Definition

1. Adjective:

   • Relating to a victory achieved at too great a cost: A "pyrrhic" victory is one that inflicts such a devastating toll on the victor that it is tantamount to defeat. This meaning originates from King Pyrrhus of Epirus, who suffered heavy losses defeating the Romans.
   • Relating to a metrical foot in poetry: In prosody, "pyrrhic" describes a metrical foot consisting of two short or unstressed syllables (e.g., "and the").
   • Relating to an ancient Greek war dance: "Pyrrhic" can refer to a vigorous ancient Greek dance performed in armor, imitating combat movements.

2. Noun:

   • A metrical foot: In poetry, a "pyrrhic" is a foot of two unstressed syllables.
   • An ancient Greek war dance: A "pyrrhic" was the dance itself.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:

  • Winning the lawsuit cost them their reputation; it was a pyrrhic victory.
  • The poet used a pyrrhic foot to create a quick, light rhythm in the line.
  • The performance included pyrrhic dance steps reconstructed from historical texts.

• Noun:

  • The line's rhythm is built on a series of pyrrhics.
  • The warriors performed the pyrrhic before battle.

Advanced Usage

• "Pyrrhic victory": This is the most common modern usage. It describes any success that comes with ruinous costs, negating any sense of achievement or gain.
  • The company's market dominance was a pyrrhic victory; the antitrust lawsuits that followed crippled its operations.

Variants and Related Words

• Pyrrhus (n): The historical figure, King Pyrrhus of Epirus, whose costly victories gave rise to the term.
• Pyrrhically (adv): In a manner relating to a pyrrhic victory (rarely used).
  • He had won, but only pyrrhically.

Synonyms

• Hollow (adj): Lacking real value or significance (e.g., a hollow victory).
• Costly (adj): Involving great loss or sacrifice.
• Dibrach (n): A technical synonym in prosody for a metrical foot of two short syllables.

Antonyms

• Decisive (adj): Settling an issue conclusively and beneficially.
• Meaningful (adj): Having a serious, important, or useful quality.

Related Phrases and Idioms

• Pyrrhic victory: The primary idiomatic expression.
  • Capturing the hill cost the battalion 90% of its men; it was the very definition of a Pyrrhic victory.

Adjective

1. of or relating to or resembling Pyrrhus or his exploits (especially his sustaining staggering losses in order to defeat the Romans)
   • a Pyrrhic victory
2. of or relating to or containing a metrical foot of two unstressed syllables
   • pyrrhic verses
3. of or relating to a war dance of ancient Greece
   • pyrrhic dance movements

Noun

1. an ancient Greek dance imitating the motions of warfare
2. a metrical unit with unstressed-unstressed syllables