μυρίος

Ancient Greek

Etymology

Origin uncertain.^[1] It may be related to either Proto-Indo-European *mew- (“damp”) (as in 'flowing' like the countless waves of the sea) or μύρμηξ (múrmēx, “ant”) (like a countless swarm).^[2]

Pronunciation

(5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /myː.rí.os/
(1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /myˈri.os/
(4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /myˈri.os/
(10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /myˈri.os/
(15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /miˈri.os/

Adjective

μῡρῐ́ος • (mūrĭ́os) m (feminine μῡρῐ́ᾱ, neuter μῡρῐ́ον); first/second declension

numberless, countless, infinite
1. (poetic) measureless, immense, infinite
2. (of time) endless
3. (adverbial, in neuter plural) much, immensely, incessantly
  1. (adverbial, singular dative) infinitely
(as a definite numeral, in the plural) ten thousand, the greatest number expressed in Ancient Greek as a single word

Usage notes

According to the Grammarians μυρίος (muríos) (paroxytonic) is the indefinite form, and μύριος (múrios) (proparoxytonic) is the definite form. However, this distinction is not observed in the manuscripts.

Inflection

First and second declension of μῡρῐ́ος; μῡρῐ́ᾱ; μῡρῐ́ον (Attic)

Number	Singular			Dual			Plural
Case/Gender	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative	μῡρῐ́ος mūrĭ́os	μῡρῐ́ᾱ mūrĭ́ā	μῡρῐ́ον mūrĭ́on	μῡρῐ́ω mūrĭ́ō	μῡρῐ́ᾱ mūrĭ́ā	μῡρῐ́ω mūrĭ́ō	μῡρῐ́οι mūrĭ́oi	μῡρῐ́αι mūrĭ́ai	μῡρῐ́ᾰ mūrĭ́ă
Genitive	μῡρῐ́ου mūrĭ́ou	μῡρῐ́ᾱς mūrĭ́ās	μῡρῐ́ου mūrĭ́ou	μῡρῐ́οιν mūrĭ́oin	μῡρῐ́αιν mūrĭ́ain	μῡρῐ́οιν mūrĭ́oin	μῡρῐ́ων mūrĭ́ōn	μῡρῐ́ων mūrĭ́ōn	μῡρῐ́ων mūrĭ́ōn
Dative	μῡρῐ́ῳ mūrĭ́ōi	μῡρῐ́ᾳ mūrĭ́āi	μῡρῐ́ῳ mūrĭ́ōi	μῡρῐ́οιν mūrĭ́oin	μῡρῐ́αιν mūrĭ́ain	μῡρῐ́οιν mūrĭ́oin	μῡρῐ́οις mūrĭ́ois	μῡρῐ́αις mūrĭ́ais	μῡρῐ́οις mūrĭ́ois
Accusative	μῡρῐ́ον mūrĭ́on	μῡρῐ́ᾱν mūrĭ́ān	μῡρῐ́ον mūrĭ́on	μῡρῐ́ω mūrĭ́ō	μῡρῐ́ᾱ mūrĭ́ā	μῡρῐ́ω mūrĭ́ō	μῡρῐ́ους mūrĭ́ous	μῡρῐ́ᾱς mūrĭ́ās	μῡρῐ́ᾰ mūrĭ́ă
Vocative	μῡρῐ́ε mūrĭ́e	μῡρῐ́ᾱ mūrĭ́ā	μῡρῐ́ον mūrĭ́on	μῡρῐ́ω mūrĭ́ō	μῡρῐ́ᾱ mūrĭ́ā	μῡρῐ́ω mūrĭ́ō	μῡρῐ́οι mūrĭ́oi	μῡρῐ́αι mūrĭ́ai	μῡρῐ́ᾰ mūrĭ́ă
Derived forms	Adverb			Comparative			Superlative
Derived forms	μῡρῐ́ως mūrĭ́ōs			μῡρῐώτερος mūrĭṓteros			μῡρῐώτᾰτος mūrĭṓtătos
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Synonyms

(immense): πολύς (polús)

Derived terms

μῡρῐᾰ́ς (mūrĭắs)
μῡρῐόφθᾰλμος (mūrĭóphthălmos)

References

^ Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010) “μῡρῐ́ος”, in Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 10), with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, pages 981-2
^ http://books.google.ca/books?id=SRw4PevE4zUC&pg=PA142&dq=greek+murios+etymology&hl=en&sa=X&ei=XeO3UKH1EuqG2gX-74GwAg&ved=0CDsQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=greek%20murios%20etymology&f=false

“μυρίος”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
“μυρίος”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
“μυρίος”, in Autenrieth, Georg (1891) A Homeric Dictionary for Schools and Colleges, New York: Harper and Brothers
μυρίος in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
μυρίος in Cunliffe, Richard J. (1924) A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect: Expanded Edition, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, published 1963
“μυρίος”, in Slater, William J. (1969) Lexicon to Pindar, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter
Woodhouse, S. C. (1910) English–Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language‎, London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited.
- boundless idem, page 91.
- countless idem, page 178.
- huge idem, page 409.
- illimitable idem, page 416.
- immeasurable idem, page 417.
- immense idem, page 417.
- incalculable idem, page 427.
- infinite idem, page 438.
- limitless idem, page 492.
- many idem, page 513.
- measureless idem, page 521.
- much idem, page 545.
- multitudinous idem, page 546.
- numberless idem, page 563.
- unfathomable idem, page 918.
- unlimited idem, page 924.
- unmeasured idem, page 925.
- unnumbered idem, page 926.
- untold idem, page 935.
- vast idem, page 945.

[1] Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010) “μῡρῐ́ος”, in Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 10), with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, pages 981-2

[2] ttp://books.google.ca/books?id=SRw4PevE4zUC&pg=PA142&dq=greek+murios+etymology&hl=en&sa=X&ei=XeO3UKH1EuqG2gX-74GwAg&ved=0CDsQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=greek%20murios%20etymology&f=false

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