ἐπισφαλής

episphales

prone to fall, unstable, precarious

Appears 3 times across Aristotle's works.

Frequency by work

Click a work to list every occurrence by Bekker number — each links into the reader.

Politics 2
Open Politics ›
Book II 2
Chapter 5 1262b37–1264b25

1264b6

Chapter 10 1271b20–1272b23

1272a39
Nicomachean Ethics 1
Open Nicomachean Ethics ›
Book VIII 1
Chapter 1 1155a3–1155b16

1155a10

Dictionary (LSJ)

ἐπισφαλής, ές, (σφάλλομαι) A. prone to fall, unstable, precarious, τὰ μεγάλα πάντα ἐπισφαλῆ Pl. R. 497d ; -εστέρα δύναμις D. 2.15, cf. Arist. EN 1155a10 ; ἐπισφαλές [ἐστι] Id. Pol. 1264b6 ; ἐ. φύσει βίος Men. Epit. 126. II. (σφάλλω) making to fall, misleading, εἰς βλάβην Plu. 2.653d, etc. 2. dangerous, νόσημα Hp. VM 9 ; νόσοι Ph. 2.413 ; καιροί Plb. 1.66.12 : Sup. -εστάτη, χώρα Id. 2.29.2 ; τοῦ ἀγχιβαθοῦς τῶν ἑλῶν Ῥωμαίοις -σφαλοῦς ἐσομένου Hdn. 7.2.5 ; ἐπισφαλές [ἐστι] παρακοῦσαι Epicur. Fr. 200. Adv. -λῶς, ἔχειν, διακεῖσθαι, to be in danger, Plb. 6.25.4, Plu. Sol. 13 ; ἐ. βεβηκώς LXX Wi. 4.4 : Sup. -έστατα, περᾶσαι Plu. Cat.Mi. 15. 3. dubious, Adv. Comp. -έστερον Aristeas314.

Key passages & sense analysis (Bonitz)

Index Aristotelicus. Hermann Bonitz's sense-by-sense analysis of ἐπισφαλής — with the passages he singles out as decisive for each meaning — will appear here. That curated, interpretive selection is the layer LSJ and a raw concordance don't provide. Digitisation in progress; this entry is not yet available.

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