callipygian
/ˌkæ.ləˈpɪ.d͡ʒi.ən/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English
19
Scrabble Score
11
Letters
3
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
adj
Specifically, describing a statue (often of a goddess such as Aphrodite) in a pose that shows off the figure's shapely buttocks.
Example Sentences
- "[…]we soon once more were in a state to renew our delicious combat; and a second course was run in the delightful callipygian recesses of Venus’s second temple of lubricity."
- "Suddenly the music grew fainter, as if drawing away, and the dancers, their feet together and limbs half opened, descended in a slow spiral, with gentle undulations, until they touched the floor; the instant their callipygian charms grazed the mosaic, they recoiled like suddenly awakened serpents, […]"
- "Her gown (perhaps as a result of the scorching winds coming off the ambas) clung damply to her body, clearly revealing her callipygian curves and the entire shapely length of her legs."
- "[T-Rex:] My lovely visage, callipygian frame, startlingly awesome calves and charming smile will yet go down in history!"
- "With trepidation, but not embarrassment, I offer the thought that Mrs. Obama, a formerly disadvantaged alumna of Princeton and Harvard, to judge from her well-strategized appearances on national television in exiguous dresses and trousers, is as callipygian as Jennifer Lopez."
Etymology
From Ancient Greek καλλίπυγος (kallípugos) + -ian, from κάλλος (kállos, “beauty”) + πυγή (pugḗ, “buttocks”).
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: καλλίπυγος
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˌkæ.ləˈpɪ.d͡ʒi.ən/