Venus

noun

Ve·​nus ˈvē-nəs 

1

: the Roman goddess of love and beauty compare aphrodite

2

: the planet second in order from the sun see Planets Table

Examples of Venus in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Former world number one Venus Williams has been awarded a wild card for next month’s BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells. —Manasi Pathak, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2025

Tennis legend Venus Williams will play at the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells next month, officials announced, thanks to a wild-card entry. —Chris Branch, The Athletic, 20 Feb. 2025

Women’s tennis: The 44-year-old Venus Williams will play as a wild-card entry at the BNP Paribas Open next month at Indian Wells, her first tournament in nearly a year. —New York Times, 20 Feb. 2025

In 2021, she was named the WTA's newcomer of the year, with past winners including both Serena and Venus Williams. —Rachel McRady, People.com, 19 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Latin Vener-, Venus, deified abstraction from an originally neuter common noun venus "sexual desire, qualities exciting desire, charm"; akin to Sanskrit vanate "(s/he) likes, takes pleasure in," -vana- "loving," vāñchati "(s/he) desires, wishes," Old English wȳscan "to wish," wunian "to remain, dwell," Old Norse una "to be satisfied"

Note: Latin venus, as probably also Vedic Sanskrit vanas-, a hapax legomenon of uncertain meaning, is an s-stem derivative from a verbal base going back to Indo-European *wenH- "wish, desire," most likely distinct from *wen- "struggle, gain"; see win entry 1.

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing Venus

• Venus flytrap
• Venus hair
• Venus hair fern
• Venus's flower-basket

Rhymes for Venus

• cleanness
• freeness
• genus
• minas
• penis
• venous
• arteriovenous
• dominus
• fraxinus
• lupinus
• ricinus
• silenus

Kids Definition

Venus

noun

Ve·​nus ˈvē-nəs 

: the planet second in order from the sun see planet