ξαίνω

Forms

ξαίνω (xaínō) ^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Hellenic *ksəňňō, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *ksn̥-yé- (“to scratch, comb”).^[1] LIV sets up a root Proto-Indo-European *ksen- for working wool, with an amphidynamic root present in Greek and in a Vedic verb meaning “to card”.^[2] Beekes, who knows no correspondences outside Greek, calls it a technical term of wool working, probably related in some way to ξέω (xéō, “to scrape”) and ξύω (xúō, “to scrape”), though the exact derivation is unknown.^[3][4] Its formation in -αίνω (-aínō) may be old or may follow ὑφαίνω (huphaínō, “to weave”), which is close in meaning.^[3][5][4]

Pokorny lists it under Proto-Indo-European *kes- (“to scratch”), with Latin sentis (“thorn bush”), but Frisk calls that comparison wholly hypothetical.^[6][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Odyssey uses it for carding wool, the work of the household women (εἴριά τε ξαίνειν, Od. 22.423).^[7][3][8]

Semantic evolution

In Attic it is the ordinary word for dressing wool, as in Aristophanes' Lysistrata and Ecclesiazusae and in Plato.^[7][9] In the Birds it is used for preparing the robe presented to Athena, and Euripides has Fate carding the wool of fillets.^[9][7]

Figuratively it meant to lacerate the skin, to thrash with many lashes (Demosthenes), and in Plutarch the passive is used of a man beaten with rods and of loose ground raked up by charging troops.^[9][7] Waves were said to fret and mangle what they beat on.^[7]

In Matthew 6:28 the first hand of Codex Sinaiticus read “they do not card” instead of “they grow”, a reading erased and recovered under ultraviolet light.^[10] Modern Greek ξαίνω (xaíno) still means to card wool or cotton, and also to backcomb hair; a proverb says that someone with nothing to do found wool to card, of time spent on fruitless work.^[11][12]

Timeline

• Homer – The Odyssey uses it for carding wool.^[7][8]
• 5th century BC – Euripides has Fate card the wool of fillets.^[7][8][13]
• 5th–4th century BC – Aristophanes uses it for dressing wool and for preparing Athena's robe.^[7][9][13]
• 4th century BC – Demosthenes uses it for flogging.^[9][13]
• 1st–2nd century AD – Plutarch uses the passive of a man beaten with rods.^[9][13]
• Modern Greek – Modern Greek ξαίνω (xaíno) still means to card wool.^[11]

Meanings

Verb

1. To card or comb wool; used absolutely, to dress wool.^[7][9]
2. To full or dress cloth; to card wool for a robe.^[7][9]
3. (figurative) To lacerate, to thrash with lashes; of waves, to fret, mangle.^[7][9]
4. (passive) Of loose ground, to be raked up.^[9]

Word family

• ἀναξαίνω (anaxaínō)
• καταξαίνω (kataxaínō)
• ξάντης (xántēs)
• ξαντικός (xantikós)
• εὔξαντος (eúxantos)
• ξανάω (xanáō)
• ξάνιον (xánion)

Related words

• ξέω (xéō)
• ξύω (xúō)

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ Rix, Helmut, et al. (2001), Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben, 2nd ed., Wiesbaden: Reichert
3. ^ a b c 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
4. ^ a b Chantraine, Pierre (2009), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue grecque: histoire des mots, new ed. with a supplement (Chroniques d'étymologie grecque 1–10), Paris: Klincksieck
5. ^ a b Frisk, Hjalmar (1960–1972), Griechisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3 vols, Heidelberg: Carl Winter
6. ^ Pokorny, Julius (1959), Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, Bern; Munich: Francke
7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
8. ^ a b c Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux
9. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
10. ^ Bauer, Walter; Danker, Frederick W., et al. (2000), A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd ed., Chicago: University of Chicago Press
11. ^ a b Ινστιτούτο Νεοελληνικών Σπουδών (Ίδρυμα Μανόλη Τριανταφυλλίδη) (1998), Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής, Thessaloniki: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
12. ^ Babiniotis, Georgios (2010), Ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νέας ελληνικής γλώσσας [Etymological Dictionary of Modern Greek], Athens: Κέντρο Λεξικολογίας
13. ^ a b c d Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge