The Homer Reader The Iliad & Odyssey · Greek and English

τρέω

treo

flee from fear, flee away

Appears 45 times across Homer's epics.

Frequency by work

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Dictionary (LSJ)

τρέω, Hom. (v. infr.), A. Th. 790 (lyr.): Ep. impf. τρέον Hes. Sc. 213, 2dual τρεέτην ib. 171: aor. ἔτρεσα Il. 11.745, Ep. τρέσσα 17.603: later Ep. pres. τρείω Opp. C. 1.417, (ὑπο-) Timo 58.4:—this Verb is never contracted, except when the contraction is into ει:—A. flee from fear, flee away (Aristarch. held this to be the usual meaning in Homer), τρεῖν μʼ οὐκ ἐᾷ Παλλάς Il. 5.256; μήτε . . τρέε μήτε τι τάρβει 21.288; τρέσσε δὲ παπτήνας 11.546, 17.603; τρεῖτʼ ἄσπετον ib.332: the sense of fleeing is most apparent in the phrases ἔτρεσαν ἄλλυδις ἄλλος 11.745, τρέσσαν δʼ ἄλλυδις ἄλλη Od. 6.138, τ. τεῖχος ὕπο Il. 22.143; τρεέτην Hes. Sc. 171; μὴ τρέσητε A. Supp. 711; μὴ τρέσας without fear, Id. Th. 436; οὐδὲν τρέσας Pl. Phd. 117b; but, 2. τρέσας (cf. ἀνδρῶν τρεσσάντων Il. 14.522, Tyrt. 11.14) was a technical term at Sparta, and sts. used where we might say runaway, coward, ὁ τρέσας Ἀριστόδημος Hdt. 7.231, cf. Tyrt.l.c., AP 7.230 (Eryc.); οἱ ἐν τῇ μάχῃ καταδειλιάσαντες, οὓς αὐτοὶ τρέσαντας ὀνομάζουσι Plu. Ages. 30, cf. Lyc. 21, 2.191c, etc.:—and later a real Subst. was used in Com., τρεσᾶς, τρεσᾶ, acc. τρεσᾶν, Eust. 772.12, cf. Gramm. ap. Gaisford Choeroboscus 1p.43. 3. in Argive Prose, like Att. φεύγω, to be banished, τρἐτο_ καὶ δαμευέσσθο_ IG 4.554 (vi/v B. C.). II. trans., fear, dread, be afraid of, c. acc., Il. 11.554, Pi. Pae. 4.40, A. Th. 397, Ag. 549, al., S. Ant. 1042, E. Ph. 1077; ἄρκτον . . οὐκ ἔτρεσεν X. An. 1.9.6:—so also c. gen., κελάδοιο, δηϊοτῆτος, Hes. Th. 850: τ. μὴ . . A. Th. 790 (lyr.).— Rare in Prose. (Cf. Skt. trásati ‘to be terrified’, Gr. ἄτρεστος.)
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