49: smallest, impossible, useful, instrument, name

Here are today's vocabulary words; they are neuter nouns and adjectives in the nominative and genitive, along with a brief definition. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion, and there's also a study tips post.

1. ἐλάχιστον ~ ἐλαχίστου (adj. n.): smallest, least 

2. ἀδύνατον ~ ἀδυνάτου (adj. n.): unable, impossible 

3. χρήσιμον ~ χρησίμου (adj. n.): useful 

4. σκεῦος ~ σκεύους (noun n.): utensil, instrument 

5. ὄνομα ~ ὀνόματος (noun n.): name 

Here are the proverbs and sayings:

Τὰ ἐλάχιστα ληπτέον τῶν κακῶν.

Τὸ πεπρωμένον φυγεῖν ἀδύνατον.

Οὐδὲν σιωπῆς ἔστι χρησιμώτερον.

Ἀγαθὴ σοφία ὑπὲρ σκεύη πολέμου.

Λεγιὼν ὄνομά μοι, ὅτι πολλοί ἐσμεν. 

Listen at SoundCloud.

Laura Gibbs · Greek Proverbs: 049

Plus some commentary:

Τὰ ἐλάχιστα ληπτέον τῶν κακῶν.

One should choose the lesser of evils.

The words come from Aristotle; you can find out more at Wikipedia: Lesser of two evils principle. The verbal adjective ληπτέον, meaning something one must take or choose, comes from the verb λαμβάνω; you can read more about this type of verbal adjective here: Greek Gerundive.

Τὸ πεπρωμένον φυγεῖν ἀδύνατον.

It is impossible to escape what is destined.

In Greek, the infinitive — φυγεῖν — is a neuter noun, and so the neuter form of the adjective: ἀδύνατον. Πεπρωμένη — the feminine form of πεπρωμένον — is a goddess associated with the Moirai, Μοῖραι, the Greek goddesses of fate; find out more at Wikipedia: Moirai. The word ἀδύνατον is used as a rhetorical term in English, referring to hyperbole which is so extreme that it is impossible: adynaton.

Οὐδὲν σιωπῆς ἔστι χρησιμώτερον.

Nothing is more useful than silence.

The word χρησιμώτερον is a comparative form of the adjective, χρήσιμος, and so it takes a genitive complement: more useful than silence, σιωπῆς. The adjective comes from the verb χράομαι, "use" (see Logeion for the wide range of meanings of this verb). You can see the Greek root χρη- in the English word, chestromathy, borrowed from Greek χρηστομάθεια. This iambic saying comes from Menander:

Οὐδὲν - σιω—πῆς ἔσ-τι χρη—σιμώ-τερον.

Ἀγαθὴ σοφία ὑπὲρ σκεύη πολέμου.

Wisdom is better than weapons of war.

The words come from the Biblical Book of Ecclesiastes. The use of ὑπὲρ with an adjective to express the comparative form of the adjective is a feature of Septuagint Greek; compare a Biblical proverb you saw in an earlier post: Ὁ κύων ὁ ζῶν αὐτὸς ἀγαθὸς ὑπὲρ τὸν λέοντα τὸν νεκρόν. From Greek πόλεμος, we get the English word polemic. The name Ptolemy is from a variant form of πόλεμος. 

Λεγιὼν ὄνομά μοι, ὅτι πολλοί ἐσμεν.

My name is Legion, because we are many.

The words come from a scene in the Gospel of Mark when Jesus exorcises demons from a man who is possessed by a multitude of demons; this is what the man says when Jesus asks the name of the demon: τί ὄνομά σοι; You can read more at Wikipedia: Legion (demons). This Biblical story is what gives rise to the use of "legion" as an adjective in modern English. From Greek ὄνομά we get English onomatopoeia.

Here is a medieval illustration of Jesus exorcising the demon Legion:

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