Agamemnon

[ag-uh-mem-non, -nuh n] /ˌæg əˈmɛm nɒn, -nən/

noun

Classical Mythology. a king of Mycenae, a son of Atreus and brother of Menelaus. He led the Greeks in the Trojan War and was murdered by Clytemnestra, his wife, upon his return from Troy.

(italics) a tragedy (458 b.c.) by Aeschylus.

Compare Oresteia.

Origin

< Greek Agamémnon- (stem of Agamémnōn), < *Agaménmon-, equivalent to aga- great + men- (truncation of Menelaus, meaning king) + -mon- suffix used in shortened names

British Dictionary definitions for Agamemnon

Agamemnon

/ˌæɡəˈmɛmnɒn/

noun

(Greek myth) a king of Mycenae who led the Greeks at the siege of Troy. On his return home he was murdered by his wife Clytemnestra and her lover Aegisthus See also Menelaus

Word Origin and History for Agamemnon

king of Mycenae, leader of the Greeks in the Trojan War, his name perhaps represents Greek Aga-medmon, literally "ruling mightily," from agan "very much" + medon "ruler" (see meditation).

Agamemnon in Culture

Agamemnon [(ag-uh-mem-non)]

In classical mythology, the king who led the Greeks against Troy in the Trojan War. To obtain favorable winds for the Greek fleet sailing to Troy, Agamemnon sacrificed his daughter Iphigenia to the goddess Artemis and so came under a curse. After he returned home victorious, he was murdered by his wife, Clytemnestra, and her lover, Aegisthus.