Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Coming from, characteristic of, or relating to a sibyl.
- adjective Prophetic; oracular.
from The Century Dictionary.
- Pertaining to the sibyls or their productions; uttered, written, or composed by sibyls; like the productions of sibyls: as. sibylline leaves; sibylline oracles; sibylline verses.
- Prophetical; especially, obscurely or enigmatically oracular; occult; cabalistic.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- adjective Pertaining to the sibyls; uttered, written, or composed by sibyls; like the productions of sibyls.
- adjective (Rom. Antiq.) Certain Jewish and early Christian writings purporting to have been prophetic and of sibylline origin. They date from 100 b. c. to a. d. 500.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective Of or pertaining to a
sibyl or femaleoracle , especially the Cumaean Sibyl and the Sibylline Books. - adjective by extension Having oracle-like
predicting powers,clairvoyant .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective having a secret or hidden meaning
- adjective resembling or characteristic of a prophet or prophecy
Etymologies
Sorry, no etymologies found.
Support
Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word sibylline.
Examples
-
Aventine erected on the cave of the Sibyl and communicating with the profound and sacred breath; taverns where the tables were almost tripods, and where was drunk what Ennius calls the sibylline wine.
Les Miserables 2008
-
The cabarets of the Faubourg Saint-Antoine resemble those taverns of Mont Aventine erected on the cave of the Sibyl and communicating with the profound and sacred breath; taverns where the tables were almost tripods, and where was drunk what Ennius calls the sibylline wine.
-
Aventine erected on the cave of the Sibyl and communicating with the profound and sacred breath; taverns where the tables were almost tripods, and where was drunk what Ennius calls the sibylline wine.
Les Misérables Victor Hugo 1843
-
She has a kind of sibylline intuition and the right to be irrationally
The Life of Reason George Santayana 1907
-
"Voluspa," or Song of the Prophetess, a kind of sibylline lay, which contains an account of the creation, the origin of man and of evil, and concludes with a prediction of the destruction and renovation of the universe, and a description of the future abodes of happiness and misery.
Handbook of Universal Literature From the Best and Latest Authorities Anne C. Lynch Botta 1853
-
Perhaps, if one extrapolates from Obama's sibylline statement: Mitt Romney gives the impression of being too much of a secularist and not enough a Christian or too much the supporter of a cult?
Denis Lacorne: Secularists Or Christian? The Religious Lives Of American Political Candidates In The Public Sphere Denis Lacorne 2011
-
It's all there, and, thanks to Simak's skilled hand at the wheel, it's all in place: suave, sibylline, swift.
-
You will grow up to be quite a reprobate, my scandalous pup—a favourite with the ladies … and the gentlemen, he predicted in a sibylline voice.
Exit the Actress Priya Parmar 2011
-
You will grow up to be quite a reprobate, my scandalous pup—a favourite with the ladies … and the gentlemen, he predicted in a sibylline voice.
Exit the Actress Priya Parmar 2011
-
It is an inward and sibylline sound of swazzle notes and speaking stones.
A Year on the Wing TIM DEE 2009
Comments
Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.