sprite

/spraɪt/

/spraɪt/

Other forms: sprites

A sprite is a spirit, a mythical, fairy-like creature who lives by the water. Sprites are supernatural and sometimes tricksy.

Sprites are particularly common Western European folk tales, and one of the most famous literary sprites is Ariel from Shakespeare's The Tempest. Elves and fairies can be described as sprites, and so can the water nymphs from Ancient Greek mythology. Sprite comes from the Old French esprit, or "spirit," and the Latin root spiritus. An older alternate spelling, now obsolete, was spright, which led to the adjective sprightly, "animated or lively."

Definitions of sprite

1. noun

   a small being, human in form, playful and having magical powers
   synonyms: faerie, faery, fairy, fay

   types:

   brownie, elf, gremlin, hob, imp, pixie, pixy

   (folklore) a small fairy-like creature that is somewhat mischievous

   fairy godmother

   a female character in some fairy stories who has magical powers and can bring unexpected good fortune to the hero or heroine

   dwarf, gnome

   a legendary creature resembling a tiny old man; lives in the depths of the earth and guards buried treasure

   Morgan le Fay

   (Arthurian legend) a wicked enchantress who was the half sister and enemy of King Arthur

   Puck, Robin Goodfellow

   a mischievous sprite of English folklore

   Oberson

   (Middle Ages) the king of the fairies and husband of Titania in medieval folklore

   Titania

   (Middle Ages) the queen of the fairies in medieval folklore

   tooth fairy

   a fairy that is said to leave money at night under a child's pillow to compensate for a baby tooth falling out

   water nymph, water spirit, water sprite

   a fairy that inhabits water

   Nibelung

   (German mythology) any of the race of dwarfs who possessed a treasure hoard that was stolen by Siegfried

   undine

   any of various female water spirits

   leprechaun

   a mischievous elf in Irish folklore

   sandman

   an elf in fairy stories who sprinkles sand in children's eyes to make them sleepy

   Andvari

   (Norse mythology) a dwarf who possessed a treasure that was stolen by Loki

   type of:

   spiritual being, supernatural being

   an incorporeal being believed to have powers to affect the course of human events