Definition of BYZANTINES (original) (raw)

: of, relating to, or characteristic of the ancient city of Byzantium

architecture : of, relating to, or having the characteristics of a style of architecture developed in the Byzantine Empire especially in the fifth and sixth centuries featuring the dome carried on pendentives over a square and incrustation with marble veneering and with colored mosaics on grounds of gold

often not capitalized

: of, relating to, or characterized by a devious and usually surreptitious manner of operation

a Byzantine power struggle

: intricately involved : labyrinthine

rules of Byzantine complexity

Did you know?

Today, the city that lies on the Bosporus Strait in Turkey is named Istanbul, but it was once known as Constantinople (a name given to it when it became the capital of the Byzantine Empire, aka the eastern half of the Roman Empire), and in ancient times, it was called Byzantium. Its history is legendary—filled with mystics, wars, and political infighting—and over time the word Byzantine (from the Late Latin word Byzantinus, the name for a native of Byzantium) became synonymous in English with anything characteristic of the city or empire, from architecture to intrigue. The figurative sense used to describe that which is intricately involved and not easily understood first appeared in the early 20th century.

Synonyms

Examples of Byzantine in a Sentence

Adjective

spent his first year at the Pentagon just trying to fathom its byzantine workings

Recent Examples on the Web

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The findings indicate a succession of settlement starting from the early Roman period and through until the end of the Byzantine period. —Newsweek, 8 Jan. 2025 Wellness sojourns at the Euphoria Retreat are made more luxurious by rooms and suites dressed in colors, textures, and patterns of the Byzantine era. —Bianca Salonga, Forbes, 6 Jan. 2025 Ashland, Oregon Shining Hand Ranch blends Spanish Revival and Byzantine architecture with ornately fashioned natural materials and forms. —The Week Staff, theweek, 24 Dec. 2024 The duo were elevated to their current roles a little less than two years ago, in February 2023, not long after Iger returned to Disney and began the process of dismantling the Byzantine operational structure put in place by Iger’s successor/predecessor Bob Chapek. —Josef Adalian, Vulture, 19 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for Byzantine