λύκος

See also: Λύκος

Ancient Greek

FWOTD – 1 February 2023

Etymology

From Proto-Hellenic *lúkos, from Proto-Indo-European *wĺ̥kʷos (“wolf”) with metathesis. Cognates include Sanskrit वृक (vṛ́ka), Latin lupus (also showing metathesis), Old English wulf (English wolf) and Russian волк (volk).

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /lý.kos/ → /ˈly.kos/ → /ˈli.kos/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /lý.kos/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈly.kos/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈly.kos/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈly.kos/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈli.kos/

Noun

λῠ́κος • (lŭ́kos) m (genitive λῠ́κου); second declension

1. wolf
   • New Testament, Mat. 7:15:

     Προσέχετε ἀπὸ τῶν ψευδοπροφητῶν, οἵτινες ἔρχονται πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἐν ἐνδύμασιν προβάτων, ἔσωθεν δὲ εἰσὶν λύκοι ἅρπαγες.

     Prosékhete apò tôn pseudoprophētôn, hoítines érkhontai pròs humâs en endúmasin probátōn, ésōthen dè eisìn lúkoi hárpages.

     Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.

2. curb bit
3. a kind of jackdaw

Inflection

Second declension of ὁ λῠ́κος; τοῦ λῠ́κου (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ὁ λῠ́κος ho lŭ́kos	τὼ λῠ́κω tṑ lŭ́kō	οἱ λῠ́κοι hoi lŭ́koi
Genitive	τοῦ λῠ́κου toû lŭ́kou	τοῖν λῠ́κοιν toîn lŭ́koin	τῶν λῠ́κων tôn lŭ́kōn
Dative	τῷ λῠ́κῳ tôi lŭ́kōi	τοῖν λῠ́κοιν toîn lŭ́koin	τοῖς λῠ́κοις toîs lŭ́kois
Accusative	τὸν λῠ́κον tòn lŭ́kon	τὼ λῠ́κω tṑ lŭ́kō	τοὺς λῠ́κους toùs lŭ́kous
Vocative	λῠ́κε lŭ́ke	λῠ́κω lŭ́kō	λῠ́κοι lŭ́koi
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Related terms

λυκ- terms (also see λύσσα (lússa))

• αἰνόλῠκος m (ainólŭkos, “horrible wolf”)
• Αὐτόλῠκος m (Autólŭkos)
• κῠνόλῠκος m (kŭnólŭkos)
• λῠκάγχη f (lŭkánkhē)
• λῠ́καινα f (lŭ́kaina, “she-wolf”)
• λῠκαινίς f (lŭkainís, “she-wolf”)
• λῠκαινόμορφος (lŭkainómorphos, “she-wolf-shaped”)
• Λῠ́καιον n (Lŭ́kaion)
• Λῠκαιονίκης m (Lŭkaioníkēs)
• Λῠκαῖος (Lŭkaîos, “Lycaean”)
• λῠκανθρωπῐ́ᾱ f (lŭkanthrōpĭ́ā, “a kind of madness”)
• λῠκάνθρωπος m or f (lŭkánthrōpos, “man-wolf”)
• Λῠκᾱονῐ́ᾱ f (Lŭkāonĭ́ā)
• λῠκαυγής (lŭkaugḗs, “of grey-twilight”)
• λῠκάων m (lŭkáōn, “man-wolf”)
• λῠκέη f (lŭkéē, “wolfʼs-skin”)
• λῠκεία f (lŭkeía, “helmet of wolf-skin”)
• Λῠ́κειον n (Lŭ́keion)
• λῠ́κειος (lŭ́keios, “of a wolf”)
• λῠκῆ f (lŭkê, “'λῠκέη'”)
• λῠκηδόν (lŭkēdón, “wolf-like”, adverb)
• λῠκηθμός m (lŭkēthmós, “wolfʼs howl”)
• Λῠκία f (Lŭkía)
• Λῠκιάρχης m (Lŭkiárkhēs)
• λῠκῐδεύς m (lŭkĭdeús, “wolfʼs cub”)
• λῠ́κιον n (lŭ́kion, “Rhamnus petiolaris”)
• Λῠ́κιος f (Lŭ́kios)
• λῠκόβρωτος (lŭkóbrōtos, “eaten by wolves”)
• λῠκοδίωκτος (lŭkodíōktos, “wolf-chased”)
• λῠκοειδής (lŭkoeidḗs, “wolf-like”)
• λῠκοεργής (lŭkoergḗs)
• λῠκοθαρσής (lŭkotharsḗs, “not fearing wolves”)
• λῠκοκτονέω (lŭkoktonéō, “slay wolves”)
• λῠκοκτόνος (lŭkoktónos, “wolf-slaying”)
• λῠ́κολυγξ m (lŭ́kolunx, “wolf-lynx”)
• Λῠκομήδης m (Lŭkomḗdēs)
• λῠκόμορφος (lŭkómorphos, “wolf-shaped”)
• Λυκόοργος m (Lukóorgos)
• λῠκοπάνθηρος m (lŭkopánthēros, “wolf-panther”)
• λῠκοπέρσῐον n (lŭkopérsĭon)
• Λῠκόπολῐς f (Lŭkópolĭs)
• λῠκορραίστης m (lŭkorrhaístēs, “wolf-worrier”)
• λῠκόσκορδον n (lŭkóskordon)
• λῠκοσκῠτᾰ́λιον n (lŭkoskŭtắlion, “white mignonette”)
• Λῠκόσουρα f (Lŭkósoura)
• λῠκοσπάς m or f (lŭkospás, “torn by wolves”)
• λῠκόστομος m (lŭkóstomos, “wolf-mouth, a kind of anchovy”)
• Λῠκούργεια f (Lŭkoúrgeia, “trilogy of Aeschylus”)
• Λῠκοῦργος m (Lŭkoûrgos)
• λῠκόφθαλμος (lŭkóphthalmos, “wolf-eye, precious stone”)
• λῠκόφθαλμος f (lŭkóphthalmos, “wolf-eye, precious stone”)
• λῠκοφῐλία f (lŭkophĭlía, “wolfʼs false friendship”)
• λῠκοφῐ́λιος (lŭkophĭ́lios)
• λῠκοφόρος (lŭkophóros, “with mark of a wolf”)
• λῠκόφρυς f (lŭkóphrus, “a plant”)
• λῠκόφρων m or f (lŭkóphrōn, “wolf-minded”)
• λυκόφων m (lukóphōn, “a plant”)
• λῠκόφως n (lŭkóphōs, “twilight, gloaming”)
• λῠκόχροος (lŭkókhroos, “wolf-coloured”) λῠκόχρους
• λῠκοψία f (lŭkopsía, “twilight”)
• λῠκόω (lŭkóō, “to tear like a wolf”)
• λῠκώ f (lŭkṓ, “she-wolf epithet of the Moon”)
• λῠκώδης (lŭkṓdēs, “wolf-like”)
• μονόλῠκος m (monólŭkos, “solitary”)

Descendants

• Greek: λύκος (lýkos)
• Tsakonian: λιούκο (lioúko)
• → Latin: lycos
• → Samoan: luko (learned)
  • → Tokelauan: luko (learned)

References

• “λύκος”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “λύκος”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “λύκος”, in Autenrieth, Georg (1891) A Homeric Dictionary for Schools and Colleges, New York: Harper and Brothers
• λύκος in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• Bauer, Walter et al. (2001) A Greek–English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, Third edition, Chicago: University of Chicago Press
• λύκος in Cunliffe, Richard J. (1924) A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect: Expanded Edition, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, published 1963
• “λύκος”, in Slater, William J. (1969) Lexicon to Pindar, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter
• G3074 in Strong, James (1979) Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance to the Bible
• λύκος in Trapp, Erich, et al. (1994–2007) Lexikon zur byzantinischen Gräzität besonders des 9.-12. Jahrhunderts [the Lexicon of Byzantine Hellenism, Particularly the 9th–12th Centuries], Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften
• Woodhouse, S. C. (1910) English–Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language‎^[1], London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited.
  • lycus idem, page 506.
  • wolf idem, page 986.
• “λύκος”, in ΛΟΓΕΙΟΝ [Logeion] Dictionaries for Ancient Greek and Latin (in English, French, Spanish, German, Dutch and Chinese), University of Chicago, since 2011

Greek

Etymology

From Ancient Greek λύκος (lúkos)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈlikos/
• Hyphenation: λύ‧κος

Noun

λύκος • (lýkos) m (plural λύκοι, feminine λύκαινα)

1. wolf
2. wolfdog
3. aggressive and bloodthirsty person
4. (pathology) lupus
5. cock of old hunting gun

Declension

Declension of λύκος

	singular	plural
nominative	λύκος (lýkos)	λύκοι (lýkoi)
genitive	λύκου (lýkou)	λύκων (lýkon)
accusative	λύκο (lýko)	λύκους (lýkous)
vocative	λύκε (lýke)	λύκοι (lýkoi)

Derived terms

Expressions

• ο λύκος ουρλιάζει (ourliázei)
• πεινάω σα λύκος (peináo sa lýkos)
• στο στόμα του λύκου (sto stóma tou lýkou, “into the lion's den”, literally “into the wolf's mouth-”)
• τρώω σα λύκος (tróo sa lýkos)

Proverbs

• έβαλαν το λύκο να φυλάει τα πρόβατα (évalan to lýko na fyláei ta próvata)
• ο λύκος έχει τ’ όνομα κι η αλεπού τη χάρη (o lýkos échei t’ ónoma ki i alepoú ti chári)
• ο λύκος κι αν εγέρασε κι άσπρισε το μαλλί του, μήτε τη γνώμη άλλαξε, μήτε την κεφαλή του (o lýkos ki an egérase ki ásprise to mallí tou, míte ti gnómi állaxe, míte tin kefalí tou, “a leopard cannot change its spots”)
• ο λύκος στην αναμπουμπούλα χαίρεται (o lýkos stin anampoumpoúla chaíretai)

Related terms

λυκ- and see λύσσα

λυκ-

• γερόλυκος m (gerólykos)
• θαλασσόλυκος m (thalassólykos)
• λύκαινα f (lýkaina, “she-wolf”)
• λυκάκι n (lykáki, “wolf cub”)
• λυκανθρωπία f (lykanthropía) (medicine)
• λυκάνθρωπος m (lykánthropos, “man-wolf”)
• λυκαυγές n (lykavgés, “first twilight”)
• λυκειάρχης m (lykeiárchis, “lyceum director”)
• λύκειο n (lýkeio, “lyceum”)
• λυκίσκος m (lykískos, “hop, Homulus lupulus”)
• λυκίσκος m (lykískos, “Lupus constellation”)
• λυκόπουλο n (lykópoulo, “wolf cub”)
• λυκόσκυλο n (lykóskylo, “german shepherd dog, or wolfdog”)
• λυκόστομα n (lykóstoma) (medicine)
• λυκοφιλία f (lykofilía, “wolfʼs false friendship”)
• λυκοφωλιά f (lykofoliá, “wolf's den”)
• λυκόφως n (lykófos, “twilight”)

Further reading

• λύκος on the Greek Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^el
• λύκος, in Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής [Dictionary of Standard Modern Greek], Triantafyllidis Foundation, 1998 at the Centre for the Greek language