Glossed by Hesychius as "some kind of bird" (today arbitrarily identified with the Eurasian wigeon, to which Linnaeus gave the binomial Anas penelope), where -elōps (-έλωψ) is a common Pre-Greek suffix for predatory animals; however, the semantic relation between the proper name and the gloss is not clear. In folk etymology, Pēnelopē (Πηνελόπη) is usually understood to combine the Greek word pēnē (πήνη), "weft", and ōps (ὤψ), "face", which is considered the most appropriate for a cunning weaver whose motivation is hard to decipher. Robert S. P. Beekes believed the name to be Pre-Greek and related to pēnelops (πηνέλοψ) or pēnelōps (πηνέλωψ).

In many modern-day interpretations, Penelope is traditionally viewed as a chaste and faithful wife throughout Homeric literature and is referred to as such by other characters in Greek myth such as Agamemnon and her husband Odysseus. This is due to her dedication to her sexless marriage and resistance to finding a new husband. Many scholars and popular retellings continue to emphasize this unwavering commitment to her husband and desire for no one else due to these notions. Typical interpretations of Penelope, however, have begun to evolve due from introductions of complex feminist retellings, and because of this, she did not have as much nuance as she typically does today. Many modern-day interpretations portray Penelope as a much more complex character that embodies sensuality in her interactions with the suitors. This recent view has been adopted for many reasons such as ambiguity within interactions between Penelope and the suitors.

The Weaving Trick is a key example of such an ambiguity. In Book 2, Penelope promises the suitors that once she has finished weaving a shroud for her father-in-law, Laertes, she will choose a suitor. Ultimately, this promise serves as a deception where each night she would undo the day’s work to gain control over the situation and postpone her unwanted marriage. While this shows an attempt to delay the suitors, there is still the issue of Penelope sending letters to each of the suitors. Scholars like Guilia Sissa claim the reasoning behind this could should an ambiguous sensuality between the two parties. There is still the perspective that these letters Penelope sends are to satiate her suitors but in the narrative, they are already content to wait for her to continue weaving until they are told otherwise by one of Penelope’s handmaids.

Besides the Weaving trick, Penelope has an extremely insightful dream. In her dream she imagines 20 Geese whom she takes care of (who are take the place of the suitors) and one day as she is tending to them an eagle swoops down and kills all of them with the eagle revealed to be Odysseus. But instead of happiness for the return of her long-lost husband, she only expresses grief at the loss of her beloved birds. She laments in her dream and awakes out of distress. Penelope’s sadness at the loss of the suitors shows that someone she still enjoyed their company and presence within her life; to what end no one can be sure. However, there are alternative interpretations that may suggest her tears stem from a fear of death and the mutilation that occurred.

Another moment that Penelope’s lust can be interpreted is within the archery challenge. Penelope promises to finally choose a suitor to whoever is able to complete her challenge, and this shows her willingness to finally move on. But when she finally thinks about leaving her husband, her main thoughts aren’t that she will not be married to him anymore, but she is saddened by the fact she will have to leave her luxurious home. Penelope’s test itself shows that if she had to pick a new husband, he must be as strong and skillful as her presumed late husband and shows she would only pick someone who would be similar to him, lest she pick someone unworthy of her.

There is also no real reason presented in the text for Penelope to not restate her loyalty to Odysseus and her desire to not remarry. Throughout the text Penelope shows her agency and ability to delay but never decides to make th…

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Penelope also appears in the lost Greek epic Telegony that does not survive except in a summary, but that was attributed to Eugamon or Eugammon of Cyrene and written as a sequel to the Odyssey. According to this epic, Odysseus had a son called Telegonus with Circe when he was in her island. When Telegonus had grown to manhood, Circe sent him in search of Odysseus. Shipwrecked on Ithaca by a storm, Telegonus misidentified the island and, assailed by hunger, began plundering it. Odysseus and his oldest son, Telemachus, defended their city and, in the ensuing melée, Telegonus accidentally killed his father with a lance tipped with the venomous spine of a stingray. After discovering the identity of his father, Telegonus brought Telemachus and Penelope to Circe's island. Here, Athena ordered the marriage of Telemachus to Telegonus' mother, the enchantress Circe, while Telegonus married the new widowed Penelope. After burying Odysseus, Circe made the other three immortal. According to Hyginus, Penelope and Telegonus had a son called Italus who, according to some accounts, gave his name to Italy. This legend inspired Sophocles lost tragedy Odysseus Acanthoplex.

In some early sources such as Pindar, Pan's parents are Apollo and Penelope. Herodotus, Cicero, Apollodorus, and Hyginus all describe Hermes and Penelope as his parents. Pausanias records the story that Penelope had in fact been unfaithful to Odysseus, who banished her to Mantineia upon his return. In the 5th century AD Nonnus names Pan's mother as Penelope of Mantineia in Arcadia. Other sources report that Penelope had slept with all 108 suitors in Odysseus' absence, and gave birth to Pan as a result. This myth reflects the folk etymology that equates Pan's name (Πάν) with the Greek word for "all" (πᾶν). The Odyssey carefully suppresses this variant tradition.