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The corpus record

χείρων

cheiron · ὁ

meaner, inferior

Generated live from the audited corpus — every figure on this page is a database query, not prose from memory.

Where it lives

  • Apology 3 · 15/10k
  • Fragments 4 · 10.04/10k
  • 2 Peter 1 · 9.23/10k
  • Ars Poetica 9 · 8.9/10k
  • 2 Timothy 1 · 8.34/10k
  • Ion 3 · 7.48/10k
  • Meditations 21 · 7.22/10k
  • Enneads 147 · 6.93/10k
  • Cleitophon 1 · 6.46/10k
  • Gorgias 17 · 6.46/10k
  • 1 Timothy 1 · 6.31/10k
  • Meno 6 · 6.13/10k

Densest 12 of 69 attested works shown, by occurrences per 10,000 attested tokens.

What it meant — LSJ

I meaner, inferior

of persons, meaner, inferior, either in bodily strength and bravery, or in rank, opp. ἀρείων, Il. 10.238, Od. 20.133; σὺ μὲν ἐσθλὸς ἐγὼ δὲ σέθεν πολὺ χείρων Il. 20.434; τοῦ γένετʼ ἐκ πατρὸς πολὺ χείρονος υἱὸς ἀμείνων 15.641, cf. Od. 20.82; ἦ πολὺ χείρονες ἄνδρες ἀμύμονος ἀνδρὸς ἄκοιτιν μνῶνται 21.325; opp. κρείσσων, Pi. I. 4(3).34(52); τὸν ὄλβιον τόν τε χ. E. Ba. 422 (lyr.); τὰ χείρονα S. Fr. 192, E. Supp. 196.

2 worse than others, knave

later in moral sense, worse than others, sts. almost like a positive, knave, opp. ἀγαθός, S. Ph. 456, cf. Th. 3.9, Lys. 16.3; οἱ πένητες καὶ οἱ δημόται καὶ οἱ χ. X. Ath. 1.4, cf. 3.10; οἱ χ., opp. οἱ ἀγαθοί, Pl. R. 460c, etc.

b

χ. βίος, opp. ἀμείνων, ib. 618d; γνώμη X. Cyr. 8.8.7.

3 worse, inferior, inferior, less skilful, the worse, less kind

worse in quality, inferior, of horses, Il. 23.572: inferior, less skilful, ἰητροί Hp. Acut. 6; ζωγράφοι, δημιουργοί, etc., Pl. Cra. 429a, R. 421e, etc.: χ. εἰς σοφίαν, εἰς τὴν ἀρετήν, Id. Tht. 162c, R. 335b; πρὸς ἀλήθειαν Luc. JTr. 48; c. acc., χ. τὰ πολεμικά X. Cyr. 8.8.20; χ. τὴν ψυχήν, τὴν διάνοιαν, Aeschin. 3.46. Isoc. 11.43; τὰ ἄλλα μηδὲν χ. Id. 4.105; c. inf., χ. ἡμῶν ταῦτα ποιεῖν X. Cyr. 2.1.16; οὐδὲν χείρους ἔσεσθε . . ἀκηκοότες you will be none the worse for having heard . . , D. 24.139

II inferior

of things, inferior in quality, ἄεθλον Il. 23.413; ὑποδήματα X. Oec. 13.10; ὄνομα Pl. Cra. 429b.

2 worse, harder, more severe

worse, harder, more severe, νόσος E. Andr. 220; μοῖρα Pl. Phdr. 248e; τιμωρία Ep.Hebr. 10.29.

III

neut.,

1 inferiority, worse, worst, lower

as a Subst., τὸ χ. inferiority, Polem. Call. 27; but mostly in phrases with Preps., ἐπὶ τὸ χ. τρέπεσθαι, κλῖναι, fall off, get worse, X. Cyr. 8.8.2, Mem. 3.5.13; ἐπὶ τὸ χ. μεταβάλλει ἑαυτόν Pl. R. 381b; ἀλλοιοῦσθαι ἐπὶ τὸ χ., opp. ἐπὶ τὸ βέλτιον, Thphr. CP 6.3.3; also πάντα ὑποπτεύοντες ἐπὶ τὸ χ. putting the worst construction on . . D.H. 6.85; λαμβάνειν τι ἐπὶ τὸ χ. J. AJ 16.7.4; also πρὸς τὸ χ. μεταβάλλειν D.S. 20.57; κατὰ τὸ χ. Pl. Lg. 720e; in the lower sense, opp. κατὰ τὸ κρεῖττον, Dam. Pr.

2 as well, as well

as a predicate, ἀλλὰ σοὶ αὐτῷ χ. (sc. ἐστί or ἔσται) Od. 15.515, cf. X. An. 7.6.4; with a neg., οὐ χ. [ἐστι] c. inf., we may as well, Pl. Phd. 105a, Arist. EN 1127a14; simply οὐ χεῖρον, in an answer, it is as well, Ar. Eq. 37; λάβʼ, ὦγάθʼ· οὐδὲν χ. Clearch.Com. 4.

3 worse

as Adv., worse, χ. βουλεύσασθαι Th. 3.46, cf. 6.89; χ. πρᾶξαι Id. 7.67; βιῶναι, ζῆν, Pl. R. 344e, 519d.

b in inferior degree, less

in inferior degree, less, ἀγαπᾶν Id. Lg. 928a; φυλακὰς χ. φυλαττομένας X. HG 6.2.17, etc.

B worst, men of lowest degree

Sup. χείριστος, η, ον, worst, Pl. Plt. 303a, etc.; ὁ χ., opp. ὁ βέλτιστος, Lys. 1.2; esp. οἱ χ. men of lowest degree, X. Mem. 1.2.32. Adv. χείριστα Arist. PA 687a24, Metaph. 1083b2 (dub. l.); also -τως LXX 2 Ma. 7.39.

In the wild

6 of 559 attestations shown. Ask for more.

Where it came from

  • Beekes, Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Brill 2010) Treated in Beekes, Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Brill 2010) s.v. χείρων (scan p. 1673; entry #6541).
  • Chantraine, Dictionnaire etymologique de la langue grecque Treated in Chantraine, Dictionnaire etymologique de la langue grecque s.v. χείρων (scan p. 1272; entry #8697).
  • Frisk, Griechisches etymologisches Worterbuch Treated in Frisk, Griechisches etymologisches Worterbuch s.v. χείρων (scan p. 2056; entry #6076).

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