Ῥεχθὲν δέ τε ______ ἔγνω.
______ οἰκίαι μὴ δέχου.
______ καὶ παῖδες ἀληθεῖς.
Ξυρεῖν ἐπιχειρεῖν ______.
Μικρὸν ______ μέγα ἀγαθόν.
Ῥεχθὲν δέ τε ______ ἔγνω.
______ οἰκίαι μὴ δέχου.
______ καὶ παῖδες ἀληθεῖς.
Ξυρεῖν ἐπιχειρεῖν ______.
Μικρὸν ______ μέγα ἀγαθόν.
Click here to subscribe/unsubscribe to the email list.
reveal/hide answer
Ῥεχθὲν δέ τε νήπιος ἔγνω.______ οἰκίαι μὴ δέχου.
reveal/hide answer
Χελιδόνα οἰκίαι μὴ δέχου.______ καὶ παῖδες ἀληθεῖς.
reveal/hide answer
Οἶνος καὶ παῖδες ἀληθεῖς.Ξυρεῖν ἐπιχειρεῖν ______.
reveal/hide answer
Ξυρεῖν ἐπιχειρεῖν λέοντα.Μικρὸν ______ μέγα ἀγαθόν.
reveal/hide answer
Μικρὸν κακὸν μέγα ἀγαθόν.Ῥεχθὲν δέ τε νήπιος ἔγνω.
When something is done, even a fool knows it.
This saying appears already in Homer's Iliad: Menelaus is protecting Patroclus's fallen body, and he uses these words to rebuke the Trojan Euphorbus, but Euphorbus does not retreat, and Menelaus kills him. Plato also includes this saying in the Symposium, labeling it a παροιμία, a proverb. The idea is that a wise man can anticipate trouble in advance and avoid it, but the fool rushes in, recognizing the danger only after it has befallen him, Euphorbus being one such fool.
Χελιδόνα οἰκίαι μὴ δέχου.
Do not receive a swallow in your house.
The saying is attributed to Pythagoras, who was not alone in regarding the swallow as a bird of ill omen, but the swallow could also be a good omen. For an overview of the swallow as a bird who could be regarded as both an ill omen and a good omen, see J. G. Frazer: Swallows in the House.
Οἶνος καὶ παῖδες ἀληθεῖς.
Wine and children (are) truthful.
You can find this saying in Plato's Symposium. Compare a similar saying that you saw in an earlier blog post: Ἐν οἴνῳ ἀλήθεια. You can see Greek παῖδες in English pedagogy.
Ξυρεῖν ἐπιχειρεῖν λέοντα.
To attempt to shave a lion.
This proverbial saying appears in Plato's Republic, referring to a very hazardous and risky venture: anybody who has had to shave their pet cat's matted fur knows all about this! The verb "to attempt," ἐπιχειρεῖν, has χειρ, "hand" as its root, so it literally means to put your hand to something, ἐπι-χειρ-εῖν. You will be lucky to get that hand back intact if you really are shaving a lion! You can find additional citations and parallels in Erasmus.
Μικρὸν κακὸν μέγα ἀγαθόν.
A small evil (is) a great good.
Paradoxical but true; compare the English saying about choosing "the lesser of two evils." This saying is also a good way to remember the unexpected ending of the adjective μέγα: just like μικρόν, κακόν and ἀγαθόν, μέγα is neuter singular. From Greek μικρόν we get all the micro- words, of which there are many in English; you can use OneLook to see them all.
reveal/hide answer
Ῥεχθὲν δέ τε νήπιος ἔγνω.______ οἰκίαι μὴ δέχου.
reveal/hide answer
Χελιδόνα οἰκίαι μὴ δέχου.______ καὶ παῖδες ἀληθεῖς.
reveal/hide answer
Οἶνος καὶ παῖδες ἀληθεῖς.Ξυρεῖν ἐπιχειρεῖν ______.
reveal/hide answer
Ξυρεῖν ἐπιχειρεῖν λέοντα.Μικρὸν ______ μέγα ἀγαθόν.
reveal/hide answer
Μικρὸν κακὸν μέγα ἀγαθόν.
And to finish up, here's a random LOLCat too:
Click here to subscribe/unsubscribe to the email list.
No comments:
Post a Comment