HOW TO PRONOUNCE
chimera
/kaɪˈmɪɹə/
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American Pronunciation Guide · 0:41
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What does chimera mean?
noun
- Alternative letter-case form of Chimera, a supposed monster in Lycia with the head of a lion, body of a goat, and tail of a dragon or serpent, killed by the hero Bellerophon.
- Any fantastic creature combining parts from different animals.
- (figuratively) A foolish, incongruous, or vain thought or product of the imagination.
More meanings (9)
noun
- (figuratively) Anything composed of very disparate parts.
- A grotesque like a gargoyle, but without a spout for rainwater.
- An organism with genetically distinct cells originating from two or more zygotes.
- Alternative form of chimaera, a cartilaginous marine fish in the subclass Holocephali and especially the order Chimaeriformes, with a blunt snout, long tail, and a spine before the first dorsal fin.
- (figuratively) Synonym of bogeyman: any terrifying thing, especially as an unreal, imagined threat.
proper noun
- A supposed fire-breathing monster in Lycia with the head of a lion, body of a goat, and tail of a dragon or snake, killed by the hero Bellerophon.
- A fire-spewing mountain in Lycia or Cilicia, presumed to be an ancient name for the Yanartaş region of Turkey's Antalya Province.
- (historical) Former name of Himara, a port town in southern Albania.
- (historical) Former name of Ceraunian Mountains, the Albanian mountain range near Himara.
Definitions regrouped for readability · CC BY-SA 4.0
IPA pronunciation
/kaɪˈmɪɹə/
Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 ↗Pronunciation varies by speaker and region. About these dictionary pronunciations.
In the pages of books
See this word in context.
The form of government which is usually termed mixed has always appeared to me to be a mere chimera.
As I groped out the door, and knocked at it hesitatingly, I felt that last idea to be a mere chimera.
More book examples (3)
As for socialism, that was summed up long since by Plato and Thomas More in a single word, UTOPIA,--that is, NO-PLACE, a chimera.
Having, I say, felt its truth here; for the feeling is no affectation or chimera.
This was pure frenzy, and yet there were two beings ready to drink in all this pathos, two living beings to live out this monstrous chimera.