εἴδομαι

Ancient Greek

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-European *weyd- (“to know; see”), compare the very closely related οἶδα (oîda). Cognate with Latin videō, Sanskrit वेत्ति (vetti), Old Armenian գիտեմ (gitem), Old Church Slavonic вѣдѣти (věděti), and Old English witan (English wit).^[1]

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /ěː.do.mai̯/ → /ˈi.ðo.mɛ/ → /ˈi.ðo.me/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /ěː.do.mai̯/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈi.do.mɛ/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈi.ðo.mɛ/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈi.ðo.me/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈi.ðo.me/

Verb

εἴδομαι • (eídomai) (poetic)

1. to be seen, appear
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 8.555
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 13.98
2. (with infinitive) to appear, seem to do
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 1.228
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Odyssey 9.11
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Odyssey 19.283
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 14.472
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Odyssey 8.283
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Odyssey 5.281
3. (reflexive, with dative) to make oneself like
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 2.791
   • 522 BCE – 443 BCE, Pindar, Nemean Ode 10.28
   1. (intransitive) to be like, to look like
      • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 3.280

Usage notes

• The aorist tense, εἶδον (eîdon, “I saw”), has a related but different meaning, and its second aorist middle form, εἰδόμην (eidómēn), contrasts with the first aorist middle of this verb, εἰσᾰ́μην (eisámēn).
• The perfect tense, οἶδα (oîda, “I know”), functions as a present tense word with its own meaning.

Inflection

number		singular			dual		plural
		first	second	third	second	third	first	second	third
middle/ passive	indicative	εἴδομαι	εἴδῃ, εἴδει	εἴδεται	εἴδεσθον	εἴδεσθον	εἰδόμεθᾰ	εἴδεσθε	εἴδονται
	subjunctive	εἴδωμαι	εἴδῃ	εἴδηται	εἴδησθον	εἴδησθον	εἰδώμεθᾰ	εἴδησθε	εἴδωνται
	optative	εἰδοίμην	εἴδοιο	εἴδοιτο	εἴδοισθον	εἰδοίσθην	εἰδοίμεθᾰ	εἴδοισθε	εἴδοιντο
	imperative		εἴδου	εἰδέσθω	εἴδεσθον	εἰδέσθων		εἴδεσθε	εἰδέσθων
						middle/passive
infinitive						εἴδεσθαι
participle	m					εἰδόμενος
	f					εἰδομένη
	n					εἰδόμενον
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For conjugation in dialects other than Attic, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal conjugation.

   Present: εἴδομαι

number		singular			dual		plural
		first	second	third	second	third	first	second	third
middle	indicative	εἰσᾰ́μην	εἴσω	εἴσᾰτο	εἴσᾰσθον	εἰσᾰ́σθην	εἰσᾰ́μεθᾰ	εἴσᾰσθε	εἴσᾰντο
	subjunctive	εἴσωμαι	εἴσῃ	εἴσηται	εἴσησθον	εἴσησθον	εἰσώμεθᾰ	εἴσησθε	εἴσωνται
	optative	εἰσαίμην	εἴσαιο	εἴσαιτο	εἴσαισθον	εἰσαίσθην	εἰσαίμεθᾰ	εἴσαισθε	εἴσαιντο
	imperative		εἶσαι	εἰσᾰ́σθω	εἴσᾰσθον	εἰσᾰ́σθων		εἴσᾰσθε	εἰσᾰ́σθων
					middle
infinitive					εἴσᾰσθαι
participle	m				εἰσᾰ́μενος
	f				εἰσᾰμένη
	n				εἰσᾰ́μενον
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For conjugation in dialects other than Attic, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal conjugation.

   Aorist: εἰσᾰ́μην

number		singular			dual		plural
		first	second	third	second	third	first	second	third
middle	indicative	ἐεισᾰ́μην	ἐείσᾰο	ἐείσᾰτο	ἐείσᾰσθον	ἐεισᾰ́σθην	ἐεισᾰ́με(σ)θᾰ	ἐείσᾰσθε	ἐείσᾰντο
	subjunctive	ἐείσωμαι	ἐείσηαι	ἐείσηται	ἐείσησθον	ἐείσησθον	ἐεισώμε(σ)θᾰ	ἐείσησθε	ἐείσωνται
	optative	ἐεισαίμην	ἐείσαιο	ἐείσαιτο	ἐείσαισθον	ἐεισαίσθην	ἐεισαίμε(σ)θᾰ	ἐείσαισθε	ἐεισαίᾰτο
	imperative		ἔεισαι	ἐεισᾰ́σθω	ἐείσᾰσθον	ἐεισᾰ́σθων		ἐείσᾰσθε	ἐεισᾰ́σθων
					middle
infinitive					ἐείσᾰσθαι
participle	m				ἐεισᾰ́μενος
	f				ἐεισᾰμένη
	n				ἐεισᾰ́μενον
Notes:	Dialects other than Attic are not well attested. Some forms are based on conjecture. Use with caution. For more details, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal conjugation.

   Aorist: ἐεισᾰ́μην (Epic)

Derived terms

• εἶδος (eîdos, “form”)
• ἰδέα (idéa, “form”)
• ἱστορία (historía, “inquiry”)
• ἵστωρ (hístōr, “judge”)

References

1. Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010) “εἴδομαι”, in Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 10), with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, pages 379-80

Further reading

• “εἴδομαι”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “εἴδομαι”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “εἴδομαι”, in Autenrieth, Georg (1891) A Homeric Dictionary for Schools and Colleges, New York: Harper and Brothers
• εἴδομαι in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• Bauer, Walter et al. (2001) A Greek–English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, Third edition, Chicago: University of Chicago Press
• εἴδομαι in the Diccionario Griego–Español en línea (2006–2024)
• “εἴδομαι”, in Slater, William J. (1969) Lexicon to Pindar, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter
• G1492 in Strong, James (1979) Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance to the Bible