Paphian

//ˈpeɪfɪən// adj, noun

Definitions

Adjective
  1. 1
    Pertaining to love or sexual desire, especially when illicit. literary, not-comparable

    "Cease admiration, sit to Cupid's feast, / The preparation to Paphian dalliance."

  2. 2
    Of or relating to Paphos, the mythical birthplace of the goddess of love on the island of Cyprus. not-comparable

    "Then thus incensed, the Paphian queen replies: / "Obey the power from whom thy glories rise: / Should Venus leave thee, every charm must fly, / Fade from thy cheek, and languish in thy eye. / Cease to provoke me, lest I make thee more / The world’s aversion, than their love before; / Now the bright prize for which mankind engage, / Than, the sad victim, of the public rage.""

Noun
  1. 1
    A prostitute. literary

    "They reach'd the hotel: forth stream'd from the front door / A tide of well-clad waiters, and around / The mob stood, and as usual several score / Of those pedestrian Paphians who abound / In decent London when the daylight's o'er; / Commodious but immoral, they are found / Useful, like Malthus, in promoting marriage."

  2. 2
    A resident of Paphos.

    "Then there is the mastus. Apollodorus the Cyrenæan, as Pamphilus says, states that this is a name given to drinking-cups by the Paphians."

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Latin Paphius (from Ancient Greek Πάφος (Páphos, “Paphos”)) + English -an.

Etymology 2

From Latin Paphius (from Ancient Greek Πάφος (Páphos, “Paphos”)) + English -an.

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