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The corpus record

μελαίνω

melaino

blacken, make black

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

Where it lives

What it meant

μελαίνω · melainō — LSJ

blacken, make black, use an obscure, had her, stained black, to be dyed black

blacken, make black, Arist. l.c., Pr. 966b22, Nic. Al. 472: metaph., μ. φράσιν use an obscure expression, Ath. 10.451c; μ. τὸ σαφές D.H. Pomp. 2:—Pass., μελαίνετο δὲ χρόα καλόν she had her fair skin stained black (i.e. with blood), Il. 5.354; μελανθὲν αἷμα S. l.c., cf. Gal. 18(1).33; of earth just turned up, ἡ δὲ μελαίνετʼ ὄπισθεν Il. 18.548; of ripening grapes, Hes. l.c.; of a newly-bearded chin, ib. 167; αἱ λευκαὶ τρίχες ἐμελαίνοντο Pl. Plt. 270e; of hair, to be dyed black, Ar. Ec. 736; μεμελα

2 cause μελασμός, turn black

Medic., cause μελασμός (q. v.), Hp. Aph. 5.20:—Pass., turn black, as a symptom of mortification, Id. Art. 69, Fract. 11.

3 blacken, misrepresent

metaph., blacken, misrepresent, Simp. in Cael. 290.24.

4 receive an impression of blackness

Pass., receive an impression of blackness, S.E. M. 7.293.

II grow black

intr., = Pass., grow black, Pl. Ti. 83a, Thphr. Ign. 50, AP 5.123 (Phld.), Plu. Curios. 2.517c.

In the wild

6 of 9 attestations shown. Ask for more.

Where it came from

No etymology authority pointer is recorded for this lemma yet — an honest gap, not an omission. The etymological dictionaries (Beekes, Chantraine, Frisk) are matched incrementally.

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