What is the definition of Deus ex machina? | Dictionary.net

DEUS EX MACHINA

\dˈe͡ɪʊs ˈɛks məʃˈiːnə], \dˈe‍ɪʊs ˈɛks məʃˈiːnə], \d_ˈeɪ_ʊ_s ˈɛ_k_s m_ə_ʃ_ˈiː_n_ə]\

Definitions of DEUS EX MACHINA

2006 - WordNet 3.0
2011 - English Dictionary Database
1919 - The concise Oxford dictionary of current English
1895 - Glossary of terms and phrases

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any active agent who appears unexpectedly to solve and insoluble difficulty

2006 - WordNet 3.0
By Princeton University

any active agent who appears unexpectedly to solve and insoluble difficulty

2011 - English Dictionary Database
By DataStellar Co., Ltd

Power, event, that comes in the nick of time to solve difficulty, providential interposition, esp. in novel or play. [Latin]

1919 - The concise Oxford dictionary of current English
By Sir Augustus Henry

[L.] A scholastic phrase, borrowed from the stage, where gods might be represented as flying in the air. It was applied to philosophers who, when unable to solve a difficulty by ordinary means, resorted to the aid of a supernatural power.

1895 - Glossary of terms and phrases
By Henry Percy Smith

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comprises fungi bearing the spores on basidium: Gasteromycetes (puffballs); Tiliomycetes (comprising orders Ustilaginales (smuts) and Uredinales (rusts)); Hymenomycetes (mushrooms; toadstools; agarics; bracket fungi); in some classification systems considered a division of kingdom comprises fungi bearing spores on a basidium; includes Gasteromycetes (puffballs) Tiliomycetes comprising the orders Ustilaginales (smuts) and Uredinales (rusts) Hymenomycetes (mushrooms, toadstools, agarics bracket fungi).

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