Siren

To the ancient Greeks and Romans, sirens were a group of minor female divinities that sang an irresistible song that enchanted sailors to their doom, as described in the Odyssey. Odysseus had his men put wax in their ears, so they wouldn't hear the sirens singing, while he had the men tie him to the mast of the ship, so he couldn't be lured by the singing, but could still hear it. In form, sirens had the heads, and sometimes the busts and arms, of women, but otherwise had the form of birds.

Modern word: Our word siren retains the original meaning of a dangerous and enticing woman. It also means a device for sounding signals of warning. In addition, it refers to a genus of eel-shaped amphibians.