The corpus record

λάχνη

lachne · ἡ

soft woolly hair, down

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

Where it lives

Works and Days 1 · 1.73/10k
Trachiniae 1 · 1.38/10k
Iliad 2 · 0.18/10k
Odyssey 1 · 0.12/10k

What it meant — LSJ

soft woolly hair, down, thin hair, soft nap, pile, scanty hairs, hair, fur, fur, wool, hair, quills

soft woolly hair, down, as of the first beard, πρίν σφωϊν . . πυκάσαι γένυς εὐανθέϊ λάχνῃ Od. 11.320; ὅτε λάχναι νιν μέλαν γένειον ἔρεφον Pi. O. 1.68; of the thin hair on Thersites’ head, ψεδνὴ δʼ ἐπενήνοθε λ. Il. 2.219; of the soft nap or pile on cloth, οὔλη δʼ ἐπενήνοθε λ. 10.134; of the scanty hairs on the elephant, Luc. Philops. 24; of the hair or fur of wild beasts, λάχνῃ δέρμα κατάσκιον Hes. Op. 513; of the bearʼs or polecatʼs fur, Opp. C. 3.140, Nic. Th. 690; of sheepʼs wool, S. Tr. 690,

II leafage

metaph., leafage, Nic. Al. 410, Opp. H. 4.167, 380 (pl.).

In the wild

λάχνῃ · lachnēi Works and Days 512
λάχνη · lachnē Iliad 10.134
λάχνη · lachnē Iliad 2.219
λάχνῃ · lachnēi Odyssey 11.320
λάχνην · lachnēn Sophocles, Trachiniae 688–692

Where it came from

Beekes, Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Brill 2010) Treated in Beekes, Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Brill 2010) s.v. λάχνη (scan pp. 886-887; entry #3689). Root candidates: *uolk-.
Chantraine, Dictionnaire etymologique de la langue grecque Treated in Chantraine, Dictionnaire etymologique de la langue grecque s.v. λάχνη (scan p. 641; entry #4720).
Frisk, Griechisches etymologisches Worterbuch Treated in Frisk, Griechisches etymologisches Worterbuch s.v. λάχνη (scan p. 1065; entry #3512). Root candidates: *uolg-.

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