King Lear /ˌkɪŋ ˈlɪəʳ/
a play by William Shakespeare about an old king who decides to divide his kingdom among his three daughters according to how much each of them says she loves him. Two daughters, Goneril and Regan, pretend to love him very much, and he divides the kingdom between them. The third daughter, Cordelia, is the only one who really loves him, but she receives nothing because she says that she loves him no more and no less than she should. As a result there are many sad and terrible events, including the deaths of Lear and his three daughters.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲