ceraunoscope
/səˈɹɔːnəskəʊp/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English
18
Scrabble Score
12
Letters
3
Syllables
9
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
An instrument or apparatus employed in the ancient Greek mysteries to imitate thunder and lightning.
Example Sentences
- "The machine with which these effects were produced on the stage was called a ceraunoscope."
- "The ceraunoscope is mentioned by many authors as capable of producing the most startling effects."
- "By means of images reflected in concave mirrors, the ceraunoscope (by which thunder was produced), and the secrets of chemistry and mechanics with which they were acquainted, the priests were enabled to maintain an unbounded influence over their devotees."
- "Since I have not been able to discover the mechanics of the original, presumably mechanical ceraunoscope, I don't know how the earliest re-creators of lightning and thunder approached their task."
Etymology
From Ancient Greek κεραυνοσκοπεῖον (keraunoskopeîon), from κεραυνοσκοπία (keraunoskopía, “divination from thunder and lightning”) from κεραυνός (keraunós, “thunderbolt”) + σκοπέω (skopéō, “look at, consider”). By surface analysis, cerauno- + -scope.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: κεραυνοσκοπεῖον