φλίβω

Forms

φλῑ́βω (phlī́bō) ^[1]

Etymology

It is a rare by-form of the much more common θλίβω (thlī́bō), like φλάω (phláō) beside θλάω (thláō).^[2][3] It is generally compared with words in Celtic, Latin and Balto-Slavic, such as Latin flīgō (“to strike down”), Welsh blif (“catapult”) and Russian близна (blizná, “scar”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰleyǵ- (“to hit”).^[2][3][4][1] The LIV classes it, with a query, as a root present, and Beekes notes that the final -β- could be due to contamination.^[4][2] Wiktionary calls the origin uncertain and reports Romain Garnier's view that it comes from an old perfect participle.^[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Its first certain record is in the Hippocratic treatise On Places in Man, in the passive, of something being pressed.^[5][6]

Semantic evolution

In the Odyssey one reading has the future middle φλίψεται, “he will rub his shoulders” against many doorposts, of a beggar; most manuscripts have θλίψεται.^[5][2][3] Theocritus uses the passive in the Women at the Adonis Festival, where the women are crushed in the crowd.^[5][6] Hesychius records an active imperfect and a noun φλῖψις, glossed as θλῖψις (thlîpsis).^[5][3] The Greek Wiktionary calls it an Aeolic form of θλίβω.^[7]

Timeline

• Homer – One reading of the Odyssey has the future φλίψεται.^[5][2]
• 5th century BC – The Hippocratic On Places in Man uses the passive.^[5][8]
• 4th to 3rd century BC – Theocritus uses the passive of people crushed in a crowd.^[5][6][8]
• 5th century AD (probably) – Hesychius records active forms and the noun φλῖψις.^[5][3][8]

Meanings

Verb

1. To press, squeeze, bruise; the same as θλίβω (thlī́bō).^[5][2]
2. (middle) To rub one's shoulders against something.^[5]

Related words

• θλίβω (thlī́bō)
• Latin flīgō

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f 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. ^ a b c d e Frisk, Hjalmar (1960–1972), Griechisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3 vols, Heidelberg: Carl Winter
4. ^ a b Rix, Helmut, et al. (2001), Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben, 2nd ed., Wiesbaden: Reichert
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 Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux
7. ^ Βικιλεξικό, the Greek Wiktionary, https://el.wiktionary.org
8. ^ a b c Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge