ἐκ

Ancient Greek

Alternative forms

• ἐξ (ex) — before a vowel
• ἐγ (eg) — before β, δ, λ, μ

Etymology

From Proto-Hellenic *eks, from Proto-Indo-European *h₁eǵʰs (“out of”).

Cognates include Latin ex, ē, Old Irish ess-, a, ass (Irish as), Lithuanian ìš, Old Church Slavonic из (iz), Northern Kurdish ji, Albanian ith.

The genitive is from the PIE ablative of separation.

Pronunciation

Preposition

ἐκ • (ek) (governs the genitive)

1. (of place)
   1. (of motion) Out of, from
   2. from, with the source of

      ἐξ Ἰταλίας

      ex Italías

      from Italy

   3. to denote change from one place or condition to another

      ἐκ τῆς οἰκίᾱς αὐτῶν, κεἰς τὴν μου

      ek tês oikíās autôn, keis tḕn mou

      from their house, and into mine

   4. to express separation of distinction from a number
   5. (of position) outside, beyond
2. (of time)
   1. from, since
   2. (of particular points of time) just, after

      ἐκ τούτου

      ek toútou

      after this

   3. during, in
3. (of origin)
   1. (of materials) made out of something
   2. (of descent, parentage) descended from

      ἐκ πατρὸς εὐγενοῦς

      ek patròs eugenoûs

      (born) of a noble father

      ἐκ τῶν ὁμοίων

      ek tôn homoíōn

      of an equal

   3. (of causation) done by someone, something
   4. of the cause, instrument, or means by which a thing is done
   5. from, according to

      ἐκ τοῦ καρποῦ τὸ δένδρον

      ek toû karpoû tò déndron

      from the fruit the tree (is judged)

   6. turns a following noun into a periphrastic adverb
   7. (with numerals) in such an order

Derived terms

Descendants

• Greek: εκ (ek), ξε- (xe-)
• Esperanto: ek-
• Ido: ek

References

• “ἐκ”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “ἐκ”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “ἐκ”, in Autenrieth, Georg (1891) A Homeric Dictionary for Schools and Colleges, New York: Harper and Brothers
• ἐκ in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• ἐκ in Cunliffe, Richard J. (1924) A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect: Expanded Edition, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, published 1963
• ἐκ in the Diccionario Griego–Español en línea (2006–2024)
• “ἐκ”, in Slater, William J. (1969) Lexicon to Pindar, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter
• G1537 in Strong, James (1979) Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance to the Bible
• ἐκ in Trapp, Erich, et al. (1994–2007) Lexikon zur byzantinischen Gräzität besonders des 9.-12. Jahrhunderts [the Lexicon of Byzantine Hellenism, Particularly the 9th–12th Centuries], Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften
• Woodhouse, S. C. (1910) English–Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language‎, London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited.
  • accordance idem, page 7.
  • after idem, page 17.
  • commence idem, page 147.
  • compact idem, page 149.
  • depend idem, page 211.
  • evacuate idem, page 284.
  • fall idem, page 303.
  • forth idem, page 339.
  • from idem, page 346.
  • hand idem, page 382.
  • hang idem, page 383.
  • inspire idem, page 446.
  • instead of idem, page 446.
  • issue idem, page 461.
  • jump idem, page 466.
  • leap idem, page 482.
  • light idem, page 490.
  • loin idem, page 497.
  • lose idem, page 500.
  • off idem, page 569.
  • out of idem, page 581.
  • since idem, page 777.
  • spring idem, page 805.
  • step idem, page 815.