Daily Greek Vocabulary Challenge: Oct. 1

Here are today's vocabulary words; it's Group 87. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion:

ὁράω ~ ὄψομαι ~ εἶδον: see, look at

κινέω ~ κινήσω ~ ἐκίνησα: set in motion, move 

καθεύδω ~ καθευδήσω ~ ἐκαθεύδησα: sleep 

διδάσκω ~ διδάξω~ ἐδίδαξα: teach, instruct 

πλέω ~ πλεύσομαι~ ἔπλευσα: sail, swim, float 

These are the proverbs (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Μὴ κίνει Καμάριναν.

Ἐξ ἑνὸς πάνθ᾽ ὁρᾷν.

Ἅλας ἄγων καθεύδεις.

Ἰχθὺν νήχεσθαι διδάσκεις.

Σίδηρον πλεῖν διδάσκεις. 

And now, some commentary:

Μὴ κίνει Καμάριναν.

Don't move Kamarina.

This refers to a marshy swamp outside the city of Kamarina in Sicily. Because the air of the swamp was unhealthy, the people wanted to drain the swamp, but the Delphic oracle told them: Μὴ κίνει Καμάριναν. The people ignored the oracle, drained the swamp, and thus exposed their city to attack by their enemies. The saying of the oracle came to be used like a proverb, and as such it is the subject of a poem in the Greek Anthology.

Ἐξ ἑνὸς πάνθ᾽ ὁρᾷν.

To see all things from the one.

The saying appears in the sayings collected by Apostolius. The word πάντα, "all (things)," drops its final vowel before the following vowel, and the rough breathing causes the aspiration: πάνθ᾽ ὁρᾶν. Compare the opposite idea expressed in the U.S. motto: E pluribus unum, "Out of the many, one."

Ἅλας ἄγων καθεύδεις.

You are sleeping while carrying salt.

As Erasmus explains, the proverb refers to someone who is behaving carelessly while carrying out a difficult task, as salt was a valuable commodity that could be easily damaged by being spilled, coming into contact with water, etc. Specifically, Zenobius says, "A merchant, having filled his vessel with salt, fell asleep. It happened that the water in the bilge increased and dissolved the salt. Hence the proverb." The Greek word for salt, ἅλς, is cognate with English "salt," Latin sal, etc. 

Ἰχθὺν νήχεσθαι διδάσκεις.

You're teaching a fish to swim.

This is a proverbial fool's errand: fish know how to swim already; you don't have to teach them. Compare a similar saying: Ἀετὸν ἵπτασθαι διδάσκεις, "You're teaching an eagle to fly." From the root in the verb διδάσκω, we get English words like didactic, autodidact, etc.

Σίδηρον πλεῖν διδάσκεις.

You're teaching iron to float.

This is another kind of fool's errand, the opposite of the previous proverb: iron is never going to float. At least, that's what the Greeks thought about iron. Later on, of course, iron did learn to float! You can read about the history of iron-hulled sailing ships at Wikipedia.

The ruins of Kamarina

And here's a random proverb too:

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Daily Greek Vocabulary Challenge: Sept. 30

Here are today's vocabulary words; it's Group 86. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion:

λύπη ~ λύπης (noun f.): pain, grief 

γαῖα ~ γαίας (noun f.): earth, land 

βουλή ~ βουλῆς (noun f.): counsel, advice 

γαστήρ ~ γαστρός (noun f.): stomach, belly 

γλῶσσα ~ γλώσσης (noun f.): tongue 

These are the proverbs (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Λῦπαι νόσους τίκτουσιν.

Τὸ τεχνίον πᾶσα γαῖα τρέφει.

Βουλὴ πονηρὰ χρηστὸν οὐκ ἔχει τέλος.

Κακὸν ἀναγκαῖον τὸ πείθεσθαι γαστρί.

Ἡ γλῶσσα πολλοὺς εἰς ὄλεθρον ἤγαγεν.

And now, some commentary:

Λῦπαι γὰρ ἀνθρώποισι τίκτουσιν νόσους. 

Grieving leads to people getting sick.

Literally: griefs (plural) give birth to sicknesses (plural) for people. The words are from a fragment of Euripides, and the saying also appears in the monostichs (one-liners) of Menander; here is the iambic meter marked:

Λῦπαι | γὰρ ἀν||θρώποι|σι τίκ||τουσιν | νόσους. 

Τὸ τεχνίον πᾶσα γαῖα τρέφει.

Everywhere in the world fosters art.

Suetonius says that the Emperor Nero quoted this saying when boasting that he would thrive anywhere in the world because he was a talented musician, even if he were to be driven from Rome as astrologers had predicted. The word τεχνίον is a diminutive of the more commonly used word τέχνη, meaning art, skill, craft; the Greek root of these words gives us all the tech- English words like technology.

Βουλὴ πονηρὰ χρηστὸν οὐκ ἔχει τέλος.

A wicked plan does not lead to a useful outcome.

This is another one of the iambic monostichs of Menander:

Βουλὴ | πονη||ρὰ χρη|στὸν οὐκ || ἔχει τέλος.

The root of the noun βουλή is also found in the verb βούλομαι.

Κακὸν ἀναγκαῖον τὸ πείθεσθαι γαστρί.

To obey the stomach is a cruel constraint.

Here the stomach stands for life's most basic physical needs, like having to eat in order to stay alive. Note that the infinitive is a neuter noun; hence the neuter article, τό. The noun ἀναγκαῖον means a prison, a place to which you are confined or constrained by necessity, ἀνάγκη. From the Greek root in γαστήρ we get all the gastr- words in English like gastronomy and gastritis.

Ἡ γλῶσσα πολλοὺς εἰς ὄλεθρον ἤγαγεν.

The tongue has led many people to their destruction.

This is yet another one of Menander's monostichs:

Ἡ γλῶσ|σα πολ||λοὺς εἰς | ὄλεθ||ρον ἤ|γαγεν.

Smyth's Greek grammar cites this as an example of what he calls an empiric aorist, which is essentially the same as a gnomic aorist, i.e. aorists used to express a general experience or accepted fact. Such aorists are often rendered in English with a present or perfect verb, rather than the usual past tense translation.

Nero in "I, Claudius"

And here's a random proverb too:

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Week 25: Proverb and Vocabulary Review

Review Padlet. Here's the Proverb Padlet that contains the contents of the week's posts... and it displays at random each time you load the Padlet! That way you can use it as a randomizing-reviewer for the week. Here's a screenshot of this week's Padlet: Greek Proverbs Week 25.

And remember: you can put a Padlet on your phone so you can pop up a proverb at random whenever. There's a free Padlet app you can download if you want, but you don't need the app; you can just save the URL to your phone home screen (that's what I do). 

I hope you will enjoy this review option; random is a great way to review!

Audio. I've now added audio to all the posts for the past week; see the playlist below, and the audio is also embedded in each post:

• Group #81
• Group #82
• Group #83
• Group #84
• Group #85

Below is a playlist with all the audio, but that playlist won't appear in the email; to access the playlist from the email, use this link: Proverbs Audio.

Laura Gibbs · Greek Vocabulary with Proverbs

Alphabetical Index. Finally, here is the list of all of this week's proverbs, alphabetized and linked back to the blog post so that you can access the English translation and commentary as needed. I've also updated the complete list of proverbs (over 400 now!).

• Ἀρχαϊκὰ φρονεῖς.
  
• Βλέποντα ὀξύτερον τοῦ Λυγκέως.
  
• Γάλα ὀρνίθων.
  
• Γηράσκω δ' ἀεὶ πολλὰ διδασκόμενος.
  
• Δάτος ἀγαθῶν.
  
• Ἔγνω δὲ θὴρ θῆρα.
  
• Ἐμπεδοκλέους ἔχθρα.
  
• Ἐξ ἑνὸς πηλοῦ.
  
• Ἡ δ᾽ ὁμιλία πάντων βροτοῖσι γίγνεται διδάσκαλος.
  
• Ἡ δὲ μωρία μάλιστ' ἀδελφὴ τῆς πονηρίας ἔφυ.
  
• Ἰλιὰς κακῶν.
  
• Κοσκίνῳ ὕδωρ φέρει.
  
• Λοκρικὸς βοῦς.
  
• Μέγιστον ὀργῆς ἐστι φάρμακον λόγος.
  
• Μῦς δακὼν παῖδ᾿ ἀπέφυγε.
  
• Ὁ θεὸς τῇ σοφίᾳ ἐθεμελίωσεν τὴν γῆν.
  
• Οἱ φῶρες τὴν βοήν.
  
• Ὄνος ἄγει μυστήρια.
  
• Οὐδὲν ἱερόν.
  
• Προμέρου κύνες.
  
• Σοφώτατον χρόνος, ἀνευρίσκει γὰρ πάντα.
  
• Τὰ μικρὰ κέρδη ζημίας μεγάλας φέρει.
  
• Τί γὰρ κοινὸν λύρᾳ καὶ ὄνῳ;
  
• Τίμα τὸ γῆρας, οὐ γὰρ ἔρχεται μόνον.
  
• Ὦτα ἔχοντες οὐκ ἀκούετε;
  

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Daily Greek Vocabulary Challenge: Sept. 27

Here are today's vocabulary words; it's Group 85, and they are all common nouns, i.e. they can be gendered as feminine or masculine based on the context. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion:

ὄρνις ~ ὄρνιθος (noun c.): bird

βοῦς ~ βοός (noun c.): ox, cow

κύων ~ κυνός (noun c.): dog

παῖς ~ παιδός (noun c.): child (boy or girl)

θεός ~ θεοῦ (noun c.): god, goddess

These are the proverbs (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Γάλα ὀρνίθων.

Λοκρικὸς βοῦς.

Προμέρου κύνες.

Μῦς δακὼν παῖδ᾿ ἀπέφυγε.

Ὁ θεὸς τῇ σοφίᾳ ἐθεμελίωσεν τὴν γῆν.

Laura Gibbs · Greek Proverbs: 085

And now, some commentary:

 

Γάλα ὀρνίθων.

The milk of birds.

This is something that only a fool would seek: you can't get milk from a bird. Compare donkey's wool in a proverb you saw in an earlier blog post: Ὄνου πόκους ζητεῖς. From Greek ὄρνις we get ornithology, and from γάλα we get galaxy, as in the Milky Way Galaxy.

Λοκρικὸς βοῦς.

A Locrian bull.

This refers to a cheap imitation. As Erasmus explains, when the people of Locria (located in central Greece) sacrificed cattle to the gods, they didn't sacrifice actual cattle; they carved tiny cattle out of wood and sacrificed the wooden figurines instead. Greek βοῦς can mean a bull or cow (common gender), but it is marked here as masculine: Λοκρικὸς. 

Προμέρου κύνες.

The dogs of Promerus.

This saying alludes to the legendary death of the playwright Euripdes: as Erasmus explains, Euripides was supposedly torn to pieces by the dogs of Promerus, a royal official who had conceived an enormous hatred for him. Promerus ordered the dogs to attack Euripides, and they did so. Aulus Gellius also reports that Euripides was killed by dogs, although he does not mention the name Promerus.

Μῦς δακὼν παῖδ᾿ ἀπέφυγε.

A mouse, having bit a child, ran away.

A child is small, but a mouse is even smaller, so the saying is used when someone, small though he may be, attacks an enemy greater than himself and gets away with it. The accusative form is παῖδα, but the final vowel is elided before the following vowel: παῖδ' ἀπέφυγε. From the root of Greek παῖς (παῖδ-), we get English words like pedagogy and pediatric.

Ὁ θεὸς τῇ σοφίᾳ ἐθεμελίωσεν τὴν γῆν.

God established the earth by means of wisdom.

The words come from the Biblical Book of Proverbs. The full verse is ὁ θεὸς τῇ σοφίᾳ ἐθεμελίωσεν τὴν γῆν, ἡτοίμασεν δὲ οὐρανοὺς ἐν φρονήσει, "... and he arranged the heavens with his thinking." The noun θεὸς is common gender, but here it is gendered masculine, ὁ θεὸς. In some traditions, Sophia (ἡ σοφία) is a feminine divine principle, partnered with the masculine god; find out more at Wikipedia: Sophia.

bust of Euripides

And here's a random proverb too:

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Daily Greek Vocabulary Challenge: Sept. 26

Here are today's vocabulary words; it's Group 84. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion:

ἐν ~ ἑνός (adj. neut.): one, single

κοινόν ~ κοινοῦ (adj. neut.): common, shared 

ὀξύ ~ ὀξέος (adj. neut.): sharp, keen 

πολύ ~ πολλοῦ (adj. neut.): much, many 

μικρόν ~ μικροῦ (adj. neut.): small, little 

These are the proverbs (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Ἐξ ἑνὸς πηλοῦ.

Τί γὰρ κοινὸν λύρᾳ καὶ ὄνῳ;

Βλέποντα ὀξύτερον τοῦ Λυγκέως.

Γηράσκω δ' ἀεὶ πολλὰ διδασκόμενος.

Τὰ μικρὰ κέρδη ζημίας μεγάλας φέρει.

Laura Gibbs · Greek Proverbs: 084

And now, some commentary:

Ἐξ ἑνὸς πηλοῦ.

From one clay.

This saying is used to refer to two people who are similar because they were made "from one clay," i.e. like pots made from the same clay. In one Greek account of the creation, Prometheus shaped human beings from clay (Wikipedia). The same idea also appears in the Biblical Book of Wisdom — ἐκ τοῦ αὐτοῦ πηλοῦ, "from the same clay" —as God also was supposed to have made human beings from the clay of the earth.

Τί γὰρ κοινὸν λύρᾳ καὶ ὄνῳ;

What does a donkey have in common with a lyre?

This rhetorical question is related to other sayings that make fun of a donkey either listening to the music of the lyre or attempting to play the lyre himself. Here's one from a previous blog post: Ὄνος λύρας ἀκούων κινεῖ τὰ ὦτα. From the root in Greek κοινὸν we get the English word Koine, referring to "common" Greek (ἡ κοινὴ διάλεκτος, the "common" dialect; compare the phrase "vulgar" Latin) that evolved from classical Greek; you can find out more at Wikipedia: Koine.

Βλέποντα ὀξύτερον τοῦ Λυγκέως.

Seeing more sharply than Lynceus.

The phrase is used in Aristophanes' Plutus. Lynceus was one of the Argonauts, famous for his sharp vision which allowed him to see in the dark and also to see through walls (compare Superman's X-ray vision). Find out more at Wikipedia: Lynceus of Messene. Lynceus's name means "lynx-like," and lynxes do have acute eyesight; to find out more, see Wikipedia: Lynx. The word ὀξύτερον is the comparative form of ὀξύ, sharp, which gives us oxy- words in English, including oxygen. As often, the neuter adjective, ὀξύτερον, is being used as an adverb. 

Γηράσκω δ' ἀεὶ πολλὰ διδασκόμενος.

I grow old, ever learning many things.

Plutarch attributes the words to Solon, one of the Seven Sages of Greece; you can find out more at Wikipedia: Solon. From the root in Greek πολλὰ (πολύ), we get the poly- words in English like polygamy and polygon.

Τὰ μικρὰ κέρδη ζημίας μεγάλας φέρει.

Small profits can bring great losses.

This is one of the monostichs (one-liners) of Menander. This paradox can apply both to buyers and sellers. Someone might save a little money by something cheap, only to find out it was not a bargain after all. Likewise, merchants might engage in some business that brings them a little profit only to find out later that the business had unexpected costs. Compare this related saying: κερδός πονηρὸν ζημίαν αεὶ φέρει, "profit ill-gained always brings loss."

Prometheus molds a human from clay

And here's a random proverb too:

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Daily Greek Vocabulary Challenge: Sept. 25

Here are today's vocabulary words; it's Group 83. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion:

φρονέω ~ φρονήσω ~ ἐφρόνησα: understand, consider

γιγνώσκω ~ γνώσομαι ~ ἔγνων: know

ἄγω ~ ἄξω ~ ἤγαγον: lead, bring

φέρω ~ οἴσω  ~ ἤνεγκον: carry, bring

ἀκούω ~ ἀκούσομαι ~ ἤκουσα: listen, hear

These are the proverbs (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Ἀρχαϊκὰ φρονεῖς.

Ἔγνω δὲ θὴρ θῆρα.

Ὄνος ἄγει μυστήρια.

Κοσκίνῳ ὕδωρ φέρει.

Ὦτα ἔχοντες οὐκ ἀκούετε;

Laura Gibbs · Greek Proverbs: 083

And now, some commentary:

Ἀρχαϊκὰ φρονεῖς.

You are thinking old things.

In other words, you have old-fashioned ideas. This saying appears in the LSJ entry for the verb φρονέω, citing Aristophanes' The Clouds in which the old farmer Strepsiades is mocking his son for being old-fashioned by invoking the gods.

Ἔγνω δὲ θὴρ θῆρα.

One beast recognized another.

This is a proverb cited by Aristotle in his Rhetoric, referring to how two wicked persons ally themselves to one another, and this saying is cited in the LSJ dictionary entry for θήρ. Aristotle quotes the saying using the aorist, ἔγνω, while Erasmus quotes a version using the perfect, ἔγνωκε: "One beast knows another;" compare the use of οἶδα, a perfect verb with present meaning.

Ὄνος ἄγει μυστήρια.

A donkey carries the holy things.

This joking proverb becomes a fable in Aesop: when the people along the way bow down to worship the religious procession, the donkey thinks they are worshiping him... until the donkey-driver corrects him with the whip. 

Κοσκίνῳ ὕδωρ φέρει.

He's carrying water in a sieve.

This is a proverbial fool's errand, since of course the water comes streaming out of the sieve before the fool reaches his destination. The saying appears in Plato's Gorgias and also in the Republic.

Ὦτα ἔχοντες οὐκ ἀκούετε;

Having ears, do you not hear?

The words come from the Gospel of Mark when Jesus is rebuking his disciples for their lack of understanding. He also invokes the eyes and sight: ὀφθαλμοὺς ἔχοντες οὐ βλέπετε; καὶ ὦτα ἔχοντες οὐκ ἀκούετε; "Having eyes, do you not see?"

read the Aesop's fable here

And here's a random proverb too:

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Daily Greek Vocabulary Challenge: Sept. 24

Here are today's vocabulary words; it's Group 82. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion:

βοή ~ βοῆς (noun f.): shout, outcry 

ἔχθρα ~ ἔχθρας (noun f.): hatred, enmity 

ὀργή ~ ὀργῆς  (noun f.): anger 

ἀδελφή ~ ἀδελφῆς  (noun f.): sister 

ὁμιλία ~ ὁμιλίας (noun f.): company, association 

These are the proverbs (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Οἱ φῶρες τὴν βοήν.

Ἐμπεδοκλέους ἔχθρα.

Μέγιστον ὀργῆς ἐστι φάρμακον λόγος.

Ἡ δὲ μωρία μάλιστ' ἀδελφὴ τῆς πονηρίας ἔφυ.

Ἡ δ᾽ ὁμιλία πάντων βροτοῖσι γίγνεται διδάσκαλος.

Laura Gibbs · Greek Proverbs: 082

And now, some commentary:

Οἱ φῶρες τὴν βοήν.

Thieves (fear) the outcry.

As Erasmus explains, the saying can refer not just to thieves but to any guilty person who is acutely aware of their own guilt and fearful of being found out. Thanks to the use of nominative and accusative cases in the Greek, the nouns can stand on their own with the verb being implied. From the noun βοή comes the Greek contract verb βοάω.

Ἐμπεδοκλέους ἔχθρα.

The hostility of Empedocles.

This saying invokes the philosopher Empedocles to refer to someone who is prone to grudges, resentment, and outbursts of hostility.  Ancient sources report that Empedocles was quick to anger, hating not just his enemies but his erstwhile friends too. You can read more about Empedocles at Wikipedia. Related to the noun ἔχθρα is the adjective ἐχθρός, meaning hostile, hated, etc., and the adjective is often used substantively to mean "an enemy."

Μέγιστον ὀργῆς ἐστι φάρμακον λόγος.

The greatest remedy for anger is speech.

This is another one of the monostichs (one-liners) of Menander; here is the iambic meter marked:

Μέγισ|τον ὀρ||γῆς ἐσ|τι φάρ||μακον | λόγος.

The word λόγος means speech, but it also has the connotations of reason; so, not just any speech, but reasonable speech, rational words is what can bring a person back from irrational anger. Compare a different remedy from this saying in an earlier blog post: Φάρμακον ὀργῆς ὁ χρόνος.

Ἡ δὲ μωρία μάλιστ' ἀδελφὴ τῆς πονηρίας ἔφυ.

Stupidity is really the sister of wickedness.

This type of proverb plays on the metaphor of family relationships; stupidity, μωρία, is the sister of wickedness because μωρία is a feminine noun in Greek, a gender distinction that is lost in any English translation. The Greek ἔφυ has the sense of being born to be something, to be something by nature, from the verb φύω. The Greek nouns ἀδελφὴ, sister, and ἀδελφός, brother, are from the word δελφύς, womb, i.e. sisters and brothers are people who come form the same womb.

Ἡ δ᾽ ὁμιλία πάντων βροτοῖσι γίγνεται διδάσκαλος.

Cooperation is the teacher of all things to mortal men.

The words are from Euripides' Andromache; Menelaus is speaking about how the Greeks learned to be soldiers as a result of having to band together to fight the Trojans. Greek ὁμιλία has a wide range of meanings, including a "crowd," which is the origin of the English word "homily," i.e. the sermon preached to the crowd who assembled for a church service. More specifically, it can also mean a crowd of people working together (hence my choice of "cooperation" in the translation), and it can also refer to the habits of a crowd, common usage, etc. You can find out more at Logeion.

fragment of Empedocles

And here's a random proverb too:

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Daily Greek Vocabulary Challenge: Sept. 23

Here are today's vocabulary words; it's Group 81. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion:

ἱερόν ~ ἱεροῦ (adj. neut.): holy, sacred 

κακόν ~ κακοῦ (adj. neut.): bad, evil (thing) 

ἀγαθόν ~ ἀγαθοῦ (adj. neut.): good 

μόνον ~ μόνου (adj. neut.): alone, only 

σοφώτατον ~ σοφωτάτου (adj. neut.): wisest, most skilled 

These are the proverbs (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Οὐδὲν ἱερόν.

Ἰλιὰς κακῶν.

Δάτος ἀγαθῶν.

Τίμα τὸ γῆρας, οὐ γὰρ ἔρχεται μόνον.

Σοφώτατον χρόνος, ἀνευρίσκει γὰρ πάντα.

Laura Gibbs · Greek Proverbs: 081

And now, some commentary:

Οὐδὲν ἱερόν.

Nothing sacred.

The phrase appears in one of Theocritus's idylls, and it also appears in the traditional collections of Greek proverbs. As Erasmus explains, it refers to things that are of little or no value. Compare the English saying, "no big deal." Erasmus explains that Heracles supposedly used these words to express contempt for an image of Adonis that he saw in a temple, a story that Francis Bacon repeats: "Hercules, when he saw the image of Adonis, Venus’s minion, in a temple, said in disdain, Nil sacri es," i.e. "You are nothing sacred."

Ἰλιὰς κακῶν.

An Iliad of evils.

As Erasmus explains, this refers to a series of disasters and calamities, alluding to the disasters and calamities that befell Troy in their war with the Greeks as narrated in Homer's Iliad. The word κακῶν is the neuter adjective being used substantively: An Iliad of evil (things). The word Ἰλιὰς (genitive Ῑ̓λῐᾰ́δος, hence English Iliad) is formed from Ἴλιον, Ilium, i.e. Troy. The Homeric evidence suggests that this name began with a digamma: *Ϝίλιον. You can find out more about the Greek digamma at Wikipedia.

Δάτος ἀγαθῶν.

A Datus of good things.

Datus, a city in Macedonia, was famed for its good fortune (specifically, for its gold), hence this proverb. The word ἀγαθῶν is the neuter adjective being used substantively: A Datus of good (things). The spelling Δάθος is also found for the city's name. It is uncertain where this ancient city was located; some speculate that it was what is now the seaport of Kavala, a.k.a. Νεάπολις, "New-City."

Τίμα τὸ γῆρας, οὐ γὰρ ἔρχεται μόνον.

Revere old age, for it does not come alone.

The saying appears in Menander, and it also appears in medieval florilegia, such as the Corpus Parisinum. Perhaps not surprisingly, this saying is found in another form:  Φοβοῦ τὸ γῆρας· οὐ γὰρ ἔρχεται μόνον, "Fear old age, for it does not come alone," and similarly: Δεινόν το γήρας, ου γαρ έρχεται μόνον, "A terrible thing is old age, for it does not come alone."

Σοφώτατον χρόνος, ἀνευρίσκει γὰρ πάντα.

Time is the wisest, for it finds out all things.

This saying is attributed to the philosopher Thales by Diogenes Laertius as follows:

πρεσβύτατον τῶν ὄντων θεός: ἀγένητον γάρ.

   The oldest of all things that are is God, for he is un-created. 

κάλλιστον κόσμος: ποίημα γὰρ θεοῦ.

   The most beautiful is the universe, for it is the work of God.

μέγιστον τόπος: ἅπαντα γὰρ χωρεῖ.

   The greatest is space, for it holds everything.

τάχιστον νοῦς: διὰ παντὸς γὰρ τρέχει.

   The swiftest is the mind, for it runs through everything.

ἰσχυρότατον ἀνάγκη: κρατεῖ γὰρ πάντων.

   The strongest is necessity, for it has mastery over all.

σοφώτατον χρόνος: ἀνευρίσκει γὰρ πάντα

   The wisest is time, for it finds out all things.

You can find out more about Thales at Miletus at Wikipedia.

Thales

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Week 24: Proverb and Vocabulary Review

Review Padlet. Here's the Proverb Padlet that contains the contents of the week's posts... and it displays at random each time you load the Padlet! That way you can use it as a randomizing-reviewer for the week. Here's a screenshot of this week's Padlet: Greek Proverbs Week 24.

And remember: you can put a Padlet on your phone so you can pop up a proverb at random whenever. There's a free Padlet app you can download if you want, but you don't need the app; you can just save the URL to your phone home screen (that's what I do). 

I hope you will enjoy this review option; random is a great way to review!

Audio. I've now added audio to all the posts for the past week; see the playlist below, and the audio is also embedded in each post: #76 - #77 - #78 - #79 - #80.

Below is a playlist with all the audio, but that playlist won't appear in the email; to access the playlist from the email, use this link: Proverbs Audio.

Laura Gibbs · Greek Vocabulary with Proverbs

Alphabetical Index. Finally, here is the list of all of this week's proverbs, alphabetized and linked back to the blog post so that you can access the English translation and commentary as needed. I've also updated the complete list of proverbs (400 total so far!).

• Ἁ δὲ χεὶρ την χεῖρα νίζει.
  
• Αἱ Ἰβύκου γέρανοι.
  
• Ἀνέμους γεωργεῖν.
  
• Ἄρκτου παρούσης, ἴχνη μὴ ζήτει.
  
• Ἀρχὴ σοφίας φόβος θεοῦ.
  
• Αὐτοὶ χελώνας ἐσθίετε.
  
• Βασιλεῖ νόμος ἄγραφος.
  
• Βοῶν ὦτα ἔχετε.
  
• Γλυκὺς ὕπνος τοῦ δούλου.
  
• Διομήδειος ἀνάγκη.
  
• Ἔργα νέων, βουλαὶ δὲ μέσων, εὐχαὶ δὲ γερόντων.
  
• Ζήνωνος ἐγκρατέστερος.
  
• Θεὸς διὰ πάντα τελευτᾷ.
  
• Κάθαμμα λύειν.
  
• Κακὸς ἀνὴρ μακρόβιος.
  
• Κοινὰ πάθη πάντων.
  
• Λύκος περὶ φρέαρ χορεύει.
  
• Λύχνον ἐν μεσημβρίᾳ ἅπτειν.
  
• Μήτηρ ἁπάντων γαῖα καὶ κοινὴ τροφός.
  
• Μυὸς ὄλεθρος.
  
• Ὁ Καρπάθιος τὸν λαγών.
  
• Ὄνος ἐν πιθήκοις.
  
• Ὅπου γὰρ ἡ λεοντῆ μὴ ἐφικνεῖται προσραπτέον ἐκεῖ τὴν ἀλωπεκῆν.
  
• Οὐκ ἐκπειράσεις κύριον τὸν θεόν σου.
  
• Σιγᾶν ἄμεινον ἢ λαλεῖν ἃ μὴ πρέπει.
  

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Daily Greek Vocabulary Challenge: Sept. 20

Here are today's vocabulary words; it's Group 80. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion:

ἐν (prep.+dat.): in, at

ἡ ~ τῆς (article f.): the

ὁ ~ τοῦ (article m.): the

περί (prep.+acc.): around, upon

ὅπου (adverb): where, wherever

These are the proverbs (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Ὄνος ἐν πιθήκοις.

Αἱ Ἰβύκου γέρανοι.

Ὁ Καρπάθιος τὸν λαγών.

Λύκος περὶ φρέαρ χορεύει.

Ὅπου γὰρ ἡ λεοντῆ μὴ ἐφικνεῖται προσραπτέον ἐκεῖ τὴν ἀλωπεκῆν.

Laura Gibbs · Greek Proverbs: 080

And now, some commentary:

Ὄνος ἐν πιθήκοις.

A donkey among the monkeys.

The saying appears in a long fragment of Menander quoted by Aulus Gellius. It refers to someone, not very bright, who is being mocked and insulted by those around him, as the donkey is regularly an object of ridicule, while monkeys are proverbially rude. 

Αἱ Ἰβύκου γέρανοι.

The cranes of Ibycus.

This refers to a story about the lyric poet, Ibycus, whose murder was avenged by cranes. You can read the story in the Wikipedia article about Ibycus, which cites this proverb. The poet Schiller made this story the subject of a poem; here is an English translation. Note that the cranes, γέρανοι, are feminine (like many animal names, γέρανος is common gender). 

Ὁ Καρπάθιος τὸν λαγών.

The Carpathian (brought) the rabbit.

This is mentioned as a proverb in Aristotle's Rhetoric, and it was already known to Archilochus. The story goes that a Carpathian unwittingly imported a pair of rabbits onto the island (Κάρπαθος), and the rabbits multiplied, devastating the crops. Compare the rabbits in Australia.

Λύκος περὶ φρέαρ χορεύει.

The wolf is dancing around the well.

This saying actually made it into the LSJ Greek dictionary in the entry for the word λύκος, where they explain that it refers to someone doing something foolish, useless, etc. A wolf will not accomplish anything by dancing around a well; he might be thirsty, but he is not going to get anything to drink by dancing. Or, in another interpretation, if his prey has jumped into the well, he's not going to catch it now.

Ὅπου γὰρ ἡ λεοντῆ μὴ ἐφικνεῖται προσραπτέον ἐκεῖ τὴν ἀλωπεκῆν.

Where the lion skin cannot reach, apply there the skin of the fox.

In other words, when the lion's strength will not succeed, use the fox's cunning. Plutarch attributes the saying to the Spartan general Lysander, and the words are especially apt, because Lysander was rebuking those who said that the "descendants of Heracles" (Heracleidae) should not stoop to cunning, and the lion-skin was emblematic of Heracles. For more about Lysander, see Wikipedia (which cites this saying).

The Cranes of Ibycus

And here's a random proverb too:

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Daily Greek Vocabulary Challenge: Sept. 19

Here are today's vocabulary words; it's Group 79. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion:

λύω ~ λύσω ~ ἔλυσα: untie, release 

ἔχω ~ ἕξω ~ ἔσχον: have, hold 

τελευτάω ~ τελευτήσω ~ ἐτελεύτησα: fulfill, finish 

ἅπτω ~ ἅψω ~ ἧψα: light, kindle 

σιγάω ~ σιγήσω ~ ἐσίγησα: keep silent 

These are the proverbs (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Κάθαμμα λύειν.

Βοῶν ὦτα ἔχετε.

Θεὸς διὰ πάντα τελευτᾷ.

Λύχνον ἐν μεσημβρίᾳ ἅπτειν.

Σιγᾶν ἄμεινον ἢ λαλεῖν ἃ μὴ πρέπει.

Laura Gibbs · Greek Proverbs: 079

And now, some commentary:

Κάθαμμα λύειν.

To loosen the knot.

As Erasmus explains, this is a reference to the legend of the Gordian knot, which you can read about also at Wikipedia. Alexander the Great famously cut the knot with his sword rather than figuring out how to untie it (see below). Compare this saying from an earlier blog post (in fact, the very first Greek proverb post at this blog!): Γόρδιος δεσμός.

Βοῶν ὦτα ἔχετε.

You have the ears of oxen.

The ox was proverbially slow-witted, so to have the "oxen ears" meant that someone did not understand what was being said. This proverb was used as a pun to make fun of Boeotians since "βοῶν ὦτα" sounds like Βοιωτοί, Boeotians. (The name Boeotia does come from "ox" βοῦς, but it has nothing to do with ears.)

This ancient joke appears in the ancient commentary on Horace's Epistles, "Boetians were considered to be slow-witted, as if βοῶν ὦτα ἔχοντες."

Θεὸς διὰ πάντα τελευτᾷ.

God brings all things to completion.

The words come from Homer's Iliad, when Agamemnon is basically blaming Zeus for his quarrel with Achilles. The word διὰ is not a preposition here; instead, it is functioning as an adverb; later, these adverbs attached themselves to the verbs as prefixes (δια-τελευτάω), but they were more free-floating in Homer. This is called tmesis, "cutting" of the verb; you can read more at Wikipedia: Tmesis. The root of the verb is τέλος, meaning the end or outcome, and you can see that Greek root in English teleology.

Λύχνον ἐν μεσημβρίᾳ ἅπτειν.

To light the lamp at midday.

This is a proverbially foolish and/or wasteful thing to do; compare the English saying "to burn daylight." You don't need a lamp when the sun is shining! There is an Aesop's fable based on this saying; you can read more about that fable here: The Lamp in Daylight.

Σιγᾶν ἄμεινον ἢ λαλεῖν ἃ μὴ πρέπει.

To be silent is better than to say things that are not appropriate.

The Greek infinitive, σιγᾶν, is a neuter noun, hence the neuter adjective, ἄμεινον (the masculine form is ἀμείνων). This is another one of Menander's monostichs; here is the iambic meter marked:

Σιγᾶν ἄμει|νον ἢ λαλεῖν | ἃ μὴ πρέπει.

Alexander cuts the knot

And here's a random proverb too:

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Daily Greek Vocabulary Challenge: Sept. 18

Here are today's vocabulary words; it's Group 78. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion:

ἀνάγκη ~ ἀνάγκης (noun f.): necessity

ἀρχή ~ ἀρχῆς (noun f.): beginning

χείρ ~ χειρὸς (noun f.): hand

ἄρκτος ~ ἄρκτου (noun f.): bear (animal)

γαῖα ~ γαίας (noun f.): earth, land

These are the proverbs (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Διομήδειος ἀνάγκη.

Ἀρχὴ σοφίας φόβος θεοῦ.

Ἁ δὲ χεὶρ την χεῖρα νίζει.

Ἄρκτου παρούσης, ἴχνη μὴ ζήτει.

Μήτηρ ἁπάντων γαῖα καὶ κοινὴ τροφός.

Laura Gibbs · Greek Proverbs: 078

And now, some commentary:

Διομήδειος ἀνάγκη.

A Diomedian necessity.

This proverb is used for when people do things out of necessity, under compulsion as opposed to acting of their own free will. According to one interpretation, Diomedes of Thrace compelled his guests to sleep with his daughters who were, so the story goes, very unattractive. But some say instead that the saying refers to Diomedes, the son of Tydeus; according to fragments from the so-called Little Iliad,  Odysseus attempted to kill Diomedes on their night raid to steal the Palladium so that he could get all the glory for himself but Diomedes thwarted his plan and then bound Odysseus, compelling him to walk back to the Greek camp by hitting him with the flat of his sword. More details at Wikipedia: Diomedes and the Palladium.

Ἀρχὴ σοφίας φόβος θεοῦ.

The beginning of wisdom is the fear of God.

The saying comes from the Biblical Book of Proverbs. The Greek word ἀρχὴ has a wide range of meaning: it can mean first in terms of time (as in English "archaic") and it can also refer to first in status, hence authority, command, etc. (as in English words like archangel and other arch- words).

Ἁ δὲ χεὶρ την χεῖρα νίζει.

The hand washes the hand.

Compare the English saying, "One hand washes the other." The saying appears in a fragment of the comic writer Epicharmus. The complete verse line explains the meaning of the saying: Ἡ δὲ χεὶρ τὴν χεῖρα κνίζει, δός τι καὶ λάβοις τι, "give something and you'll get something." Another version of the saying in Greek cited by Erasmus is Χεὶρ χεῖρα νίπτει, δάκτυλός τε δάκτυλον, "Hand washes hand, and finger (washes) finger." From the Greek word χείρ we get the English word "chiropractor."

Ἄρκτου παρούσης, ἴχνη μὴ ζήτει.

The bear's right here; don't look for the tracks.

This is one of the fragments of the lyric poet Bacchylides.The fragment is preserved in the proverb collection of Zenobius; this bilingual Loeb edition has the rest of the fragments of Bacchylides if you are curious. The phrase ἅρκτου παρούσης is a genitive absolute, and you can see from the participle παρούσης that ἄρκτος is a feminine noun.

Μήτηρ ἁπάντων γαῖα καὶ κοινὴ τροφός.

Earth is the mother of all and (our) common nurturer.

This is another of the iambic monostichs of Menander; here's the meter marked:

Μήτηρ ἁπάν|των γαῖ-α καὶ | κοινὴ τροφός.
The word γαῖα is also the name of the Earth Goddess, Gaia: Wikipedia. The root gives us all the geo- words in English, like geology and geography, etc.

Diomedes and Odysseus stealing the Palladium

And here's a random proverb too:

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Daily Greek Vocabulary Challenge: Sept. 17

Here are today's vocabulary words; it's Group 77. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion:

ὄλεθρος ~ ὀλέθρου (noun m.): death, destruction

ἄνεμος ~ ἀνέμου (noun m.): wind, gale

αὐτός ~ αὐτοῦ (adj./pron. m.): he, himself

νόμος ~ νόμου (noun m.): custom, law

κύριος ~ κυρίου (noun m.): lord, master

These are the proverbs (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Μυὸς ὄλεθρος.

Ἀνέμους γεωργεῖν.

Αὐτοὶ χελώνας ἐσθίετε.

Βασιλεῖ νόμος ἄγραφος.

Οὐκ ἐκπειράσεις κύριον τὸν θεόν σου.

Laura Gibbs · Greek Proverbs: 077

And now, some commentary:

Μυὸς ὄλεθρος.

The death of the mouse.

The mouse was proverbial for having an easy death, provided it dies of natural causes (and not in the claws of a cat or the talons of a bird). The proverbial saying is reported by Aelian in On the Nature of Animals, and the phrase also appears in the comic poet Menander. The Greek noun ὄλεθρος is related to the verb ὄλλυμι, and in Homer, the noun appears in the formulaic expression αἰπὺς ὄλεθρος, usually translated as "sheer destruction." For more about the origin and meaning of the Homeric phrase see the discussion in Simon Pulleyn's essay, A Linguistic Approach to Classics.

Ἀνέμους γεωργεῖν.

To farm the winds.

This is another proverbial fool's errand. You are supposed to farm the earth, which is literally what the word means: the γεωργός, "farmer," is someone does work ἔργον on the earth γεω-. Nothing will come of farming the winds. Of course, now in the 21st century we do have wind-farms! From the Greek word ἄνεμος we get English "anemometer" which measures the speed of the wind. And from Greek farming, we get the name George in English.

Αὐτοὶ χελώνας ἐσθίετε.

Eat the turtles yourselves!

A fuller form of the saying is Αὐτοὶ χελώνας ἐσθίεθ᾿ οἵπερ εἵλετε, "Eat the turtles yourselves, you who caught them." This is from a story about Hermes and some fishermen, as Erasmus explains: the fishermen had caught more turtles than they could eat, so when Hermes came by, they offered him some turtles to eat, but he realized their hospitality was not sincere, just convenient, so he told them to eat the turtles themselves. 

Βασιλεῖ νόμος ἄγραφος.

For the king, the law (is) not written.

In other words, the law does not apply to the king. There is a fuller form of this proverb also: Μωρῷ καὶ βασιλεῖ νόμος ἄγραφος, in which the fool, μωρός, like the king, is outside the rule of the written law. The Greek word νόμος gives us the English words with -mony as a suffix, like economy, astronomy, etc. And, yes, the plant "basil" does get its name from Greek βασιλεύς; it is βασιλικόν φυτόν, the royal plant.

Οὐκ ἐκπειράσεις κύριον τὸν θεόν σου.

You will not tempt the LORD your god.

The words come from the Gospel of Luke and the Gospel of Matthew, when Jesus rebuked the devil who tempted him during his 40 days in the desert. Both Gospel writers are quoting from the Book of Deuteronomy. The use in Greek of κύριος without a definite article is a signal that the word is being ritually substituted for the sacred name of God, the tetragrammaton; that's why I have followed the convention of printing LORD in all-caps. In this, Greek Christians (and presumably Greek Jews before them) were following the Hebrew convention of substituting "Adonai" for the tetragrammaton in their reading of the scriptures; more about Adonai. (And yes, the Greek name Adonis, Ἄδωνις, comes from the same Semitic root.)

Temptation of Christ

And here's a random proverb too:

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