ἐπιτίθημι

Forms

ἐπῐτῐ́θημῐ (epitíthēmi) ^[1] Future ἐπιθήσω, aorist ἐπέθηκα, middle aorist ἐπεθέμην; the passive is mostly supplied by ἐπίκειμαι (epíkeimai).^[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is a compound from Ancient Greek ἐπί (epí, “upon”) + τίθημι (títhēmi, “to put, place”).^[1][4] Beekes traces τίθημι (títhēmi) to Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- (“to put, lay down, make”).^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is found from Homer on: in the Iliad a gold tip is fitted to a bow and salves are laid on a wound, and in the Odyssey food is set on the table.^[6][4]

Semantic evolution

In Homer and Hesiod it means to put something on or to, to fit on as a finish, to close doors, and of gods to grant victory or glory.^[6][2] Hesiod uses it of the doors fitted to Tartarus.^[6][2] The active also meant to add, to give a name, to send a letter and to impose a penalty.^[2][4] The middle meant to put on oneself, to give orders, to apply oneself to a task and, above all, to set upon, attack, a sense common in Herodotus, Thucydides and Attic prose.^[2][4]

The Septuagint uses it for laying things upon something and, in the middle, for attacking.^[7] In the New Testament it is the verb of laying hands on people in healing and blessing.^[8][9] The middle survives in Modern Greek as the learned επιτίθεμαι (epitíthemai) “to attack”.^[10][11]

Timeline

• Homer – The Iliad and the Odyssey use it of putting things on or fitting them as a finish.^[6][2]
• Before the 6th century BC – Hesiod uses it of doors fitted to Tartarus.^[2][12][13]
• 5th century BC – Herodotus uses it of giving names, sending letters and giving orders.^[2][13]
• 5th century BC – Thucydides uses the middle for attacking.^[2][4][13]
• 1st century AD – The New Testament uses it of laying hands on someone.^[8]
• Modern Greek – The learned middle επιτίθεμαι (epitíthemai) means to attack.^[10]

Meanings

Verb

1. (active) To lay, put or place upon; to offer on an altar; to set food on a table.^[4][2]
2. (active) To put to, close (doors); to fit on as a finishing touch.^[2][6]
3. (active) To add, grant or give besides; of gods, to grant victory or glory.^[2][4]
4. (active) To give a name; to send a letter.^[2]
5. (active) To impose or inflict a penalty.^[2][4]
6. (middle) To put on oneself, as a helmet or garland.^[2]
7. (middle) To give orders to someone.^[2]
8. (middle) To apply oneself to, undertake.^[2][7]
9. (middle) To set upon, attack.^[4][7][1]
10. (New Testament) To lay hands on someone.^[8]

Word family

• ἐπίθετος (epíthetos)
• συνεπιτίθημι (sunepitíthēmi)
• ἐπίθεσις (epíthesis)

Related words

• τίθημι (títhēmi)

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
3. ^ Korinthios, J. (2025), Grande Dizionario Greco Classico: Greco–Italiano, digital ed., Milan: Hoepli
4. ^ 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
5. ^ 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
6. ^ a b c d e Cunliffe, Richard John (1924), A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect, London: Blackie and Son
7. ^ a b c Lust, Johan; Eynikel, Erik; Hauspie, Katrin (2003), Greek-English Lexicon of the Septuagint, rev. ed., Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft
8. ^ a b c 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
9. ^ United Bible Societies (2023), UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament (revised Louw–Nida semantic domains), open-licence ed.
10. ^ a b Ινστιτούτο Νεοελληνικών Σπουδών (Ίδρυμα Μανόλη Τριανταφυλλίδη) (1998), Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής, Thessaloniki: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
11. ^ Kriaras, Emmanuel, Επιτομή του Λεξικού της μεσαιωνικής ελληνικής δημώδους γραμματείας 1100–1669, Κέντρο Ελληνικής Γλώσσας, https://www.greek-language.gr
12. ^ Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux
13. ^ a b c Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge