Lekythoid
/ˈlɛkɪθɔɪd/noun
Resembling a lekythos, a slender ancient Greek vessel used chiefly for storing oil.
Did you know?White-ground lekythoi were frequently made as grave offerings and decorated with scenes of mourners, gods, or the deceased’s imagined afterlife.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Greek
Greek
λήκυθος (lēkythos)
“A narrow-necked vessel, especially one used to hold oil”
Hellenistic–Roman period
Greek
ληκύθιον (lēkythion)
“A diminutive or small lekythos”
19th Century
English
lekythos
“An ancient Greek oil vessel adopted as an archaeological and art-historical term”
19th–20th Century
English
-oid
“Resembling or having the form of, from Greek -ειδής (-eidēs), “形ed-like””
Modern English
English
lekythoid
“Resembling the form of a lekythos”
Explore more surprising origins