- siren
- mid-14c., "sea nymph who by her singing lures sailors to their destruction," from O.Fr. sereine, from L.L. Sirena, from L. Siren, from Gk. Seiren ["Odyssey," xii.39 ff.], perhaps lit. "binder," from seira "cord, rope." Meaning "device that makes a warning sound" (on an ambulance, etc.) first recorded 1879, in reference to steamboats. Figurative sense of "one who sings sweetly and charms" is recorded from 1580s.