What does "hellenistic" mean?

Of or pertaining to the period of the Greek culture, history, or art from after the death of Alexander the Great (323 BCE) to the defeat of Cleopatra and Mark Antony by Octavian (31 BCE—though this is often debated, and can range from 146 BCE to 330 CE [*]).

What is a synonym for "hellenistic"?

Common synonyms include: hellenic, hellenic, hellenistical.

How do you pronounce "hellenistic"?

Pronounced //ˌhɛləˈnɪstɪk//.

Hellenistic

//ˌhɛləˈnɪstɪk// adj

adj ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Adjective

1
Of or pertaining to the period of the Greek culture, history, or art from after the death of Alexander the Great (323 BCE) to the defeat of Cleopatra and Mark Antony by Octavian (31 BCE—though this is often debated, and can range from 146 BCE to 330 CE [*]).
2
Of or pertaining to a Hellenist.

Adjective

1
relating to or characteristic of the classical Greek civilization wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms

hellenic hellenic hellenistical

Etymology

From German hellenistisch, from Ancient Greek Ἑλληνιστής (Hellēnistḗs, “one who uses the Greek language”), from Ἑλλάς (Hellás, “Greece”). By surface analysis, Hellenist + -ic.

Related phrases

hellenistic greek

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.