Aristotle Greek Lexicon ῥάχις

ῥάχις

hrachis

the lower part of the back, the chine

Appears 41 times across Aristotle's works.

Frequency by work

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Dictionary (LSJ)

ῥάχις, ιος, Att. εως, ἡ (but IG 42 (v. infr.)), A. the lower part of the back, the chine, συὸς ῥ. Il. 9.208. 2. spine or backbone, σύγκειται ἡ ῥ. ἐκ σφονδύλων, τείνει δʼ ἀπὸ τῆς κεφαλῆς μέχρι πρὸς τὰ ἰσχία Arist. HA 516a11, cf. PA 654b12, al.; ὑπὸ ῥάχιν παγέντες impaled, A. Eu. 190, cf. S. Fr. 20, E. Cyc. 643; μυελὸς κοίλης ῥάχεως Archel. ap. Antig. Mir. 89, cf. Pl. Ti. 77d, 91a. II. anything ridged like the backbone: 1. ridge of a hill or mountain, Hdt. 3.54, 7.216, IG 42(1).71.14 (Epid., iii B.C.), Plb. 3.101.2, D.H. 5.44, Str. 3.2.3 (pl.); ἂν ῥάχιν along the ridge, GDI 5075.69 (Crete, i B.C.); so Archil. 21 likened Thasos to an ὄνου ῥάχις. 2. ῥ. ῥινός bridge of the nose, Poll. 2.79, Ruf. Onom. 35. 3. ῥ. φύλλου mid-rib of a leaf, Thphr. HP 3.7.5, al. 4. the sharp projection on the middle of the shoulder-blade, Gal. UP 13.10, Ruf. Onom. 71. 5. outer edge of the arm of the polypus, Arist. HA 524a7. 6. trunk, of Dagon, LXX 1 Ki. 5.4.

Key passages & sense analysis (Bonitz)

Index Aristotelicus. Hermann Bonitz's sense-by-sense analysis of ῥάχις — 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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