English Dictionary: incubuses | by the DICT Development Group |
1 result for incubuses | |
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: | |
Incubus \In"cu*bus\, n.; pl. E. {Incubuses}, L. {Incubi}. [L., the nightmare. Cf. {Incubate}.] 1. A demon; a fiend; a lascivious spirit, supposed to have sexual intercourse with women by night. --Tylor. The devils who appeared in the female form were generally called succubi; those who appeared like men incubi, though this distinction was not always preserved. --Lecky. 2. (Med.) The nightmare. See {Nightmare}. Such as are troubled with incubus, or witch-ridden, as we call it. --Burton. 3. Any oppressive encumbrance or burden; anything that prevents the free use of the faculties. Debt and usury is the incubus which weighs most heavily on the agricultural resources of Turkey. --J. L. Farley. |