ἐργάζομαι

Forms

ἐργᾰ́ζομαι (ergázomai) ^[1] Cretan ϝεργάδδομαι (wergáddomai).^[2] Doric future ἐργαξοῦμαι (Theocritus).^[2][3]

Etymology

It is formed from Ancient Greek ἔργον (érgon, “work”) + -άζω (-ázō).^[1][3] The noun, Doric ϝέργον (wérgon), is inherited from Proto-Indo-European *wérǵo- (“work”), identical with Avestan varəzəm, Old High German werc and Old Norse verk.^[4] The agent noun ἐργάτης (ergátēs) was formed after it.^[4]

Babiniotis notes that the verb first referred to work on the land and with herds.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

In Homer it is to work or labour, and is even said of the bellows of Hephaestus getting to work; the Odyssey uses it of a smith working gold.^[3][6]

Semantic evolution

From physical labour it spread to making and doing in general: to make objects and buildings, to do deeds, and with a double accusative to do good or harm to someone.^[3][2] It was used of working a material such as gold, timber or stone, and of putting land to use, of farmers working the soil and of fishermen working the sea.^[3] The idea of “working land” is recorded as a polysemy of the Greek verb.^[7] From Theognis and Herodotus on it also meant to earn money by work, and in Demosthenes to carry on a trade or do business, as in the market or by sea; it was also used of prostitutes plying their trade.^[3]

In the Septuagint it renders working and tilling the ground, as in Genesis, and serving someone.^[8] In the New Testament one “works” justice or lawlessness.^[3][9]

Medieval vernacular Greek kept the word in its ancient sense.^[10] Modern Greek εργάζομαι (ergázome) is a learned continuation of it, meaning to work in a job or at a task.^[11][5]

Timeline

• 700s BC – The Iliad uses it of the bellows of Hephaestus at work, and the Odyssey of working gold.^[3][6]
• Before the 6th century BC – Hesiod uses it of farm work and of working the sea.^[3][6]
• 6th century BC – Theognis uses it of earning by work.^[3][12]
• 5th century BC – Herodotus and Thucydides use it of making things and of doing deeds.^[3][12]
• 4th century BC – Demosthenes uses it of trade and business, and of prostitutes.^[3][12]
• 3rd century BC – The Septuagint uses it of tilling the ground.^[8][6]
• Modern Greek – The learned εργάζομαι (ergázome) means to work for a living.^[11]

Meanings

Verb

1. (intransitive) To work, labour, especially with the hands.^[3][2]
2. To make, produce or create, as objects, buildings or songs; in the passive, to be made.^[3]
3. To do or perform a task or deed; with a double accusative, to do something good or bad to someone.^[3][1]
4. (law) Of a slave, to commit an offence.^[3]
5. To work a material, as gold, timber or stone.^[3]
6. To work land, to till; of fishermen, to work the sea.^[3][8]
7. To earn by working, to make money or a living.^[3]
8. To practise an art or craft.^[3] In the New Testament, to practise justice or lawlessness.^[3][9]
9. To work at a trade, do business; of prostitutes, to ply one's trade.^[3]
10. (Septuagint) To serve someone.^[8]

Word family

• ἀπεργάζομαι (apergázomai)
• διεργάζομαι (diergázomai)
• ἐνεργάζομαι (energázomai)
• ἐξεργάζομαι (exergázomai)
• κατεργάζομαι (katergázomai)
• περιεργάζομαι (periergázomai)
• προεργάζομαι (proergázomai)
• συνεργάζομαι (sunergázomai)

Related words

• ἐργασία (ergasíā)
• ἐργάσιμος (ergásimos)
• ἐργαστήρ (ergastḗr)
• ἐργαστήριον (ergastḗrion)
• ἐργαστής (ergastḗs)
• ἐργαστικός (ergastikós)
• ἔργον (érgon)

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
4. ^ a b 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
5. ^ a b Babiniotis, Georgios (2010), Ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νέας ελληνικής γλώσσας [Etymological Dictionary of Modern Greek], Athens: Κέντρο Λεξικολογίας
6. ^ a b c d Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux
7. ^ Zalizniak, Anna A., et al. (2024), Database of Semantic Shifts (DatSemShift), Moscow: Institute of Linguistics, Russian Academy of Sciences, https://datsemshift.ru
8. ^ a b c d Lust, Johan; Eynikel, Erik; Hauspie, Katrin (2003), Greek-English Lexicon of the Septuagint, rev. ed., Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft
9. ^ a b 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
10. ^ Kriaras, Emmanuel, Επιτομή του Λεξικού της μεσαιωνικής ελληνικής δημώδους γραμματείας 1100–1669, Κέντρο Ελληνικής Γλώσσας, https://www.greek-language.gr
11. ^ a b Ινστιτούτο Νεοελληνικών Σπουδών (Ίδρυμα Μανόλη Τριανταφυλλίδη) (1998), Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής, Thessaloniki: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
12. ^ a b c Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge