previous next
ἀρχαῖος , α, ον, (ἀρχή I)
A.from the beginning or origin:
I. mostly of things, ancient, “σκότος” S.OC106; “ἐσθής” Hdt.5.88; “δόμοις ἐπασσάλευσαν ἀρχαῖον γάνος” A.Ag.579 codd.; “Ζηνὸς ἀρχαίοις νόμοις” S.OC1382; χερὸς σῆς πίστιν ἀρχαίαν faith firm for ever, ib. 1632 codd.
2. old-fashioned, antiquated, A.Pr.317 (lyr.), Ar.Nu.984, D.22.14; of literary style, Demetr.Eloc.244.
b. simple, silly, Ar.Nu.915, al., Pherecr. 205; “-ότερος εἶ τοῦ δέοντος” Pl.Euthd.295c, etc.
3. ancient, former, “τὸ ἀ. ῥέεθον” Hdt.1.75; “τοῦ ἀ. λόγου” Id.7.160; “οὐ γὰρ δὴ τό γ᾽ ἀ. δέμας” S.OC110; οἱ ἀ., opp. οἱ ὕστερον, Th.2.16; “ἀ. φύσις” A.Ch.281, Hp. Art.53, Pl.Smp.193c, etc.; “φύσις καὶ κατάστασις ἀ.” Democr.278; coupled with “παλαιός, παλαιὸν δῶρον ἀρχαίου θηρός” S.Tr.555, cf. Lys. 6.51, D.l.c.
4. old, worn out, “ὑποδήματα” X.An.4.5.14; “πινάκια” BGU781i1 (i A. D.).
II. of persons, “Θέμιν . . ἀρχαίαν ἄλοχον Διός” Pi.Fr.6.5; ἀ. θεαί, of the Erinyes, A.Eu.728; “Πέλοψ” S.Aj.1292; οἱ ἀ. the Ancients, name given by Arist. to the pre-Socratics, Metaph. 1069a25, GC314a6; in Lit. Crit., ancient, classical writers, Demetr. Eloc.15,67; in Plot., the philosophers down to Aristotle, 5.1.9; in NT, the Fathers, Ev.Matt.5.21, al.
2. ancient, old, βαλὴν ἀ., of Darius, A.Pers.657 (lyr.); “λάτρις” E.Hec.609; “ἑταῖρος” X.Mem.2.8.1; οἱ ἀ. κύριοι the original owners, BGU992 ii 6 (ii B. C.); τὰς ἀ. πόλεις (banished from) their original cities, Polystr.p.22 W.; ἀ. μαθητής an original disciple, Act.Ap.21.16; “ἀ. μύστης” Inscr.Magn.215b; παιδαγωγὸς ἀ., i.e of old, formerly, E.El.287, cf.853.
III. neut. as Adv., τὸ ἀρχαῖον, Ion. contr. τὠρχαῖον, anciently, Hdt.1.56, 173, al., Att.“τἀρχαῖον” A.Supp.326; “ἀπὸ τοῦ ἀ.” Hdt.4.117; “ἐξ ἀρχαίων” D.S.1.14.
2. regul. Adv. ἀρχαίως in olden style, “καινὰ ἀ. λέγειν” Pl.Phdr.267b, cf. Isoc.4.8, D.9.48; “ἀ. καὶ σεμνῶς” Aeschin.1.183.
IV. irreg. Comp. “ἀρχαιέστερος” Pi.Fr.45 (on ἀρχέστατος v. h. v.); usual Comp. “-ότερος” Ar.Av.469: Sup. “-ότατος” Hdt.1.105, etc.
V. as Subst., τὸ ἀρχαῖον, of money, prime cost, “πλέον τοῦ ἀ.” X.Vect.3.2; principal, mostly in pl., Ar.Nu.1156, etc.; “τἀρχαῖα ἀποδιδόναι” D.34.26, etc.; τῶν ἀρχαίων ἀπέστησαν lost their capital, Id.1.15: opp. ἔργον, Id.27.10; opp. πρόσοδοι, Is.6.38.
2. ἀρχαίη, ἡ, = ἀρχή, Eust.475.1, etc.
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.

The National Endowment for the Humanities provided support for entering this text.

hide Dictionary Entry Lookup
Use this tool to search for dictionary entries in all lexica.
Search for in
How to enter text in Greek:
hide Display Preferences
Greek Display:
Arabic Display:
View by Default:
Browse Bar: