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Glite Dictionary
Tiresias

Tiresias

1 9.9
A blind prophet from Thebes who tells the future and reveals Oedipus's crime
  • proper noun
  • /taɪˈrɪsiəs/
  • Literature
: Tiresias
  • Tiresias, the blind seer of Thebes.
  • the blind prophet Tiresias
  • Tiresias, the blind seer

Examples

  • "I see you are a decisive man," said Tiresias.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • "It's so beautiful it has to be true," Tiresias protested.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • Tell 'em just to call me Tiresias, will ya?

    Mighty Aphrodite (1995)

  • Had they found a boy to guide Tiresias?

    Fiction book (1992)

  • "Let me explain," Tiresias said confidently.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • "Gentlemen, please," said Tiresias, turning his empty eyes toward the boisterous argument.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • But child, said Tiresias kindly, if we can knit ideas into a rational chain, that alone gives proof that the ideas truly fit together.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • What more, Tiresias, blind seer of Thebes?

    Mighty Aphrodite (1995)

  • The Greek myth of the seer Tiresias, who was struck blind by Hera but gifted with "second sight" by Zeus, illustrates the same principle.

    Academic text (1990)

  • Tiresias, the blind prophet of Thebes, foretold the tragic fate of Tiresias.

Surface Forms

Tiresias main

Etymology

Tiresias comes from ancient Greek and its exact origin is unclear, but he is best known as the blind prophet of Thebes who reveals the future. A helpful way to remember Tiresias is to think of 'tire' and 'see' — someone who cannot see yet 'sees' the truth, so the name links blindness with deep wisdom.