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στέρνον , τό,
A.breast, chest, in Hom. both in sg. and pl., always of males (στῆθος being used of both sexes), “βάλε δουρὶ ς. ὑπὲρ μαζοῖο” Il.4.528, cf. 2.479, etc.; “κρήδεμνον ὑπὸ στέρνοιο τάνυσσαι” Od.5.346, cf. Pi. N.10.68, X.An.1.8.26: pl., “εὐρύτερος δ᾽ ὤμοισιν ἰδὲ στέρνοισιν” Il.3.194; “ἐν δέ τέ οἱ κραδίη . . στέρνοισι πατάσσει” 13.282; “ς. λαχνάεντα” Pi.P.1.19; so in X., Cyr.1.2.13; παίσας εἰς τὰ ς . . . παῖδα ib.4.6.4; of horses, Il.23.365 (sg. in 508); of sheep, Od.9.443; in Trag. also of women, in sg., E.Hec.563; pl., μαστούς τ᾽ ἔδειξε στέρνα θ᾽ ib.560; στέρνων πλαγαί beating of the breast, S.El.90 (anap.); “ἐν στέρνοισι πεσοῦνται δοῦποι” Id.Aj.633 (lyr.); “στέρν᾽ ἄρασσε” A.Pers.1054.
2. Poet., esp. Trag., also, the breast as the seat of the affections, heart, “ἀνδρῶν γὰρ ἐσθλῶν ς. οὐ μαλάσσεται” S.Fr.195; “τὸ σὸν μὴ ς. ἀλγύνοιμι” Id.Tr.482: mostly in pl., “ἤλγυνεν ἐν στέρνοις φρένα” A.Ch.746, cf. S.Ph.792; οὕτω χρὴ διὰ στέρνων ἔχειν one ought to feel thus, Id.Ant.639; “στέρνοις ἐγκαταθέσθαι τι” Simon.(?)85; “Ἄρη ἐν στέρνοις ἔχειν” E.Ph.134; “ἐξ εὐμενῶν ς. δέχεσθαί τινα” S.OC487; “οἷς πολιοῦχος ὑπὸ στέρνοις ἀρετά τε καὶ αἰδώς” Isyll.16.
II. metaph., “στέρνα χθονός” Suid., cf. Sch. S.OC691.
2. ὑπὸ στέρνοισι καμίνου in the heart of the fire, Nic. Th.924.—Rare in early Prose (v. supr.); found also in Medic., in signf. 1.1, Hp.Flat.10 (pl.), Sor.1.103, al., Gal.16.608, 18(2).65, al. (all sg.); “τὰ ς. μαχαίρᾳ ἀνσχίσσαντα” IG42(1).121.99 (Epid., iv B.C.); never in Arist. (f.l. for στενῶν in Pr.905b40).
III. breastbone, Gal.2.592, UP6.8.
Henry George Liddell. Robert Scott. A Greek-English Lexicon. revised and augmented throughout by. Sir Henry Stuart Jones. with the assistance of. Roderick McKenzie. Oxford. Clarendon Press. 1940.

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  • Cross-references in general dictionaries from this page (23):
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