Are you looking for a poetic way to talk about a stunning woman \u2014 so beautiful, perhaps, that some might consider it dangerous? You could use the expression \"a face that launched a thousand ships\". Before you do, learn about its meaning and origin by exploring this post.<\/p>\n
The expression \"the<\/em> face that launched a thousand ships\" is a direct reference to Helen of Troy, a prominent figure from Greek Mythology<\/u>. Her beauty was said to be utterly captivating and unparalleled, to the point where a war was fought over it.<\/p>\n When used in the form \"a<\/em> face that launched a thousand ships\", however, this expression can refer to anyone who is deemed to be similarly beautiful<\/u>. Use this expression to describe incredible beauty, or beauty that could inspire conflict.<\/p>\n How might you use the phrase \"a face that launched a thousand ships\" in practice? Use these examples, which take plenty of creative liberty, to give you a better idea:<\/p>\n The rather poetic lines that gave birth to the expression \"the face that launched a thousand ships\" came from the famous 1590s play The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus<\/em> by Christopher Marlowe.<\/p>\n The play features a line in which Doctor Faustus says:<\/p>\n \"Was this the face that launched a thousand ships<\/em><\/p>\n And burnt the topless towers of Ilium?<\/em><\/p>\n Sweet Helen, make me immortal with a kiss.\"<\/em><\/p>\n The Helen in question is Helen of Troy<\/strong>, a prominent figure in Greek mythology. She, the most beautiful woman on Earth, was married to King Menelaus of Sparta, but goddess of love Aphrodite promised Helen to Paris or Troy.<\/p>\n These events led to the famed Trojan War, which also featured the Trojan horse, fought to get Helen back. The locations in question being Greek city states, ships would have played a great role in such a war<\/u>. Hence \"the face that launched a thousand ships\".<\/p>\n The expression \"a face that launched a thousand ships\" has come to refer to any woman with amazing beauty over time, though the saying is now fairly obscure outside of literary circles.<\/p>\n Other idioms and phrases you could use to describe amazing beauty include:<\/p>\n Should you instead want to convey that beauty is not so important, you could choose one of these sayings:<\/p>\n \"The<\/em> face that launched a thousand ships\" refers to the mythological figure Helen of Troy, said to be the most beautiful woman in the world. You can say \"a<\/em> face that launched a thousand ships\" to talk about anyone who is especially stunning.<\/p>\n Should you want to tell a girl that she is beautiful, calling her \"a face that launched a thousand ships\" might be misunderstood. It may be better to use more commonly used sayings<\/u> in this case.<\/p>\n You can use the expression \"the face that launched a thousand ships\" to talk about Helen of Troy.<\/p>\n This line can also be adapted to describe any beautiful woman, in which case you would say that she is \"a face that launched a thousand ships\".<\/p>\n It is best to use this saying in a literary context, such as when writing a history paper.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Are you looking for a poetic way to talk about a stunning woman \u2014 so beautiful, perhaps, that some might consider it dangerous? You could use the expression \"a face that launched a thousand ships\". Before you do, learn about its meaning and origin by exploring this post. \u200b\u200bMeaning The expression \"the face that launched […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9232"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9232"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9232\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9235,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9232\/revisions\/9235"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9232"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9232"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9232"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\u200b\u200bExample Usage<\/h2>\n
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\u200b\u200bOrigin<\/h2>\n
Phrases Similar to the Face That Launched a Thousand Ships<\/h2>\n
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Phrases Opposite to the Face That Launched a Thousand Ships<\/h2>\n
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\u200bWhat Is the Correct Saying?<\/h2>\n
\u200b\u200bWays People May Say the Face That Launched a Thousand Ships Incorrectly<\/h2>\n
\u200b\u200bAcceptable Ways to Phrase The Face That Launched a Thousand Ships<\/h2>\n