epigone
/ˈɛpəɡoʊn/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English
10
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
1
Syllables
6
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
An undistinguished or inferior imitator of a well known artist or their style.
Example Sentences
- "India is run by gerontocrats and epigones: grey hairs and groomed heirs."
- "While Shaler remained subordinate, he followed Agassiz’s intellectual lead, often with the epigone’s habit of exaggerating his master’s voice."
- "In another twist to the myth, his Head of Department, the ageless and loathsome Vermishank, was not a plodding epigone but an exceptional bio-thaumaturge."
Etymology
From French épigone, from Latin epigonus, from Ancient Greek ἐπίγονος (epígonos, “offspring, descendant”), from ἐπιγίγνομαι (epigígnomai, “to come after”), from ἐπί (epí, “upon”), from γίγνομαι (gígnomai, “to become”).
Origin
- Source language: French
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈɛpəɡoʊn/
- British English: /ˈɛpəɡəʊn/