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lord of the flies. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
lord of the flies, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
lord of the flies in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
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English
Etymology
Calque of Biblical Hebrew בַּעַל זְבוּב (baʿal zəḇûḇ, “fly-lord, Beelzebub”), which in turn is a mistranslation of the name of the Semitic devil Baal-zevuv.
Pronunciation
Noun
lord of the flies
- Beelzebub; Satan
- (idiomatic, biblical) a ruler over a worthless kingdom; leader of a meaningless microcosm.
Usage notes
The phrase can also be used as an adjective to describe a situation where there is no government and crime is common. This usage is a reference to the book Lord of the Flies and is usually capitalized.