Ptolemy
//ˈtɑləmi// name
name ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 an ancient dynasty of Macedonian kings who ruled Egypt from 323 BC to 30 BC; founded by Ptolemy I and ended with Cleopatra wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A male given name from Ancient Greek of Greek origin, borne by historical persons in ancient Egypt.; Claudius Ptolemaeus (c. 90 – c. 168 AD), a Greek-speaking mathematician, geographer, astronomer, and astrologer who lived in the Hellenistic culture of Alexandria in Roman Egypt. His most important works were the Almagest and the Geography
- 2 A male given name from Ancient Greek of Greek origin, borne by historical persons in ancient Egypt.; Ptolemy I Soter ("Ptolemy the Savior", 367 BC—283 BC), a Macedonian general under Alexander the Great who was the ruler of Egypt (323 B.C.E—283 B.C.E) and founder of the Ptolemaic Empire. In 305 BC he took the role of King.
- 3 A male given name from Ancient Greek of Greek origin, borne by historical persons in ancient Egypt.; The Egyptian ruling dynasty of peoples who held the given name Ptolemy.
Example
More examples"Like most astronomers before him, Ptolemy believed the Sun, Moon, and other planets circled the Earth. He thought that each space body moved in a small circle (an epicycle) that was itself orbiting Earth."
Etymology
From Ancient Greek Πτολεμαῖος (Ptolemaîos).
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.