ψῆφος

See also: ψήφος

Ancient Greek

Alternative forms

• ψᾶφος (psâphos) — Doric
• ψᾶφᾰξ (psâphax) — Aeolic

Etymology

From ψάω (psáō, “to rub smooth, crumble”).

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /psɛ̂ː.pʰos/ → /ˈpsi.ɸos/ → /ˈpsi.fos/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /psɛ̂ː.pʰos/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈpse̝.pʰos/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈpsi.ɸos/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈpsi.fos/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈpsi.fos/

Noun

ψῆφος • (psêphos) f (genitive ψήφου); second declension

1. a pebble
   1. a precious stone, gem
2. (based on the uses made of such pebbles)
   1. a pebble used for reckoning, a counter
   2. a pebble used for a draught or chessman
   3. a pebble used for divination
   4. a pebble used for voting
      1. that which is carried by vote, a vote
      2. resolve, decree, judgment
      3. a place of voting, poll

Inflection

Second declension of ἡ ψῆφος; τῆς ψήφου (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ἡ ψῆφος hē psêphos	τὼ ψήφω tṑ psḗphō	αἱ ψῆφοι hai psêphoi
Genitive	τῆς ψήφου tês psḗphou	τοῖν ψήφοιν toîn psḗphoin	τῶν ψήφων tôn psḗphōn
Dative	τῇ ψήφῳ têi psḗphōi	τοῖν ψήφοιν toîn psḗphoin	ταῖς ψήφοις taîs psḗphois
Accusative	τὴν ψῆφον tḕn psêphon	τὼ ψήφω tṑ psḗphō	τᾱ̀ς ψήφους tā̀s psḗphous
Vocative	ψῆφε psêphe	ψήφω psḗphō	ψῆφοι psêphoi
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Derived terms

• ὁμόψηφος (homópsēphos, “voting with”)
• πολῠ́ψηφος (polúpsēphos, “with many votes”)
• ψήφινος (psḗphinos, “made of marble”)

Related terms

• ἰσοψηφῐ́ᾱ f (isopsēphíā, “equality of votes”)
• ψηφῐ́ζω (psēphízō, “count, vote”)
• ψηφῐ́ον n (psēphíon, “small pebble”)
• ψηφῐ́ς f (psēphís, “small pebble”)
• ψήφῐσμᾰ n (psḗphisma, “proposal, decree”)
• ψηφολογεῖον n (psēphologeîon, “account-board”)
• ψηφοφορῐ́ᾱ f (psēphophoríā, “voting by ballot”)
• ψηφοφόρος (psēphophóros, “giving one's vote”)

and see more than 100 words -ψηφ- at Greek Dictionary Headword Search at perseus.tufts.edu retr:2018.05.02.

Descendants

• Greek: ψήφος (psífos)
• → Arabic: فُسَيْفِسَاء (fusayfisāʔ)
• → Hebrew: פסיפס (pᵊsēfās)

References

• “ψῆφος”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “ψῆφος”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
• ψῆφος in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• G5586 in Strong, James (1979) Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance to the Bible
• Woodhouse, S. C. (1910) English–Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language‎^[1], London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited.
  • act idem, page 9.
  • ballot idem, page 60.
  • counter idem, page 177.
  • decree idem, page 202.
  • edict idem, page 261.
  • enactment idem, page 270.
  • resolution idem, page 702.
  • suffrage idem, page 836.
  • tribunal idem, page 894.
  • vote idem, page 957.