Webster's English Dictionary

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tantalus

tan.ta.lus \'tant-*l-*s\ n [L, fr. Gk Tantalos] cap  1: a wealthy king and 
   son of Zeus punished in the lower world by being cond emned to stand in 
   water up to the chin and beneath fruit-laden branches with water and fruit 
   receding at each attempt to drink or eat 2: a locked case or cellarette 
   with contents visible but not obtainable wit hout a key