarus

Icarus

[ ĭk′ər-əs ]

A small asteroid with a highly eccentric, Earth-crossing orbit that takes it to within 30 million km (19 million mi) of the Sun, or closer than the planet Mercury. In 1968 Icarus approached within 6 million km (4 million mi) of the Earth. See more at asteroid.

Cultural definitions for Icarus

Icarus

[ (ik-uh-ruhs) ]

In classical mythology, the son of Daedalus. Icarus died tragically while using artificial wings, invented by his father, to escape from the Labyrinth. When Icarus flew too close to the sun, it melted the wax that held the wings together, and he fell into the sea.