Home › Glossary › Letter D

Deianira

Mythology
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

The wife of Heracles whose unwitting gift—a poisoned robe—led to his agonizing death in Greek tragedy.

Detailed Definition
Deianira, seeking to win back Heracles’ love, sent him a robe smeared with what she believed was a love charm—actually the poisoned blood of the centaur Nessus. It caused Heracles unbearable pain and death. In poetry, she symbolizes tragic misunderstanding, the destructive potential of love, and unintended consequences.
Example
Example in poetry:
Deianira, wife of Heracles, unwittingly poisons him with Nessus’s blood in Sophocles’ Women of Trachis; Ovid recounts her tragic error in Metamorphoses; In Bacchylides’ odes, Deianira’s love turns to fatal jealousy; Euripides portrays her remorse in lost plays referenced by later poets; Renaissance tragedy uses Deianira as a model of misguided love; Modern poetry examines Deianira as a victim of manipulation and fate.
Additional Notes
Deianira, wife of Heracles, inadvertently caused his death using Nessus’ poisoned blood—her tragic error stems from love and jealousy; Sophocles’ Women of Trachis explores her anguish—useful for poetry on unintended consequences, marital trust, or the destructive potential of “love potions.”
Also Known As
Wife of Heracles Weaver of Tragedy Deianeira
Skip to main content