4.4.1
Logeion
Perseus analyses of ἤ:
ἤ 1 (or): indeclform (conj)
ἤ 2 (hi): indeclform (exclam)
LSJ entries
ἤ 1
ἤ
(A),
Ep.
also
ἠέ
(in
signf.
A.II
ἤ
(or
ἠέ
)
folld.
by
ἦ
(or
ἦε
),
v.
infr.),
Conj.
with
two
chief
senses,
Disj.
(
or
)
and
Comp.
(
than
).
A.
DISJUNCTIVE,
or
,
ἐγὼ
.
.
ἢ
ἄλλος
Ἀχαιῶν
Il. 2.231
,
cf.
397
,
800
,
4.142
,
7.236
,
al.;
θεόσυτος
ἢ
βρότειος
ἢ
κεκραμένη
A. Pr. 116
.
2.
ἢ
.
.
ἤ
either
. .
or
,
ἢ
νῦν
δηθύνοντʼ
ἢ
ὕστερον
αὖτις
ἰόντα
Il. 1.27
,
cf.
151
,
5.484
,
etc.;
so
ἢ
.
.
ἤτοι
.
.
Pi. N. 6.4
,
Fr. 138
;
ἤτοι
.
.
ἤ
.
.
A. Ag. 662
,
S. Ant. 1182
,
Th. 2.40
,
etc.
(in
Classical
Gr.
the
alternative
introduced
by
ἤτοι
is
emphasized,
later
no
distn.
is
implied,
Ep.Rom. 6.16
;
ἤτοι
.
.
ἢ
.
.
ἤ
.
.
PTeb. 5.59
(ii
B.C.)
);
ἤ
repeated
any
number
of
times,
ἐγὼ
δέ
κεν
αὐτὸς
ἕλωμαι
ἢ
τεὸν
ἢ
Αἴαντος
ἰὼν
γέρας
ἢ
Ὀδυσῆος
Il. 1.138
,
cf.
Od. 15.84
,
S. Ant. 707
;
ἤ
is
prob.
wrongly
accented
in
codd.
of
Il. 2.289
,
Od. 3.348
,
19.109
,
v.
ἦ
Adv.
1.3
:
ἢ
πόλις
βροτός
θʼ
ὁμοίως
A. Eu. 524
(lyr.)
is
exceptional.
3.
or
else,
otherwise
,
εἰδέναι
δεῖ
περὶ
οὗ
ἂν
ᾖ
ἡ
βουλή,
ἢ
παντὸς
ἁμαρτάνειν
ἀνάγκη
Pl. Phdr. 237c
;
μή
με
λυπεῖτε,
ἢ
φεύξομʼ
ἐκ
τῆς
οἰκίης
Herod. 5.74
;
ζῶντα
κακῶς
λέγειν
ἐκώλυσε
.
.
,
ἢ
τρεῖς
δραχμὰς
ἀποτίνειν
ἔταξε
Lex
Sol.
ap.
Plu. Sol. 21
,
cf.
24
,
IG
12.94.10,
Them. Or. 21.260a
.
II.
in
Questions
or
Deliberations
in
Disj.
form(the
accentuation
is
ἢ
(
ἠέ
)
folld.
by
ἦ
(
ἦε
),
Hdn.
Gr.
2.24
,
al.,
A.D. Conj. 224.28
):
1.
Direct
questions,
a.
introduced
by
ἢ
(ἠέ)
,
ἢ
δολιχὴ
νοῦσος
ἦ
Ἄρτεμις
ἰοχέαιρα
.
.
κατέπεφνεν
;
Od. 11.172
;
ἤ
τι
κατὰ
πρῆξιν
ἦ
μαψιδίως
ἀλάλησθε
.
.
;
3.72
,
cf.
1.408
,
16.462
,
Il. 6.378
,
15.735
,
16.12
,
etc.
b.
without
an
introductory
Particle,
θεός
νύ
τις
ἦ
βροτός
ἐσσι
;
art
thou
a
goddess
or
a
mortal?
Od. 6.149
,
cf.
1.226
,
4.314
,
372
,
643
,
20.130
,
21.194
,
Il. 10.63
,
425
,
534
,
15.203
:
accented
ἦ
,
Hdn.Gr.
2.145
,
al.,
but
ἤ
freq.
in
codd.
of
Hom.
and
always
in
codd.
of
later
writers:
ἤκουσας
ἢ
οὐκ
ἤκουσας
ἢ
κωφῇ
λέγω
;
A. Th. 202
;
ἄρτι
δὲ
ἥκεις
ἢ
πάλαι
;
Pl. Cri. 43a
;
κακουργεῖν
δεῖ
ἢ
οὔ
;
ib.
49c
;
preceded
by
πότερον,
πότερον
δοκεῖ
σοι
κάκιον
εἶναι,
τὸ
ἀδικεῖν
ἢ
τὸ
ἀδικεῖσθαι
;
Id. Grg. 474c
,
etc.
2.
Indirect
questions,
freq.
epexegetic
of
a
preceding
question
and
identical
in
form
with
direct
questions.
a.
εἴπʼ
ἄγε,
.
.
ἤ
ῥʼ
ἐθέλει
.
.
,
ἦ
ἀπέειπε
.
.
Il. 9.674
;
ὄφρα
δαῶμεν
ἢ
ἐτεὸν
Κάλχας
μαντεύεται
ἦε
καὶ
οὐκί
2.300
;
διάνδιχα
μερμήριξεν
ἢ
ὅ
γε
.
.
ἐναρίζοι
ἦε
χόλον
παύσειεν
1.190
;
later
with
εἰ
.
.
ἤ
A. Ch. 890
,
Ag. 478
,
S. OC 80
,
etc.;
πότερον
or
πότερα
.
.
ἤ
.
.
Id.
Pers.
148, 352,
Ag.
630,
etc.;
sts.
εἴτε
.
.
ἤ
E. El. 897
;
ἢ
.
.
εἴτε
S. Aj. 177
.
b.
without
introductory
Particle,
οὐδέ
τι
οἶδα
ζώει
ὅ
γʼ
ἦ
τέθνηκε
Od. 11.464
,
cf.
Il. 10.546
,
Od. 24.238
.
B.
COMPARATIVE,
than,
as
,
after
a
Comp.
,
Il. 11.162
,
etc.:
after
positive
Adjs.
which
imply
comparison,
ἄλλος,
ἕτερος
ἤ
.
.
,
S. OT 595
,
Tr. 835
(lyr.);
ἐναντίος
ἤ
Pl. Grg. 481c
;
ἴδιόν
τι
πάσχειν
πάθος
ἢ
οἱ
ἄλλοι
ibid.:
after
Advbs.
or
adverbial
phrases,
πλήν,
πρίν,
πρόσθεν,
χωρίς
(qq.
v.),
ἀλλά
(v.
ἀλλʼ
ἤ
)
;
τῇ
ὑστεραίᾳ
ἤ
.
.
Id. Cri. 44a
(
f.l.
in
Smp. 173a
);
ἐν
τῷ
πέμπτῳ
καὶ
δεκάτῳ
ϝέτει
ἀπὸ
τῶ
ποτεχεῖ
ϝέτεος
ἢ
Ἀριστίων
ἐφορεύει
Tab.Heracl.
1.121;
παρὰ
δόξαν
ἢ
ὡς
αὐτὸς
κατεδόκεε
Hdt. 1.79
,
cf.
8.4
;
διαφερόντως
ἤ
.
.
Pl. Phd. 85b
;
οὐδʼ
ὅσον
ἤ
.
.
not
so
much
as
. .
,
not
more
than
. .
,
Theoc. 9.21
:
after
Verbs
implying
comparison,
βούλεσθαι
ἤ
.
.
to
wish
rather
than
. .
,
v.
βούλομαι
IV,
αἱρέω
B.
II.1b;
so
φθάνειν
ἤ
.
.
to
come
sooner
than
. .
,
Il. 23.445
,
Od. 11.58
;
ἐπιθυμεῖν
ἤ
.
.
X. Cyr. 1.4.3
;
δέχεσθαι
ἤ
.
.
Lys. 10.21
:
less
freq.
after
a
word
not
implying
comparison,
δίκαιον
ἡμέας
ἔχειν
.
.
(sc.
μᾶλλον
)
ἤ
περ
Ἀθηναίους
Hdt. 9.26
;
ἐμοὶ
πικρὸς
.
.
ἢ
κείνοις
γλυκύς
S. Aj. 966
(s.v.l.);
δεδικαιωμένος
ἢ
ἐκεῖνος
Ev.Luc. 18.14
.
2.
joining
two
Comparatives
which
refer
to
the
same
subject,
πάντες
κʼ
ἀρησαίατʼ
ἐλαφρότεροι
πόδας
εἶναι
ἢ
ἀφνειότεροι
Od. 1.165
;
ταχύτερα
ἢ
σοφώτερα
Hdt. 3.65
;
μανικώτεροι
ἢ
ἀνδρειότεροι
Pl. Tht. 144b
,
cf.
Ar. Ach. 1078
.
3.
rarely
after
a
Sup.
,
πλεῖστα
θωμάσια
ἔχει
Αἴγυπτος
ἢ
ἄλλη
πᾶσα
χώρη
Hdt. 2.35
(s.v.l.);
πίθοιτό
κεν
ὔμμι
μάλιστα
ἢ
ἐμοί
A.R. 3.91
.
4.
ἢ
οὐ
is
used
when
a
neg.
precedes,
οὐδέν
τι
μᾶλλον
ἐπʼ
ἡμέας
ἢ
οὐ
καὶ
ἐπʼ
ὑμέας
Hdt. 4.118
,
cf.
5.94
,
Th. 2.62
,
etc.:
after
an
implied
neg.,
ὠμὸν
.
.
πόλιν
ὅλην
διαφθεῖραι
μᾶλλον
ἢ
οὐ
τοὺς
αἰτίους
Id. 3.36
.
5.
freq.
omitted
with
numerals
after
πλείων,
ἐλάττων,
μείων,
ἔτη
.
.
πλείω
ἑβδομήκοντα
v.l.
in
Pl. Ap. 17d
;
οὐ
μεῖον
πεντακοσίους
X. An. 6.4.24
:
sts.
with
an
inf.
or
conditional
clause,
τί
γὰρ
ἀνδρὶ
κακὸν
μεῖζον
ἁμαρτεῖν
E. Alc. 879
;
τίς
εὐπραξία
σπανιωτέρα
.
.
,
εἰ
[δύναμις]
πάρεστιν
(for
ἢ
δύναμιν
παρεῖναι
);
Th. 1.33
.
6.
pleon.
with
a
gen.,
τίς
ἂν
αἰσχίων
εἴη
ταύτης
δόξα,
ἢ
δοκεῖν
.
.
Pl. Cri. 44c
,
cf.
Lys. 10.28
.
7.
the
Disj.
and
Comp.
uses
are
found
together
in
Il. 15.511
βέλτερον,
ἢ
ἀπολέσθαι
ἕνα
χρόνον
ἠὲ
βιῶναι,
ἢ
δηθὰ
στρεύγεσθαι
ἐν
αἰνῆ
δηϊοτῆτι
better,
either
to
die
once
for
all
or
win
life,
than
long
to
toil
in
battle.
[
ἢ
οὐ,
ἢ
οὐκ
combine
by
Synizesis
into
one
syll.
in
Trag.
and
Com.,
A. Pr. 330
,
S. Aj. 334
,
Ar. Lys. 128
;
so
usually
in
Ep.
,
Od. 1.298
,
al.;
ἢ
αὐτός
Hes. Fr. 194
;
ἢ
εἰ
Alex. 201
.]
ἤ 2
ἤ
(B),
A.
an
exclamation
expressing
disapproval,
ἢ
ἢ
σιώπα
Ar. Nu. 105
;
ἢ
ἤ·
τί
δρᾶς
;
E. HF 906
(lyr.),
cf.
Suid.
2.
to
call
attention,
ποῦ
Ξανθίας;
ἢ
Ξανθία
whereʼs
Xanthias?
hi
,
Xanthias!
Ar. Ra. 271
.