empyrean

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English[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Latin empȳreus, from Ancient Greek ἐμπύριος (empúrios), from ἐν (en, in) + πῦρ (pûr, fire) (whence English pyre).

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /ɛmˌpaɪˈɹiːn̩/, /ɛmˈpɪɹi.ən/
  • (file)

Noun[edit]

empyrean (plural empyreans)

  1. (historical) The highest heaven, supposed by the ancients to be a region of pure light and fire or else composed of ether, and sometimes seen as the dwelling-place of God or other divine beings; the highest celestial sphere according to ancient and medieval astronomy.

Related terms[edit]

Adjective[edit]

empyrean (not comparable)

  1. Of the sky or the heavens, and particularly relating to the highest celestial sphere in premodern cosmology; celestially refined.

Synonyms[edit]

Translations[edit]

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