What does "labyrinth" mean?
A maze-like structure built by Daedalus in Knossos, containing the Minotaur.; A complicated irregular network of passages or paths, especially underground or covered, in which it is difficult to find one's way.
Labyrinth
/ˈlæb.ə.ɹɪnθ/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Moderate ·College level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A maze-like structure built by Daedalus in Knossos, containing the Minotaur.; A complicated irregular network of passages or paths, especially underground or covered, in which it is difficult to find one's way.
- Grammar: labyrinth is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: maze, brambles, can of worms, chinese puzzle.
- Useful contrasts: clarity, direct route, straight path.
- Usage evidence: I'd defeated the four sub-bosses and got through the damn long underground labyrinth.
How to use "labyrinth"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "labyrinth" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "labyrinth" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "labyrinth" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "labyrinth" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "labyrinth" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "maze" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "labyrinth", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A maze-like structure built by Daedalus in Knossos, containing the Minotaur.; A complicated irregular network of passages or paths, especially underground or covered, in which it is difficult to find one's way. Greek
"Mrs. Churchill liked the interminable labyrinths of the Cyrus and the Cassandra, because she had liked them in the days of her girlhood. Youth identifies itself with the romance; it is the heroic knight, or the lovely lady, of which it reads; it lives amid those fine creations; its sweetest hours are given to dreams which soon "Fade into the light of common day.""
- 2 complex system of paths or tunnels in which it is easy to get lost wordnet
- 3 A maze-like structure built by Daedalus in Knossos, containing the Minotaur.; A maze formed by paths separated by high hedges. Greek
- 4 a complex system of interconnecting cavities; concerned with hearing and equilibrium wordnet
- 5 A maze-like structure built by Daedalus in Knossos, containing the Minotaur.; A structure similar to a maze, but containing only one path with no branches, as distinguished from a maze which contains multiple branching paths Greek
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 A maze-like structure built by Daedalus in Knossos, containing the Minotaur.; Anything complicated and confusing in structure, arrangement, or character. Greek, broadly
"Whitney is absorbed especially by Dublin's unglamorous interstitial zones: the new housing estates and labyrinths of roads, watercourses and railways where the city peters into its commuter belt."
- 7 A tortuous anatomical structure:; A complex structure in the inner ear which contains the organs of hearing and balance, consisting of bony cavities (the bony labyrinth) filled with fluid and lined with sensitive membranes (the membranous labyrinth).
- 8 A tortuous anatomical structure:; An accessory respiratory organ of certain fish.
- 9 Any of various satyrine butterflies of the genus Neope.
Verb
- 1 To enclose in a labyrinth, or as though in a labyrinth.
- 2 To arrange in the form of a labyrinth.
"It is said to have been labyrinthed by secret exits and cunning contrivances to facilitate the escape of fugitives from the law."
- 3 To twist and wind, following a labyrinthine path.
"We labyrinthed through it, meeting scores of panty-clad and moccasined Indians and barefoot women and girls toiling marketward under atrocious burdens; for the day was Sunday."
- 4 To become lost and confused, as if in a labyrinth.
"They arrive at their different destinations long before day, and make their attack about day-break, and seldom fail to kill or make prisoners of the whole family, as the people know nothing of the matter until they are thus labyrinthed."
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"I'd defeated the four sub-bosses and got through the damn long underground labyrinth."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "labyrinth"?
Common synonyms include: maze, brambles, can of worms, chinese puzzle, cnossos, complex.
How do you use "labyrinth" in a sentence?
I'd defeated the four sub-bosses and got through the damn long underground labyrinth.
How do you pronounce "labyrinth"?
Pronounced /ˈlæb.ə.ɹɪnθ/.
Etymology
From Middle English laberynt, laberynthe, from Latin labyrinthus, from Ancient Greek λᾰβύρῐνθος (lăbúrĭnthos, “a maze”).