See Also: tragic(dictionary)
tragic(dictionary)

tragic (iou)



tragic adjective & noun. M16.
[French tragique from Latin tragicus from Greek tragikos, from tragos goat (but assoc. with tragoidia TRAGEDY): see -IC.]
A. adjective.
Of, pertaining to, or in the style of tragedy; befitting tragedy. M16.
Jonson Comic matter will not be exprest In tragic verse. J. G. Lockhart Her..tragic exclamation.., 'You've brought me water, boy, I asked for beer'.
Resembling the ending of a tragedy; calamitous, disastrous, terrible, fatal, (freq. hyperbol.). M16.
Folk Roots It would be tragic to ignore this..singer / songwriter's debut.
Relating to or expressing fatal or sorrowful events; causing sorrow; extremely distressing; sad. L16.
L. H. Tribe She has no alternative other than the tragic one of ending the fetus's life.
Special collocations: tragic-comedy (long rare) = TRAGICOMEDY. tragic flaw = HAMARTIA. tragic irony a device, orig. in Greek tragedy, by which the tragic or fatal significance of a character's words or actions is revealed to the audience but unknown to the character himself or herself.
b. noun.
a. = TRAGEDIAN 2. L16.
b. = TRAGEDIAN 1. L16.
Orig., a tragic fate. Later, a tragic event, a disaster. rare. L17.
A tragic literary work, a tragedy. Long rare or obsolete. E18.
? Cf. COMIC.