A Word With You
January 25th, 2010
Dra⋅co⋅ni⋅an
dreɪˈkoʊ ni ən,drə- [drey-koh-nee-uh n, druh-]
–adjective
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1. |
of, pertaining to, or characteristic of Draco or his code of laws. |
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2. |
(often lowercase ) rigorous; unusually severe or cruel: Draconian forms of punishment. |
Also, Draconic.
Origin: < L < Gk drákōn dragon
draconian
What a cool word, to say aloud as well as write. Yet another word that looks and sounds like its meaning. And this one has an interesting little history all its own. Named after Draco, a
late 7th-century b.c. Athenian statesman noted for the severity of his code of laws. Apparently, old Draco favored the death penalty for pretty much anything above jaywalking. According to Plutarch, It is said that Drakon himself, when asked why he had fixed the punishment of death for most offences, answered that he considered these lesser crimes to deserve it, and he had no greater punishment for more important ones.
Draco is also Greek for dragon, a constellation in the northern part of the sky, a dwarf galaxy orbiting our galaxy, the Milky Way, and a genus of gliding lizards. Pretty cool for a word that isn’t used all that often. And should be.
Share your sentence with us. Make sure it contains 5 words with the letters D and A and the word draconian or one of its derivatives.
Grammar Punk Sentence
D A 5 Adj.
Gathering in an angry knot of discontent, the hedgehogs prepared to protest the draconian attitude demonstrated by the aardvarks.