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Incubus vs Banshee - What's the difference?

incubus | banshee |

As nouns the difference between incubus and banshee

is that incubus is an evil spirit supposed to oppress people while asleep, especially to have sex with women as they sleep while banshee is in Irish folklore, a female spirit, usually taking the form of a woman whose mournful wailing warns of an impending death.

incubus

Noun

(en-noun)
  • An evil spirit supposed to oppress people while asleep, especially to have sex with women as they sleep.
  • A feeling of oppression during sleep, sleep paralysis; night terrors, a nightmare.
  • *, vol. I, New York 2001, p.249:
  • it increaseth fearful dreams, incubus , night-walking, crying out, and much unquietness […].
  • Any oppressive thing or person; a burden.
  • *2002 , , The Great Nation , Penguin 2003, p. 132-3:
  • *:Notions of civic virtue were at that moment changing, in ways which would make of Louis's alleged vices an incubus on the back of the monarchy.
  • One of various of parasitic insects, especially
  • Synonyms

    * (a nightmare) nightmare

    Hypernyms

    * (an evil spirit) evil spirit, spirit

    See also

    * incubous * succubus ----

    banshee

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • In Irish folklore, a female spirit, usually taking the form of a woman whose mournful wailing warns of an impending death.
  • (derogatory) A noisy or ill-tempered woman.
  • * 1936 , , Steps Going Down , page 15:
  • Where's this old banshee that runs the place?

    Usage notes

    * A banshee was originally merely a fairy woman who sang a caoineadh (lament) for recently-deceased members of certain families. Translations of Irish works into English made a distinction between the banshee and other fairy folk that the original language and original stories do not seem to have, but from whence sprung the current image of the banshee.

    See also

    * sidhe

    Anagrams

    *