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The corpus record

κάμνω

kamno

to toil, labor, build; to get tired, die, be in danger, be in need

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

Where it lives

Densest 12 of 66 attested works shown, by occurrences per 10,000 attested tokens.

What it meant

1. κάμνω · kamnō — Beekes

κάμνω [v.] ‘to toil, labor, build; to get tired, die, be in danger, be in need’ (IL); the euphemistic meaning ‘to die’ almost only in epic oi καμόντες, Att. οἱ κεκμηκότες. «1Ὲ *kemh,- ‘exert oneself, get tired’> eVAR Aor. καμεῖν, fut. καμοῦμαι, perf. κέκμηκα, Dor. (Theoc.) κέκμᾶκα, epic pte. κεκμηώς. *COMP Also with prefix, e.g. ἀπο-, ἐκ-, συγ-. As a second member in compounds: ἀκάματος ‘without fatigue’ (Il.). … — [Beekes, s.v. κάμνω, p. 679]

2. κάμνω · kamnō — Chantraine

κάμνω : Î. καμοῦμαι, aor. ἔχαμον, pf. toujours intransitif κέκμηκα, dor. (Théoc.) κέκμᾶκα, part. ép. κεκμηώς. Emplois divers. Intransitif : «se fatiguer, être fatigué, se donner du mal, souffrir, être malheureux » (Hom., ion.-att., etc.), d’où «souffrir, être malade » (Hp., att.), d’où par euphémisme à l’aor. « être mort » (Hom.), même sens au pf. (trag., Th., PL). Transitif : «travailler à, fabriquer » (seulement … — [Chantraine, s.v. κάμνω, p. 504]

3. κάμνω · kamnō — Frisk

κάμνω, Aor. καμεῖν, Fut. καμοῦμαι (Schwyzer 784), Perf. κέκμηκα, dor. (Theok.) κέκμᾶκα, ep. Ptz. xexunds, auch mit Präfix, z.B. ἀπο-, &x-, ovy-, ‘sich mühen, mit Mühe arbeiten od. verfertigen, bauen; müde werden, ermatten, sterben’ (euphem.; fast nur ep. οἱ καμόντες, att. οἱ κεκμηκότες); "in Gefahr sein, Not haben’ (seit Il... — Als Hinterglied in Zusammenbildungen: d-xdua-s, -a-vr-os “unermüdlich’ (poet. seit 1]., … — [Frisk, s.v. κάμνω, p. 805]

4. κάμνω · kamnō — Frisk

κάμνω. Cardona Lang. 36 (1960) 502ff. hält κάμνω für eine Neubildung zum Aor. ἔκαμον (vgl. zu τέμνω). 1, κάμπη. S. noch Gil Fernandez Nombres de insectos 147. — [Frisk, s.v. κάμνω, p. 2243]

5. κάμνω · kamnō — LSJ

I work, wrought, build

trans., work, μίτρη, τὴν χαλκῆες κάμον ἄνδρες wrought it, 4.187, 216; ἐπεὶ πάνθʼ ὅπλα κάμε 18.614; σκῆπτρον . . , τὸ μὲν Ἥφαιστος κάμε τεύχων 2.101, cf. 8.195; κ. νῆας Od. 9.126; πέπλον Il. 5.338, cf. Od. 15.105; ἵππον 11.523; λέχος 23.189; ἄστυ build, A.R. 1.1322: also in aor. Med., ἱρόν Id. 2.718.

2 win by toil

aor. Med., win by toil, τὰς (sc. γυναῖκας) αὐτοὶ καμόμεσθα βίηφί τε δουρί τε μακρῷ Il. 18.341.

3 labour, till

aor. Med., labour, till, οἵ κέ σφιν καὶ νῆσον . . ἐκάμοντο Od. 9.130; οἴκους Philet. 8.

II toil, labour, for, to be weary, is, weary in, is weary, did, strain over, effort, shall, be tired, to grow tired

intr., toil, labour, τινι for one, Od. 14.65; ὑπὲρ τῆς πόλεως Th. 2.41: then, from the effect of continued work, to be weary, ἀνδρὶ δὲ κεκμηῶτι μένος μέγα οἶνος ἀέξει Il. 6.261, cf. 11.802: with acc. of the part, οὐδέ τι γυῖα . . κάμνει nor is he weary in limb, 19.170, etc.; περὶ δʼ ἔγχεϊ χεῖρα καμεῖται 2.389; ὁ δʼ ἀριστερὸν ὦμον ἔκαμνεν 16.106: freq. c. part., κ. πολεμίζων, ἐλαύνοντες, ἐρεθίζων, is weary of fighting, rowing, etc., 1.168, 7.5, 17.658, etc.; οὐ μέν θην κάμετον . . ὀλλῦσαι Τρῶας 8

2 to be hard-pressed, worsted

to be hard-pressed, worsted, in battle or contest, ib. 1.78, 80; τὸ κάμνον στρατοῦ E. Supp. 709.

3 to be sick, suffering, the sick, patients, having fallen sick, to be ill, distempered

to be sick or suffering, τί πάσχεις; τί κάμνεις; Ar. Nu. 708; οἱ κάμνοντες the sick, Hdt. 1.197, cf. S. Ph. 282, And. 1.64, Pl. R. 407c, Ep.Jac. 5.15, etc.; of a doctorʼs patients, Hp. Acut. 1, D. 18.243, SIG 943.10 (Cos); καμοῦσα ἀπέθανε having fallen sick, And. 1.120: c. acc. cogn., κάμνειν νόσον E. Heracl. 990, Pl. R. 408e; [τὴν ποδάγραν] v.l. in Arist. HA 604a23; τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς Hdt. 2.111; τὰ σώματα to be ill or distempered in body, Pl. Grg. 478a; ὠσίν τε κὤμμασιν Herod. 3.32; πάθᾳ Pi. P. 8

4 to be distressed, meet with disaster, wilt, have to complain, having borne

generally, to be distressed, meet with disaster, στρατοῦ καμόντος A. Ag. 670; τῷ πεποιημένῳ κ. μεγάλως Hdt. 1.118, cf. A. Ag. 482 (lyr.), E. Med. 1138, HF 293; οὐ καμῇ τοὐμὸν μέρος wilt not have to complain . . , S. Tr. 1215; κ. ἔν τινι E. Hec. 306, IA 966; of a ship, νεὼς καμούσης ποντίῳ πρὸς κύματι A. Th. 210: c. acc. cogn., οὐκ ἴσον καμὼν ἐμοὶ λύπης not having borne an equal share of grief, S. El. 532.

5 outworn, those whose work is done, those who have met with disaster

in aor. part., of the dead, i. e. either outworn, or those whose work is done, or those who have met with disaster, οἳ ὑπένερθε καμόντας ἀνθρώπους τίνυσθον Il. 3.278, cf. Theoc. 17.49; βροτῶν εἴδωλα καμόντων Od. 11.476; εἴδωλα κ. 24.14, Il. 23.72, cf. A. Supp. 231, etc.: also in pf. part. in Trag. and Prose, κεκμηκότες S. Fr. 284, E. Supp. 756, Th. 3.59, Pl. Lg. 718a, 927b, Arist. EN 1101a35; ἱερὰ τῶν κ. E. Tr. 96; also in the finite Verb, ὅπη ἄνθρωπος ἔκαμε Berl.Sitzb. 1927.158 (Cyrene).--The p

In the wild

6 of 262 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. κάμνω (scan p. 679; entry #2890).
  • Chantraine, Dictionnaire etymologique de la langue grecque Treated in Chantraine, Dictionnaire etymologique de la langue grecque s.v. κάμνω (scan p. 504; entry #3601).
  • Frisk, Griechisches etymologisches Worterbuch Treated in Frisk, Griechisches etymologisches Worterbuch s.v. κάμνω (scan pp. 805-806; entry #2758).

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