oblivion
noun
D. S. Looney
Did you know?
Oblivion and the River Lethe
Oblivion asks forgetfulness of us in both its meaning and etymology. The word’s Latin source, oblīvīscī, means “to forget; to put out of mind,” and since its 14th century adoption into English, oblivion has hewed close to meanings having to do with forgetting. The word has also long had an association with the River Lethe, which according to Greek myth flowed through the Underworld and caused anyone who drank its water to forget their past; 17th century poet John Milton wrote about “Lethe the River of Oblivion” in Paradise Lost. The adjective oblivious (“lacking remembrance, memory, or mindful attention”) followed oblivion a century later, but not into oblivion—both words have proved obdurate against the erosive currents of time.
Examples of oblivion in a Sentence
Yiyun Li, Harper's Magazine, 23 Sep. 2024
Pressly offers an antidote to this fearful existence, inviting readers to slip into oblivion: to recognize the freedom of being temporarily forgotten, and resist the forces that reduce them to what can be gleaned on the internet.
—John Kaag, The Atlantic, 29 Oct. 2024
After Billy’s body passes into oblivion — which may, or may not, have been Mephisto’s doing — his soul basically attached itself to another random kid.
—Adam B. Vary, Variety, 10 Oct. 2024
At best the main characters can battle these forces to a standstill and eke out one more day for the rest of the world to live in blissful oblivion.
—Rob Wieland, Forbes, 7 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for oblivion 
Dictionary Entries Near oblivion
Cite this Entry
“Oblivion.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/oblivion. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
oblivion
noun
Share