ph[oe]nix
Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)
1.(Gr. Myth.) A bird fabled to exist single, to be consumed by fire by its own act, and to rise again from its ashes. Hence, an emblem of immortality. [1913 Webster]
2.(Astron.) A southern constellation. [1913 Webster]
3.A marvelous person or thing. [R.] --Latimer. [1913 Webster]
4.A person or thing that suffered destruction or defeat and was restored to its former state. [PJC]
to rise like a phoenix, to resume an endeavor after an apparently final defeat. [PJC]
Phoenix \Ph[oe]"nix\ (f[=e]"n[i^]ks), n. [L., a fabulous bird. See Phenix.]
1.Same as Phenix. --Shak. [1913 Webster]
2.(Bot.) [Capitalized] A genus of palms including the date tree. [1913 Webster]
The Devil's Dictionary
PHOENIX, n. The classical prototype of the modern "small hot bird."