ἔπος
Ancient Greek
Alternative forms
- ϝέπος (wépos) – earlier
Etymology
From earlier ϝέπος (wépos), from Proto-Hellenic *wékʷos, from Proto-Indo-European *wékʷos, from *wekʷ- (“to speak”). Cognates include Sanskrit वचस् (vácas) and Avestan 𐬬𐬀𐬗𐬀𐬵- (vacah-).
Pronunciation
- (5th BCE Attic) IPA(key): /é.pos/
- (1st CE Egyptian) IPA(key): /ˈe.pos/
- (4th CE Koine) IPA(key): /ˈe.pos/
- (10th CE Byzantine) IPA(key): /ˈe.pos/
- (15th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA(key): /ˈe.pos/
Noun
ἔπος • (épos) n (genitive ἔπεος or ἔπους); third declension
- something spoken: speech, story, song
- one's word, promise
- word as opposed to deed
- subject
- a line of poetry
- (when discussing etymology or usage) an individual word
- (in the plural) epic poetry
- (the phrase ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν, qualifying a hyperbolic statement) so to speak, roughly speaking, almost
- (the phrase κατ’ ἔπος) word by word
Declension
Third declension of τὸ ἔπος; τοῦ ἔπους (Attic)
Case / # | Singular | Dual | Plural | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nominative | τὸ ἔπος tò épos | τὼ ἔπει tṑ épei | τᾰ̀ ἔπη tà épē | ||||||||||
Genitive | τοῦ ἔπους toû épous | τοῖν ἐποῖν toîn epoîn | τῶν ἐπῶν tôn epôn | ||||||||||
Dative | τῷ ἔπει tôi épei | τοῖν ἐποῖν toîn epoîn | τοῖς ἔπεσῐ / ἔπεσῐν toîs épesi(n) | ||||||||||
Accusative | τὸ ἔπος tò épos | τὼ ἔπει tṑ épei | τᾰ̀ ἔπη tà épē | ||||||||||
Vocative | ἔπος épos | ἔπει épei | ἔπη épē | ||||||||||
Notes: |
|
Third declension of ἔπος; ἔπεος (Epic)
Case / # | Singular | Dual | Plural | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nominative | ἔπος épos | ἔπει / ἔπεε épei / épee | ἔπεᾰ épea | ||||||||||
Genitive | ἔπεος / ἔπευς épeos / épeus | ἐπέοιν epéoin | ἐπέων epéōn | ||||||||||
Dative | ἔπει / ἔπεῐ̈ épei / épeï | ἐπέοιν epéoin | ἔπεσῐ / ἔπεσῐν / ἔπεσσῐ / ἔπεσσῐν / ἐπέεσσῐ / ἐπέεσσῐν épesi(n) / épessi(n) / epéessi(n) | ||||||||||
Accusative | ἔπος épos | ἔπει / ἔπεε épei / épee | ἔπεᾰ épea | ||||||||||
Vocative | ἔπος épos | ἔπει / ἔπεε épei / épee | ἔπεᾰ épea | ||||||||||
Notes: |
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Third declension of τὸ ἔπος; τοῦ ἔπεος (Ionic)
Case / # | Singular | Dual | Plural | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nominative | τὸ ἔπος tò épos | τὼ ἔπει / ἔπεε tṑ épei / épee | τᾰ̀ ἔπεᾰ tà épea | ||||||||||
Genitive | τοῦ ἔπεος / ἔπευς toû épeos / épeus | τοῖν ἐπέοιν toîn epéoin | τῶν ἐπέων tôn epéōn | ||||||||||
Dative | τῷ ἔπει / ἔπεῐ̈ tôi épei / épeï | τοῖν ἐπέοιν toîn epéoin | τοῖσῐ / τοῖσῐν ἔπεσῐ / ἔπεσῐν toîsi(n) épesi(n) | ||||||||||
Accusative | τὸ ἔπος tò épos | τὼ ἔπει / ἔπεε tṑ épei / épee | τᾰ̀ ἔπεᾰ tà épea | ||||||||||
Vocative | ἔπος épos | ἔπει / ἔπεε épei / épee | ἔπεᾰ épea | ||||||||||
Notes: |
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Synonyms
- (something spoken): λόγος (lógos), λέξις (léxis), μῦθος (mûthos) ῥῆμα (rhêma), φράσις (phrásis) φῆμα (phêma), φθέγμα (phthégma)
Antonyms
- (word): ἔργον (érgon, “deed”)
- (epic poetry): μέλη (mélē), ἰαμβεῖα (iambeîa), διθύραμβοι (dithúramboi)
Derived terms
- ἐπικός (epikós)
- ἐποποιία (epopoiía)
- ἐπῠ́λλῐον (epúllion)
Descendants
- English: epos
- Russian: э́пос (épos)
- Old Armenian: վէպ (vēp) (possibly)
Further reading
- “ἔπος”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- “ἔπος”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
- “ἔπος”, in Autenrieth, Georg (1891) A Homeric Dictionary for Schools and Colleges, New York: Harper and Brothers
- ἔπος in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
- ἔπος in Cunliffe, Richard J. (1924) A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect: Expanded Edition, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, published 1963
- “ἔπος”, in Slater, William J. (1969) Lexicon to Pindar, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter
- G2031 in Strong, James (1979) Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance to the Bible
- Woodhouse, S. C. (1910) English–Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language, London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited.
- ballad idem, page 60.
- line idem, page 492.
- prediction idem, page 634.
- prophecy idem, page 653.
- verse idem, page 948.
- word idem, page 987.