Alexander the Great

American

noun

356–323 b.c., king of Macedonia 336–323: conqueror of Greek city-states and of the Persian empire from Asia Minor and Egypt to India.

Alexander the Great British

noun

356–323 _bc , king of Macedon, who conquered Greece (336), Egypt (331), and the Persian Empire (328), and founded Alexandria

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Alexander the Great Cultural

A ruler of Greece in the fourth century b.c. As a general, he conquered most of the ancient world, extending the civilization of Greece east to India. Alexander is said to have wept because there were no worlds left to conquer. In Alexander's youth, the philosopher Aristotle was his tutor.

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Before beginning his conquests, Alexander allegedly unloosed the Gordian knot by cutting through it. It was believed that the person who unfastened the Gordian knot would rule a vast territory in Asia. Alexander founded the city of Alexandria, which became a great center of learning in Egypt (see also Egypt).

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Her Hellenic identity is unsurprising, as there was an influx of Greeks after Alexander the Great’s conquest of Egypt in 332 B.C.

From The Wall Street Journal

Alexander the Great, who had died in Babylon in 323 B.C., provided for Agathocles and the age’s other warlords what Ms. MacDonald terms “a new model for power in the ancient world.”

From The Wall Street Journal

Butyagin's expedition has uncovered hundreds of ancient coins at the site, some from Alexander the Great's period in the 4th Century BC.

From BBC

“They took part of my army away, like Alexander the Great,” Icahn said of the attack, which dented his capacity to make new investments.

From The Wall Street Journal

Wilson recalled feeling like she and Musk were "soul mates" and he was her own "Alexander the Great" in the lead-up to their wedding.

From Salon

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023