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[318] αἱ δὲπόδεσσιν. If we follow the interpretation of Eustath. “ἔστι δὲ τὸ μὲν τροχάζειν συντόνου κινήσεως ἑτεροίας δὲ πλίσσεσθαι πόδεσσι”, we may translate, ‘And well they trotted, and well they walked.’ So the Schol. on Il.16. 375 interprets “πλίσσοντο” by “ἐβημάτιζον” or “βάδην ᾔεσαν”. This meaning of πλίσσεσθαι (connected with “πλέκειν”), is said to come from the action of crossing the feet in walking. But this scarcely gives a true picture; and it is not necessary to seek for a different sort of pace in “τρώχων” and “πλίσσοντο”. It is more likely that the latter verb is a sort of epexegesis of the former; ‘they sped on with prancing feet.’ The antithesis in the interpretation of Eustath. would rather require “ἄλλοτε μὲν, ἄλλοτε δέ”.

τρωχᾶν is related to “τρέχειν” as “νωμᾶν” and “στρωφᾶν” to “νέμειν” and “στρέφειν”.

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