siren

I. noun Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French & Latin; Middle French sereine, from Late Latin sirena, from Latin siren, from Greek seirēn Date: 14th century 1. often capitalized any of a group of female and partly human creatures in Greek mythology that lured mariners to destruction by their singing 2. a. a woman who sings with enchanting sweetness b. temptress c. temptation 2 3. a. an apparatus producing musical tones especially in acoustical studies by the rapid interruption of a current of air, steam, or fluid by a perforated rotating disk b. a device often electrically operated for producing a penetrating warning sound <

an ambulance siren

> <

an air-raid siren

> 4. [New Latin, from Latin] either of two North American eel-shaped amphibians that constitute a genus (Siren) and have small forelimbs but neither hind legs nor pelvis and have permanent external gills as well as lungs II. adjective Date: 1568 resembling that of a siren ; enticing