Amazon

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈæm.ə.zən/
• (US, Canada) IPA^(key): /ˈæm.əˌzɑn/
• (General Australian) IPA^(key): /ˈæm.ə.zɔn/, /-ɒn/
• (New Zealand) IPA^(key): /ˈɛm.ə.zɔn/, /-ɒn/

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From Middle English, from Latin, from Ancient Greek Ἀμαζών (Amazṓn); perhaps Ionian Greek pronunciation of Old Persian *hamazan- (“warrior”), as the Amazon women were known warriors. A popular folk etymology, of Ancient Greek provenance, claims that the word derives from ἀ- (a-, “not”) + μαζός (mazós, “breast”), referencing the belief that Amazons cut off their right breast so that it would not hinder their ability to fire a bow or throw a spear.

Amazon (plural Amazons)

1. (Greek mythology) A member of a mythical race of female warriors inhabiting the Black Sea area.
   • 1981, William Irwin Thompson, The Time Falling Bodies Take to Light: Mythology, Sexuality and the Origins of Culture, London: Rider/Hutchinson & Co., page 149:

     When, therefore, one envisions a matriarchy, one should not conjure up visions of a gang of Amazons lopping off breasts and testicles to rule by force of arms.

2. A female warrior.
3. A tall, strong, or athletic woman.

From Spanish, Río Amazonas. It is common belief that the Spanish explorer Francisco de Orellana fought a battle against a tribe of Tapuya natives, in which the women fought alongside the men, and that he derived the name from the Amazons in Greek mythology.

the Amazon

1. (sometimes attributive) A river in South America that flows through Brazil for about 4000 miles to the South Atlantic.
2. (sometimes attributive) A region including much of this river; specifically, the region of the Amazon Rainforest, or of the Amazon River Basin.

   Amazon milk frog

• Amazonian
• Amazon milk frog

Amazon (plural Amazons)

1. Any of the large parrots from the genus Amazona.

Chosen by Jeff Bezos in 1994 as a word beginning with 'A' which had existing connotations (see meanings listed in etymologies 1 & 2) of being exotic, different, and (as the Amazon River) the largest of its kind in the world.[1]

Amazon

1. Amazon.com Inc, a very large Internet retailer.

Amazon (third-person singular simple present Amazons, present participle Amazoning, simple past and past participle Amazoned)

1. (transitive) To overwhelm or obliterate, in the context of an Internet start-up vastly outperforming its brick and mortar competition.
   • 1998 November 4, George Anders, “Discomfort Zone: Some Big Companies Long to Embrace Web But Settle for Flirtation — They Fear Online Marketing Could Cause Sales Staffs And Distributors to Rebel — A Risk of Getting ‘Amazoned’”, in The Wall Street Journal, page A1:

     Those who hesitate risk being "amazoned," forfeiting business to an Internet newcomer, in the way that bookstore chains have lost ground to Amazon.com Inc., the online bookseller.

   • 1999 Aug, Andrew Wileman, “Smart cookies: Get set to Amazon”, in Management Today, page 79:

     Venture capitalists' desks are thick with business plans promising ‘we're going to Amazon the insurance/travel/property business...’

   • 1999, Tim Smith, InternetWeek (786), "Getting Customers Totally Integrated – Cisco CIO Pete Solvik", 1999-10-25, p. 98

     Take the example of MetalSite.com, which is owned by steel companies. The steel companies aren't getting "Amazoned" by a start-up but, rather, they are doing the "Amazoning" within their own industry.

   • 1999, "Amazon Expands", InternetWeek (789), 1999-11-15, p. 11

     Amazon.com may soon be "amazoning" a few more industries.

   • 2000 November 20, Bob Tedeschi, “E-Commerce Report: Web and catalog businesses are crossing into storefront territory, creating parallel avenues of retailing”, in The New York Times, page C12:

     Gone are the days when they agonized about being "Amazoned", or blind-sided by a dot-com ....

   • 2001 July 4, Saul Hansell, “Web Sales of Airline Tickets Are Making Hefty Advances”, in The New York Times, page A1:

     In other industries, established companies are pulling people and money away from their Internet operations, as their fear of being "Amazoned" by start-ups has subsided.

   • 2001 November 18, Steve Lohr, “Gearhead Nation: A Time Out for Technophilia”, in The New York Times, page WK4:

     Meanwhile, traditional companies would be obliterated — "Amazoned" — by Internet upstarts.

   • 2002 June 30, Scott Harris, “Roots in Israel, Head in Silicon Valley”, in The New York Times, page B8:

     "Everybody was afraid of getting Amazoned," Mr. Landan said. "They didn't want to get left behind."

From Ancient Greek Ἀμαζών (Amazṓn).

• IPA^(key): /ˈɑmɑtson/, [ˈɑ̝mɑ̝ts̠o̞n]
• IPA^(key): /ˈɑmɑzon/, [ˈɑ̝mɑ̝zo̞n]

Amazon

1. Amazon (river)

• amazoninjokidelfiini
• amazoninpuupiikkisika
• amazoninvalkodelfiini

• amatsoni

Amazon

1. Rōmaji transcription of アマゾン

from Ancient Greek Ἀμαζών (Amazṓn)

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /aˈmaːz.zoːn/, [äˈmäːz̪d̪͡z̪oːn]
• (Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /aˈmad.d͡zon/, [äˈmäd̪ː͡z̪on]

Amāzōn f (genitive Amāzonis); third declension

1. an Amazon
2. a female warrior

Third-declension noun (Greek-type, normal variant).

• “Amazon”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “Amazon”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• Amazon in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette, page 109/3