All 3 Uses of
spurn
in
The Iliad by Homer - (translated by: Edward)
- His gifts I loathe, and spurn; himself I hold
At a hair's worth; and would he proffer me
Tenfold or twenty-fold of all he has,
Or ever may be his; or all the gold
Sent to Orchomenos or royal Thebes,
Egyptian, treasurehouse of countless wealth,
Who boasts her hundred gates, through each of which
With horse and car two hundred warriors march:
Nay, were his gifts in number as the sand,
Or dust upon the plain, yet ne'er will I
By Agamemnon be prevail'd upon,
Till I have paid him back my heart's offence.†Chpt 2.9spurn = reject as not good enough
- To whom again Ulysses, stout of heart:
"Most mighty Agamemnon, King of men,
His anger is not quench'd, but fiercer still
It glows; thy gifts and thee alike he spurns;
He bids thee with the other chiefs concert
The means thy people and thy ships to save;
And menaces himself at early dawn
To launch his well-trimm'd vessels on the main.†Chpt 2.9spurns = rejects as not good enough
- His proud, impetuous spirit will spurn the plain,
Where Greeks and Trojans oft in warlike strife
Their balanc'd strength exert; if he come forth,
Our fight will be to guard our homes and wives.†Chpt 2.18 *spurn = reject as not good enough
Definitions:
-
(1)
(spurn) reject as not good enough
-
(2)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) meaning too rare to warrant focus:
Less commonly, and archaically, spurn can mean to strike or kick.