Sī'ren1, n.
(89), n. [Lat. siren, Gr. σειρήν, Fr. sirène, It. & Sp. sirena.] 1. (Myth.) One of three damsels, — or, according to some writers, of two, — said to dwell near the Island of Caprea, in the Mediterranean, and to sing with such sweetness that they who sailed by forgot their country, and died in an ecstasy of delight. Next where the sirens dwell you plow the seas; Their song is death, and makes destruction please. Pope.
- Hence, an enticing or alluring woman; a female rendered dangerous by her enticements. Chapman.
- Something which is insidious or deceptive.
Consumption is a siren. W. Irving. 4. A mermaid. [Obs.] Over against the creek Paestanum, there is Leucasia, called so of a mermaid or siren there buried. Holland.
- (Zoöl.) An amphibian reptile of an elongated form nearly like an eel, destitute of posterior extremities and pelvis, and having permanent external gills as well as reticulate lungs. It inhabits the swamps and marshy grounds of South Carolina and Georgia, especially those where rice is cultivated. Its food is generally believed to consist of earthworms, insects, &c. It is sometimes called the mud iguana.
- An instrument for measuring the velocity of vibrations of sounding bodies; a sirene.
