κλῶμαξ

Ancient Greek

Etymology

The formation is similar to λίθαξ (líthax) and βῶλαξ (bôlax). Usually connected with κλάω (kláō, “to break”), by assumption of a verbal noun *κλῶμος (*klômos, “crack, split”). This is unlikely, especially given the by-form κρῶμαξ (krômax, “rocky place”) which shows a typical Pre-Greek variation "ρ/λ".

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /klɔ̂ː.maks/ → /ˈklo.maks/ → /ˈklo.maks/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /klɔ̂ː.maks/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈklo.maks/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈklo.maks/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈklo.maks/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈklo.maks/

Noun

κλῶμαξ • (klômax) m (genitive κλώμακος); third declension

1. heap of stones, rocky place

Inflection

Third declension of ὁ κλῶμᾰξ; τοῦ κλώμᾰκος (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ὁ κλῶμᾰξ ho klômax	τὼ κλώμᾰκε tṑ klṓmake	οἱ κλώμᾰκες hoi klṓmakes
Genitive	τοῦ κλώμᾰκος toû klṓmakos	τοῖν κλωμᾰ́κοιν toîn klōmákoin	τῶν κλωμᾰ́κων tôn klōmákōn
Dative	τῷ κλώμᾰκῐ tôi klṓmaki	τοῖν κλωμᾰ́κοιν toîn klōmákoin	τοῖς κλώμᾰξῐ / κλώμᾰξῐν toîs klṓmaxi(n)
Accusative	τὸν κλώμᾰκᾰ tòn klṓmaka	τὼ κλώμᾰκε tṑ klṓmake	τοὺς κλώμᾰκᾰς toùs klṓmakas
Vocative	κλῶμᾰξ klômax	κλώμᾰκε klṓmake	κλώμᾰκες klṓmakes
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Derived terms

• κλομακόεις (klomakóeis)

Further reading

• “κλῶμαξ”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• κλῶμαξ in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010) Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 10), with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN