A.Word.A.Day--croesus

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Apr 23, 2019

This week’s theme
Eponyms

This week’s words
adonis
croesus

Croesus showing his wealth to Solon (detail)

Art: Frans Francken the Younger
(1581-1642)

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A.Word.A.Day

with Anu Garg

Croesus

PRONUNCIATION:

(KREE-suhs)

MEANING:

noun: A very wealthy person.

ETYMOLOGY:

After Croesus (560-546 BCE), last king of Lydia, known for his great wealth. Earliest documented use: 1390.

NOTES:

The story goes that Croesus showed his enormous wealth to the visiting wise man Solon and asked him who the happiest man was, fully expecting himself to be named. Solon’s reply, “Consider no one happy until he is dead”, disappointed him. Croesus realized the wisdom of Solon’s words when Cyrus the Great of Persia defeated and captured him.

USAGE:

“Fiona Bruce nods her way through an exclusive interview with the third richest man in the world. Among the revelations divulged by this corduroy Croesus are, ‘it’s a competitive business’ and, shatteringly, ‘I love to read.’ Far better value are Gates’ spry cronies, their testimonies revealing a nerdish tyrant who, having successfully ctrl+alt+deleted generations of business rivals, is apparently now determined to ‘win a Nobel peace prize’.”
Sarah Dempster; Television: Watch This; The Guardian (London, UK); Jun 20, 2008.

See more usage examples of Croesus in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:

Somehow, I don't think Jesus came to Earth to ring the bell at the New York Stock Exchange. -Michael Moore, filmmaker and author (b. 23 Apr 1954)

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