χαῦνος

Ancient Greek

Etymology

Because of its basic meaning "loose, with holes, porous", is quite possible for this adjective to derive from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰeh₂-no-s, from *ǵʰeh₂- (“to yawn, hape”), like χάος (kháos, “abyss, chasm”), χαίνω (khaínō), and χάσκω (kháskō, “to gape, yawn”).

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /kʰâu̯.nos/ → /ˈxa.βnos/ → /ˈxa.vnos/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /kʰâu̯.nos/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈkʰaw.nos/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈxa.βnos/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈxa.vnos/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈxa.vnos/

Adjective

χαῦνος • (khaûnos) m (feminine χαύνη, neuter χαῦνον); first/second declension

1. (of tissues) porous, spongy

   Synonyms: πολῠ́τρητος (polútrētos), σομφός (somphós)

2. (of timber) loose-grained
3. (figuratively) empty, frivolous

Inflection

First and second declension of χαῦνος; χαύνη; χαῦνον (Attic)

Number		Singular				Dual				Plural
Case/Gender		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative		χαῦνος khaûnos	χαύνη khaúnē	χαῦνον khaûnon		χαύνω khaúnō	χαύνᾱ khaúnā	χαύνω khaúnō		χαῦνοι khaûnoi	χαῦναι khaûnai	χαῦνᾰ khaûna
Genitive		χαύνου khaúnou	χαύνης khaúnēs	χαύνου khaúnou		χαύνοιν khaúnoin	χαύναιν khaúnain	χαύνοιν khaúnoin		χαύνων khaúnōn	χαύνων khaúnōn	χαύνων khaúnōn
Dative		χαύνῳ khaúnōi	χαύνῃ khaúnēi	χαύνῳ khaúnōi		χαύνοιν khaúnoin	χαύναιν khaúnain	χαύνοιν khaúnoin		χαύνοις khaúnois	χαύναις khaúnais	χαύνοις khaúnois
Accusative		χαῦνον khaûnon	χαύνην khaúnēn	χαῦνον khaûnon		χαύνω khaúnō	χαύνᾱ khaúnā	χαύνω khaúnō		χαύνους khaúnous	χαύνᾱς khaúnās	χαῦνᾰ khaûna
Vocative		χαῦνε khaûne	χαύνη khaúnē	χαῦνον khaûnon		χαύνω khaúnō	χαύνᾱ khaúnā	χαύνω khaúnō		χαῦνοι khaûnoi	χαῦναι khaûnai	χαῦνᾰ khaûna
Derived forms		Adverb				Comparative				Superlative
		χαύνως khaúnōs				χαυνότερος khaunóteros				χαυνότᾰτος khaunótatos
Notes:		This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Derived terms

• χαῦνᾰξ (khaûnax)
• χαυνόγειον (khaunógeion)
• χαυνολόγος (khaunológos)
• χαυνοπολῑ́της (khaunopolī́tēs)
• χαυνόπρωκτος (khaunóprōktos)
• χαυνόσομφος (khaunósomphos)
• χαυνότης (khaunótēs)
• χαυνόφρων (khaunóphrōn)
• χαυνόω (khaunóō)
• χαύνωμᾰ (khaúnōma)
• χαύνωσῐς (khaúnōsis)
• χαυνωτῐκός (khaunōtikós)

 

Descendants

• → Translingual: Chauna

Further reading

• “χαῦνος”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “χαῦνος”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
• χαῦνος in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette