Hypertext Webster Gateway: "siren"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Siren \Si"ren\, a.
Of or pertaining to a siren; bewitching, like a siren;
fascinating; alluring; as, a siren song.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Siren \Si"ren\, n. [L., fr. Gr. ???: cf. F. sir[`e]ne.]
1. (Class. Myth.) One of three sea nymphs, -- or, according
to some writers, of two, -- said to frequent an island
near the coast of Italy, and to sing with such sweetness
that they lured mariners to destruction.
Next where the sirens dwell you plow the seas; Their
song is death, and makes destruction please. --Pope.
2. An enticing, dangerous woman. --Shak.
3. Something which is insidious or deceptive.
Consumption is a siren. --W. Irving.
4. A mermaid. [Obs.] --Shak.
5. (Zo["o]l.) Any long, slender amphibian of the genus
{Siren} or family {Sirenid[ae]}, destitute of hind legs
and pelvis, and having permanent external gills as well as
lungs. They inhabit the swamps, lagoons, and ditches of
the Southern United States. The more common species
({Siren lacertina}) is dull lead-gray in color, and
becames two feet long.
6. [F. sir[`e]ne, properly, a siren in sense 1.] (Acoustics)
An instrument for producing musical tones and for
ascertaining the number of sound waves or vibrations per
second which produce a note of a given pitch. The sounds
are produced by a perforated rotating disk or disks. A
form with two disks operated by steam or highly compressed
air is used sounding an alarm to vessels in fog. [Written
also {sirene}, and {syren}.]
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
Siren
n 1: a sea nymph (part woman and part bird) supposed to lure
sailors to destruction on the rocks where the nymphs
lived; "Odysseus ordered his crew to plug their ears so
they would not hear the Siren's fatal song" [syn: {Siren}]
2: a woman who is considered to be dangerously seductive [syn:
{enchantress}, {temptress}, {Delilah}, {femme fatale}]
3: a warning signal that is a loud wailing sound
4: an acoustic device producing a loud often wailing sound as a
signal or warning
5: eel-like aquatic North American salamander with small
forelimbs and no hind limbs; have permanent external gills
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