Promethean
Pro·me·the·an/pɹəˈmi.θi.ən/adjective, noun
Promethean is spelled P-R-O-M-E-T-H-E-A-N: 10 letters and 4 syllables (Pro·me·the·an). It appears about once in every 8 million words in written English, the 85,266th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, Promethean means “Of or pertaining to Prometheus, a demigod in Greek mythology who created mortals from clay and stole fire from Zeus to give to them, for which Zeus…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in Promethean?
| Letters | 10: P-R-O-M-E-T-H-E-A-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4: Pro·me·the·an |
| In writing | about once in every 8 million words; the 85,266th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is Promethean?
Promethean appears about once in every 8 million words in written English, the 85,266th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce Promethean?
- UK /pɹəˈmiː.θɪ.ən/
- US /pɹəˈmi.θi.ən/
- US /pɹoʊ-/
Promethean has 4 syllables, split Pro·me·the·an in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Güiseppi669-Promethean.wav, En-us-Promethean.oga, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of Promethean
- more Promethean comparative
- most Promethean superlative
- Prometheans plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does Promethean mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Of or pertaining to Prometheus, a demigod in Greek mythology who created mortals from clay and stole fire from Zeus to give to them, for which Zeus punished him by chaining him to a rock and having an eagle feed on his liver which grew back each night; he was later rescued by Heracles.
- 2
Boldly creative, inventive, or original; skilful, talented; also, recklessly daring; audacious.
- 3
Of a Romantic literary hero: defying traditional moral categories; rebelling against a larger order; persecuted but dauntless.
- 4
rareOf or pertaining to the promethea silkmoth (Callosamia promethea).
noun
- 1
One with the qualities of Prometheus, or who acts in a Promethean manner (audaciously, creatively, etc.).
- 2
A kind of lucifer match consisting of a glass tube containing sulfuric acid coated on the outside with a flammable mixture of potassium chlorate and sugar and wrapped in paper rolls; the match was lit by crushing the tube with pliers, causing the acid to react with and ignite the flammable components. This type of match was superseded by the friction match which was lit by rubbing against a rough
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Promethean in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense of or pertaining to Prometheus:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | prométhéen |
| Spanish | prometeico |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does Promethean come from?
The adjective is derived from Prometheus (“demigod in Greek mythology”) + -an (suffix meaning ‘of or pertaining to’ forming adjectives; and forming agent nouns).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).