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χρῇ, wishes: 3rd pers. pres. ind. of “χράω”, with contraction into “” instead of “”, as in “διψῆν, ζῆν, κνῆν, πεινῆν, σμῆν, χρῆν” (to give an oracle), “χρῆσθαι, ψῆν”. Schol., “εἰ χρῄζει καὶ θέλει”. If the nom. ζῶσα is sound, as it seems to be, in the next v., then χρῇ is certain: for “εἰ χρῄζει” has no probability. Only one other passage, however, gives unambiguous support to the forms “χρῇς, χρῇ”,—viz. Aristoph. Ach. 778, (the Megarian) “οὐ χρῆσθα; σιγῇς, κάκιστ᾽ ἀπολουμένα”; ‘will you not make a sound?' (“οὐ θέλεις”, sc.φωνεῖν”;). There, indeed, Blaydes writes “οὐ χρή τυ

σιγῆν”; but the MSS. are supported by the testimony of Suidas and Hesychius to “χρῇς” as=“χρῄζεις”. In the other four places where these forms are usu. read, they are not indispensable, “χρή” being possible; but in two, at least, they are much better than “χρή”, viz. El. 606κήρυσσέ μ᾽ εἰς ἅπαντας, εἴτε χρῇς κακήν, εἴτε στόμαργον, κ.τ.λ.”: and Ai. 1373σοὶ δὲ δρᾶν ἔξεσθ᾽ χρῇς”. In the other two, “χρή” might well stand: Eur. fr. 910 “πρὸς ταῦθ᾽ τι χρῇ καὶ παλαμάσθω καὶ πᾶν ἐπ᾽ ἐμοὶ τεκταινέσθω”: Cratinus “Νόμοι” fr. 2 “νῦν γὰρ δή σοι πάρα μὲν θεσμοὶ τῶν ἡμετέρων, πάρα δ᾽ ἄλλ᾽ τι χρῇς”. Except in Ach. 778, the MSS. everywhere give “χρή”: and the variants in the next v. (see cr. n.) show that “χρῇ” was strange to the copyists, though known to the Scholiast.


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hide References (3 total)
  • Commentary references from this page (3):
    • Aristophanes, Acharnians, 778
    • Sophocles, Ajax, 1373
    • Sophocles, Electra, 606
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