kyd

English - English

Definition of kyd in English English dictionary

English dramatist who wrote The Spanish Tragedy (c. 1584), is thought to have contributed to Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus and Henry VI, and may have written a version of Hamlet

English dramatist (1558-1594)

of Kythe

Related Terms

Thomas Kyd

born Nov. 6, 1558, London, Eng. died December 1594, London English dramatist. With The Spanish Tragedie (1592), he initiated the revenge tragedy, a favourite dramatic form in the Elizabethan and Jacobean eras in which the main motivation was revenge. One of the most popular plays of its time, it prepared the way for William Shakespeare's Hamlet and other plays. The only other play certainly by Kyd is Cornelia (1594). He was arrested and tortured in 1593 after "atheistical" documents were found in his room; he claimed the papers belonged to Christopher Marlowe, with whom he had shared lodgings. His reputation ruined, he died the next year at age 36

Hyphenation

Kyd

Turkish pronunciation

kîd

Pronunciation

/ˈkəd/ /ˈkɪd/