leviathan

See also: léviathan and Leviathan

English

Behemoth and Leviathan, by William Blake

Alternative forms

• Leviathan

Etymology

From Middle English levyethan, levyathan, etc., from Late Latin leviathan, a biblical transliteration of Hebrew לִוְיָתָן (liv'yatán).

Pronunciation

• enPR: lə-vīʹə-thən, IPA^(key): /ləˈvaɪ.ə.θən/

  • Audio (RP):

    (file)

• Rhymes: -aɪəθən

Noun

leviathan (plural leviathans)

1. (biblical, mythology) A vast sea monster of tremendous strength, described as the most powerful and dangerous creature in the ocean.
   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Job 41:1, column 1:

     Canſt thou draw out Leuiathan with an hooke? or his tongue with a corde which thou letteſt downe?

   • 1904, Jack London, chapter 1, in The Sea-Wolf (Macmillan’s Standard Library), New York, N.Y.: Grosset & Dunlap, →OCLC:

     The fog seemed to break away as though split by a wedge, and the bow of a steamboat emerged, trailing fog-wreaths on either side like seaweed on the snout of Leviathan.

2. (figurative) Something monstrously large or mighty in size, strength, wealth, etc.

   Synonyms: behemoth, colossus, mammoth, titan

   • 1840 April – 1841 November, Charles Dickens, “Chapter the Twenty-seventh”, in The Old Curiosity Shop. A Tale. […], volume I, London: Chapman and Hall, […], published 1841, →OCLC:

     When she had exhibited these leviathans of public announcement to the astonished child, she brought forth specimens of the lesser fry in the shape of hand-bills, some of which were couched in the form of parodies on popular melodies, […]

   • Template:RQ:Trollope The Warden
   • 2020 October 7, Cecilia D'Anastasio, “Amazon Wants to ‘Win at Games.’ So Why Hasn’t It?”, in Wired‎^[1]:

     After brute-forcing its way to dominance in so many industries, the tech leviathan may finally have met its match.

3. (political science, sometimes capitalized) The political state, especially a domineering and totalitarian one as theorized by Thomas Hobbes.
   • Template:RQ:Arendt Origins

Translations

Biblical sea monster

• Arabic: لَوِيَاثَان (lawiyāṯān)
• Bulgarian: левиата́н m (leviatán)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 利維坦／利维坦 (lìwéitǎn), 利维坦 (lìwéitǎn), 力威亞探／力威亚探, 力威亚探 (lìwēiyàtàn), (Catholic) 里外雅堂 (lǐwàiyǎtáng)

• Esperanto: levjatano
• Estonian: leviaatan
• Finnish: leviatan
• French: léviathan (fr) m
• Georgian: ლევიათანი (leviatani)
• German: Leviathan (de) m, Meerungeheuer n
• Greek:

  Ancient: Λευιαθάν m (Leuiathán)

• Hebrew: לִוְיָתָן (he) m (livyatán)
• Ido: leviatano (io)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Italian: leviatano (it) m
• Japanese: レヴィアタン (reviatan), リヴァイアサン (rivaiasan)
• Korean: 레비아탄 (rebiatan)
• Old Ruthenian: левиаѳа́мъ m (leviafám), левиафа́нъ m (leviafán)
• Persian: لویاتان (laveyâtân), لوتان (lavetân)
• Polish: lewiatan (pl)
• Portuguese: leviatã
• Russian: левиафа́н (ru) m (leviafán), чу́до-ю́до (ru) n (čúdo-júdo) (Slavic mythology)
• Scots: leviathan
• Spanish: leviatán (es) m
• Swedish: Leviatan (sv) c
• Tamil: லெவியாதன் (leviyātaṉ)
• Thai: เลวีอาธาน
• Ugaritic: 𐎍𐎚𐎐 (ltn)
• Yiddish: לוויתן m (levyosn)

Adjective

leviathan (not comparable)

1. Very large; gargantuan.

   Synonyms: enormous, giant, ginormous; see also Thesaurus:gigantic

Translations

very large; gargantuan

• Bulgarian: огро́мен (bg) (ogrómen)
• Finnish: valtava (fi), jättiläismäinen (fi), jättimäinen (fi), suunnaton (fi)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• French: léviathanique (fr)
• Polish: lewiatan (pl) m
• Russian: огро́мный (ru) (ogrómnyj), грома́дный (ru) (gromádnyj)

Further reading

• leviathan on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Leviathan (Hobbes book) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia