List of Greek phrases
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List of Greek Phrases/Proverbs
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[edit] Αα
(h)a
Ἀγεωμέτρητος μηδεὶς εἰσίτω
- Ageōmetrētos mēdeis eisitō.
- "Let no-one without knowledge of geometry enter". Motto over the entrance to Plato's Academy (quoted in Elias' commentary on Aristotle's Categories).
Ἀεὶ Λιβύη φέρει τι κακόν / καινόν
- Aei Libyē pherei ti kakon / kainon.
- "Libya always bears something evil / new", Aristotle, Historia Animalium. (Cf. Latin Ex Africa semper aliquid novi, "From Africa always something new".)
Ἀεὶ κολοιὸς παρὰ κολοιῷ ἱζάνει
- Aei koloios para koloiōi hizanei.
- "A jackdaw is always found near a jackdaw", i.e. "birds of a feather flock together."
Ἀεὶ ὁ θεὸς γεωμετρεῖ
- Aei ho theos geōmetrei.
- "Always god geometrizes", Plato
Ἀεὶ ὁ θεὸς ὁ μέγας γεωμετρεῖ τό σύμπαν
- Aei ho theos ho megas geōmetrei to sumpan.
- "Always the great god applies geometry to everything", A mnemonic for π (pi); Ἀεί =3, ὁ=1, θεός=4, ὁ=1, μέγας=5, γεωμετρεῖ=9,τό=2, σύμπαν=6
Ἀετοῦ γῆρας, κορυδοῦ νεότης
- Aëtou gēras, korudou neotēs.
- "An eagle's old age (is worth) a sparrow's youth".
Ἀνάγκᾳ δ’οὐδὲ θεοὶ μάχονται
- Anankāi d'oude theoi machontai.
- "Even the Gods do not fight necessity", Simonides, 8, 20.
Ἄνθρωπος μέτρον
- Anthrōpos metron.
- "Man the measure (of all things)", motto of Protagoras.
Ἅπαξ λεγόμενον
- "Once said", i.e. a word that only occurs once in a text or body of literature.
Ἀπὸ μηχανῆς Θεός
- Apo mēchanēs Theos
- Deus ex machina
Ἄριστον μὲν ὕδωρ
- Ariston men hudōr.
- "Greatest however is water", Pindar, Olymp. 1, 1. Used as the inscription over the Pump Room at Bath.
[edit] Ββ
b
Βρῶμα θεῶν
- Brōma theōn.
- "Food of the gods" — allegedly said by Nero of the poisoned mushrooms with which his mother Agrippina the younger murdered Claudius.
[edit] Γγ
g
Γλαῦκ’ Ἀθήναζε / Γλαῦκ’ εἰς Ἀθήνας
- Glauk’ Athēnaze / Glauk’ eis Athēnas.
- "Owls to Athens", i.e. coals to Newcastle, ice to the Inuits.
Γνῶθι σεαυτόν
- Gnōthi seauton.
- "Know yourself" — the motto over the entrance to the temple of Apollo at Delphi, as well as the motto of Hamilton College, a small, prestigious liberal arts college in the United States.
[edit] Δδ
d
Δῶς μοι πᾶ στῶ καὶ τὰν γᾶν κινάσω
- Dōs moi pā stō, kai tan gān kināsō.
- "Give me a place to stand and I will move the earth". Attributed to Archimedes.
[edit] Εε
(h)e
Εἷς οἰωνὸς ἄριστος, ἀμύνεσθαι περὶ πάτρης
- Eis oiōnos aristos, amunesthai peri patrēs
Ἓν οἶδα ὅτι οὐδὲν οἶδα
- Hen oida hoti ouden oida
- "I know one thing, that I know nothing", (Socrates, paraphrased from Plato's Apology)
Ἐπεὶ δ' οὖν πάντες ὅσοι τε περιπολοῦσιν φανερῶς καὶ ὅσοι φαίνονται καθ' ὅσον ἂν ἐθέλωσιν θεοὶ γένεσιν ἔσχον, λέγει πρὸς αὐτοὺς ὁ τόδε τὸ πᾶν γεννήσας τάδε
- Epei d' oun pantes hōsoi te peripolousin phanerōs kai hōsoi phainontai kath' hōson an ethelōsin theoi genesin eschon, legei pros autous ho tode to pan gennēsas tade
- "When all of them, those gods who appear in their revolutions, as well as those other gods who appear at will had come into being, the creator of the universe addressed them the following" (Plato, Timaios on gods and the creator of the universe)
[edit] Ζζ
[edit] Ηη
(h)ē
Ἢ τὰν ἢ ἐπὶ τᾶς
- Ē tan ē epi tas
"Either it, or on it", "Either with the shield on you, or you on your shield" - meaning "either you will win the battle, or you will die and then be carried back home on your shield". It was said by Spartan mothers to their sons before they went out to battle to remind them of their duty of bravery. A hoplite could not escape the field of battle unless he tossed the heavy and cumbersome shield. Therefore losing one's shield meant desertion.
[edit] Θθ
th
Θάλασσα καὶ πῦρ καὶ γυνή, κακὰ τρία
- Thalassa kai pūr kai gunē, kaka tria.
- "Sea and fire and woman, three evils."
And a paraphrase of it in modern Greek: Πῦρ, γυνὴ καὶ γυναίκα ("fire, woman and woman").
[edit] Ιι
(h)i
Ἰησοῦς Χριστὸς Θεοῦ Υἱὸς Σωτήρ
- Iēsous Christos Theou Huios Sōtēr
- "Jesus Christ, Son of God, Saviour." As an acronym: ΙΧΘΥΣ (Ichthys) — "fish".
[edit] Κκ
k, c
Καὶ σὺ τέκνον.
- Kai sy teknon.
- Et tu, Brute?
- On March 15, 44 BC, Julius Caesar was attacked by a group of senators, including Marcus Junius Brutus, a senator and Caesar's close friend. Caesar initially resisted his attackers, but when he saw Brutus, he supposedly spoke those words and resigned himself to his fate. It is almost certain that Caesar did not actually say these exact words. Ancient sources report that he either died wordlessly or said "Καὶ σὺ τέκνον" (Kai su, teknon?), Greek for "You too, my child?" (Suetonius, De Vita Caesarum, LXXXII [1]). This Latin version was made famous by William Shakespeare, who used it in his play, Julius Caesar (act 3, scene 1,85).
Κακοῦ κόρακος κακὸν ὠόν
- Kakou korakos kakon ōön.
- "From a bad crow, a bad egg", i.e. like father, like son.
Κακὸς ἀνὴρ μακρόβιος
- Kakos anēr makrobios
- "A bad man lives long"
Καλλίστῃ
- Kallistēi
- "For the prettiest one", "To the most beautiful", from the myth of the Golden Apple of Discord.
Κάτθανε, Διαγόρα, οὐ καὶ ἐς Ὄλυμπον ἀναβήσῃ
- Katthane, Diagora, ou kai es Olympon anabēsē.
- "Die, Diagoras, for ascend Olympus (i.e. join the gods) you cannot" — A Spartan spectator to Diagoras of Rhodes, a former Olympic champion himself, during the 79th Olympiad, when his two sons became Olympic champions and carried him around the stadium on their shoulders.
κτῆμα ἐς ἀεί
- ktema es aei
- "everlasting possession" (Thucydides)
Κύριε ἐλέησον
- Kurie eleēson.
- "Lord have mercy" — a very common phrase in Greek Orthodox liturgies, and also used in Greek (but transliterated as kyrie eleison) in the Roman Catholic Mass.
[edit] Λλ
l
Λάθε βιώσας
- Lathe biōsas
- "Live in obscurity", an Epicurean phrase.
[edit] Μμ
m
Μέτρον ἄριστον or Πάν μέτρον ἄριστον
- Métron áriston or Pan métron áriston
- "Moderation is the best thing", literally: "there is a perfect measure for everything" Cleobulus
Μὴ γένοιτο
- Mē genoito.
- "Let it not be!" / "Heaven forbid!" — phrase used by St Paul.
Μηδὲν ἄγαν
- Mēden agan.
Μηκέτι ὑδροπότει, ἀλλ' οἴνῳ ὀλίγῳ χρῶ διὰ τὸν στόμαχόν σου καὶ τὰς πυκνάς σου ἀσθενείας
- Mēketi hudropotei, all' oinōi oligōi chrō dia ton stomachon sou kai tas puknas sou astheneias
- Drink no longer water, but take a little wine for thy stomach's sake, and thine often infirmities.
- — I Timothy 5:23
- Molōn labe!
- "Come take them!" — King Leonidas of Sparta, in response to King Xerxes of Persia's demand that the Greek army lay down their arms before the battle of Thermopylae.
[edit] Νν
n
Νίψον ἀνομήματα μὴ μόναν ὄψιν
- Nipson anomēmata mē monan opsin
- "Wash the sins not only the face"
- A palindrome inscription on fountains of Asclepieia, later inscribed in Hagia Sophia
[edit] Ξξ
x
[edit] Οο
(h)o
Οὐ φροντὶς Ἱπποκλείδῃ
- Ou phrontis Hippokleidēi.
- "Hippocleides doesn't care." From a story in Herodotus (6.129), in which Hippocleides loses the chance to marry Cleisthenes' daughter after getting drunk and dancing on his head. Herodotus says the phrase was a common expression in his own day.
Οὖτις ἐμοὶ γ' ὄνομα
- Outis emoi g' onoma.
- "My name is Nobody". Odysseus to Polyphemus when asked what his name was. (Homer, Odyssey).
[edit] Ππ
p
Παπαί, Μαρδόνιε, κοίους ἐπ' ἄνδρας ἤγαγες μαχησομένους ἡμέας, οἳ οὐ περὶ χρημάτων τὸν ἀγῶνα ποιεῦνται ἀλλὰ περὶ ἀρετῆς.
- Papai, Mardonie, koious ep' andras ēgages machēsomenous hēmeas hoi ou peri chrēmatōn ton agōna poieuntai alla peri aretēs
- "Good heavens! Mardonius, what kind of men are these against whom you have brought us to fight? men who do not compete for money, but for honour. — Spontaneous response of Tritantaechmes, a Persian general while Xerxes was interrogating some locals at Thermopylae. Xerxes asked why there were so few Greek fighters at Thermopylae. The answer was "All the others are participating in the Olympic Games". And when asked "what is the prize for the winner?", "An olive-wreath" came the answer.
Πέμπε δέ μιν Λυκίην δέ, πόρεν δ' ὅ γε σήματα λυγρὰ γράψας ἐν πίνακι πτυκτῷ θυμοφθόρα πολλά
- pempe de min Lukiēn de, poren d' ho ge sēmata lugra grapsas en pinaki ptuktōi thumophthora polla
- "so he sent him to Lycia with lying letters written on a folded tablet, containing much ill against the bearer." Homer, Iliad - This passage shows that Homer actually knew the verb γράφειν (write).
Πίστις, ἐλπίς, ἀγάπη
- Pistis, elpis, agapē
- "Faith, hope, (and) charity." (1 Corinthians, 13, 13.)
[edit] Ρρ
r(h)
Ῥοδοδάκτυλος Ἠώς
- Rhododaktulos Ēōs
- "Rosy-fingered dawn." Occurs frequently in the Homeric poems.
[edit] Σσ
s
Σπεῦδε βραδέως
- Speude bradeōs.
- "Hasten slowly" (cf. Latin festina lente), "less haste, more speed".
Σὺν Ἀθηνᾷ καὶ χεῖρα κίνει
- Sun Athena kai cheira kinei.
- "With Athena, and move your hands", or "Goddess Athena supports you, but you yourself must act too."
[edit] Ττ
t
Τὰ πάντα ῥεῖ καὶ οὐδὲν μένει.
- Ta panta rhei kai ouden menei.
- "Everything flows, nothing stands still." Heraclitus
Τὴν δέ μεγάλην ἤπειρον, ὑφ' ἧς ἡ μεγάλη περιέχεται κύκλῳ θάλαττα, τῶν μὲν ἂλλων ἔλαττον ἀπέχει, τῆς δ' Ὠγυγίας περὶ πεντακισχιλίους σταδίους.
- Tēn de megalēn ēpeiron huph' hēs hē megalē periechetai kuklō thalatta, tōn men allōn elatton apechei, tēs d' Ōgugias peri pentakischilious stadious.
- "The great continent which is surrounded on all sides by the great sea, they say, lies less distant from the others, but about five thousand stadia from Ogygia." Plutarch on the great continent west of the Atlantic Ocean
Τί δύσκολον; Τὸ ἐαυτὸν γνῶναι.
- Ti duskolon? To eautōn gnōnai.
- "What is hard? To know yourself." Thales
Τί εὔκολον; Τὸ ἄλλῳ ὑποτίθεσθαι.
- Ti eukolon? To allo hupotithestai.
- "What is easy? To advise others." Thales
Τί κοινότατον; Ἐλπίς. Καὶ γὰρ οἳς ἄλλο μηδέν, αὔτη παρέστη.
- Ti koinotaton? Elpis. Kai gar hois allo mēden, autē parestē.
- "What is quite common? Hope. When all is gone, there is still hope." Thales
Τί τάχιστον; Νούς. Διὰ παντὸς γὰρ τρέχει.
- Ti tachiston? Nous. Dia pantos gar trechei.
Τὸ γὰρ ἡδύ, ἐὰν πολύ, οὐ τι γὲ ἡδύ.
- To gar hēdu, ean polu, ou ti ge hēdu.
- "A sweet thing tasted too often is no longer sweet."
Τὸ δὶς ἐξαμαρτεῖν οὐκ ἀνδρὸς σοφοῦ.
- To dis examartein ouk andros sophou.
- "To commit the same sin twice is not a sign of a wise man."
Τὸ πεπρωμένον φυγεῖν ἀδύνατον.
- To peprōmenon phugein adunaton.
- "It's impossible to escape from what is destined."
[edit] Υυ
(h)u, (h)y
Ὕστερον πρότερον
- Husteron proteron
- "The latter one first".
[edit] Φφ
ph
Φοβοῦ τοὺς Δαναοὺς καὶ δῶρα φέροντας
- Phobou tous Danaous kai dōra pherontas.
- "Beware of the Danaans (Greeks), even bearing gifts." Well known as a verse from the Aeneid written by Virgil, reading (Quidquid id est) timeo Danaos et dona ferentes.
[edit] Χχ
kh, ch
Χαλεπὰ τὰ καλά
- Chalepa ta kala.
[edit] Ψψ
ps
[edit] Ωω
(h)ō
Ὦ ξεῖν', ἀγγέλλειν Λακεδαιμονίοις ὅτι τῇδε κείμεθα τοῖς κείνων ῥήμασι πειθόμενοι.
- Ō xein', angellein Lakedaimoniois hoti tēde keimetha tois keinōn rhēmasi peithomenoi..
- "Oh stranger, tell the Spartans that here we lie, obedient to their laws." (Epigram by Simonides at Thermopylae).
[edit] See also
- English words of Greek origin
- Greek language
- List of Greek words with English derivatives
- List of Latin phrases
