cornucopia

See also: cornucópia

English

WOTD – 25 May 2008
A cornucopia motif.

Etymology

From Latin cornūcōpia (mythical horn of plenty), from cornū (horn) + cōpia (abundance).

Pronunciation

  • (UK) IPA(key): /ˌkɔː.nəˈkəʊ.pi.ə/
  • (US) IPA(key): /ˌkɔːɹ.nəˈkoʊ.pi.ə/, /ˌkɔːɹ.njəˈkoʊ.pi.ə/
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Noun

cornucopia (countable and uncountable, plural cornucopias)

  1. (Greek mythology) A goat's horn endlessly overflowing with fruit, flowers and grain; or full of whatever its owner wanted: or, an image of a such a horn, either in two or three dimensions.
    • 1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. [], volume III, London: Henry Colburn, [], OCLC 21345056, page 59:
      It soon came: as they were on their way to a transparency of their majesties, not a little larger than life—with Bellona, in a very handsome helmet, on one side, and Peace, with a cornucopia and a full blown wreath of roses, on the other—the path was interrupted by a little knot of gentlemen.
    • 1981, William Irwin Thompson, The Time Falling Bodies Take to Light: Mythology, Sexuality and the Origins of Culture, London: Rider/Hutchinson & Co., page 105:
      There are other mysteries expressed by the bison horn, the Paleolithic original of which the classical cornucopia is a copy: the horn of plenty is the universal vulva from which emerge all the creatures of life, plants, animals, and humans.
  2. A hollow horn- or cone-shaped object, filled with edible or useful things.
  3. An abundance or plentiful supply.
    The store provided a veritable cornucopia of modern gadgets.
    • 2020 April 21, Marina Harss, “Twist, Bend, Reach, Step: A Merce Cunningham Solo Anyone Can Try”, in The New York Times:
      These days, thanks to the cornucopia of online dance classes and tutorials, you can almost imagine yourself to be a dancer.

Synonyms

Derived terms

Translations


Italian

Noun

cornucopia f (plural cornucopie)

  1. cornucopia

Anagrams


Spanish

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /koɾnuˈkopja/ [koɾ.nuˈko.pja]
  • Rhymes: -opja
  • Syllabification: cor‧nu‧co‧pia

Noun

cornucopia f (plural cornucopias)

  1. cornucopia

Further reading

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