νέομαι

Forms

νέομαι (néomai) ^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Hellenic *néhomai,^[1] inherited from Proto-Indo-European *nésetor, a thematic root present of *nes- (“to return safely”).^[1][2][3] The Germanic verbs Gothic 𐌲𐌰𐌽𐌹𐍃𐌰𐌽 (ganisan, “to recover, be saved”) and Old English genesan (“to escape, survive”) correspond to it exactly, with a prefix of completion.^[2] Sanskrit नसते (násate, “approaches, joins”) is formally identical but further in meaning.^[2] The causative 𐌽𐌰𐍃𐌾𐌰𐌽 (nasjan, “to save”) belongs to the same root.^[2]

Within Greek it is related to νόστος (nóstos, “return home”) and the name Νέστωρ (Néstōr).^[1][4] The present νίσομαι (nī́somai) is explained in LIV as a reduplicated formation of the same root, though this is debated.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is an epic verb: in the Iliad and the Odyssey it means to go or come back, above all to return home, and often has a future sense, “I shall return”.^[4][5][6]

Semantic evolution

Homer also uses it more generally for going on one's way or departing; in Homer it is used of persons, except for rivers turned to flow along a new course and winds going home.^[4][5] Only the present and imperfect occur.^[6]

After Homer it remained a poetic word: Pindar uses it of the path of song and of arriving at a place, and the tragedians use it rarely.^[5][6] Hellenistic poets such as Callimachus, Theocritus and Apollonius of Rhodes revived it, and it is almost absent from prose.^[5][6]

Timeline

• Homer – The Iliad and Odyssey use it of returning home and of setting out.^[4][5]
• Before the 6th century BC – Hesiod uses it of going home.^[6][7]
• 6th–5th century BC – Pindar uses it of the long road of song and of arriving.^[5][6]
• 5th century BC – Sophocles and Euripides use it rarely, of coming to a place.^[5][6]
• 3rd century BC – Callimachus, Theocritus and Apollonius of Rhodes revive the epic verb.^[5][6]

Meanings

Verb

1. To go or come back, return, especially home; often with future sense.^[4][5][6]
2. To set out, depart, get away from a place.^[6][4]
3. To arrive, come to a place.^[6]
4. To go on one's way, travel.^[6][4]
5. Of things: of rivers, to flow; of the sun, to be gone.^[6][5]

Word family

• ἀνανέομαι (ananéomai)
• ἀπονέομαι (āponéomai)
• παρανέομαι (paranéomai)
• εἰσνέομαι (eisnéomai)
• μετανέομαι (metanéomai)
• προνέομαι (pronéomai)

Related words

• νόστος (nóstos)
• Νέστωρ (Néstōr)
• νίσομαι (nī́somai)
• ἄσμενος (ásmenos)

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010), Etymological Dictionary of Greek, with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 10, Leiden; Boston: Brill
3. ^ Rix, Helmut, et al. (2001), Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben, 2nd ed., Wiesbaden: Reichert
4. ^ a b c d e f g Cunliffe, Richard John (1924), A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect, London: Blackie and Son
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
7. ^ Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux