Plato › Greek Lexicon › ἐθέλω

ἐθέλω

ethelo

to be willing

Appears 531 times across Plato's dialogues.

Frequency by work

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Dictionary (LSJ)

ἐθέλω or θέλω (v. infr.), Ep. subj. ἐθέλωμι Il. 1.549,9.397: impf. ἤθελον 14.120, etc.; Ep. and Lyr. ἔθελον 6.336, Thgn. 606, B. 10.73; Ion. ἐθέλεσκον Il. 13.106, Hdt. 6.12: fut. ἐθελήσω Il. 18.262, etc.; θελήσω Antipho 5.99: aor. 1 ἠθέλησα Hdt. 2.2, etc.; Ep. ἐθέλησα Il. 18.396; imper. θέλησον A. Pr. 783; subj. θελήσῃ ib. 1028, X. Cyr. 2.4.19, etc.; opt. θελήσαιμι S. OC 1133; part. θελήσας Id. OT 649 (lyr.): pf. ἠθέληκα X. Cyr. 5.2.9, Aeschin. 2.139, D. 47.5; τεθέληκα (Alexandrian acc. to Phryn. 307) LXXPs. 40(41).12, Phld. Rh. 2.76 S., S.E. M. 2.37: plpf. ἠθελήκει X. HG 6.5.21; ἐτεθελήκεσαν D.C. 44.26 codd. (elsewh. ἠθελήκεσαν as 46.47):—θέλω is never found in Hom. or Hes. exc. Il. 1.277 (dub.), ὅττι θέλοιεν Od. 15.317 as v.l. (ἅσσʼ ἐθέλοιεν Aristarch.), nor in Aeol.; rarely in early Ep. and Eleg., θέλοι h.Ap. 46, θέλει Sol. 27.12; but is found in Ion. Inscrr., SIG 45.16 (Halic., v B.C.), 1037.7 (Milet., iv B.C.), and in Semon. 7.13, Hippon. 22 B, Anacr. 92:— both forms in codd. of Hdt. and Hp. and in Heraclit. and Democr., also in Pi. and B.: Trag. never use ἐθέλω exc. in augmented forms, ἤθελον, -ησα: Com.never use θέλω exc. in phrases such as ἢν θεὸς θέλῃ, εἰ θεὸς θέλοι, Ar. Pl. 347, Ra. 533, or parodies of Trag.: early Att. Inscrr, have ἐθέλω IG 12.6.41, etc., till 250 B.C., when θέλω becomes common: Att. Prose writers rarely use θέλω exc. in phrases such as ἂν θεὸς θέλῃ Din. 2.3 or after a long vowel, e.g. μὴ θελῆσαι Th. 5.72, μὴ θελήσας Is. 8.11, μὴ θέλοντας And. 1.22, τῷ θέλοντι Id. 4.7, etc.; but θέλω Antipho 3.4.3, θελήσουσιν Id. 5.99: in later Gr. θέλω is regular exc. in the augmented forms; ἐθέλω is not found in LXX or NT:—Α. to be willing (of consent rather than desire, v. βούλομαι I), but also generally, wish, Od. 3.324:—Constr.: abs., esp. in part., ἐθέλων ἐθέλουσαν ἀνήγαγεν ib.272; εἰ σύ γε σῷ θυμῷ ἐθέλοις Il. 23.894; ἀλλά μοι ἤθελε θυμός Od. 11.566: freq. folld. by inf. pres. or aor., wish to . . , Il. 7.364, etc.: with inf. supplied, εἰ δʼ ἐθέλεις πεζός (sc. ἰέναι) Od. 3.324: c. acc. et inf., wish that . . , Il. 19.274, Hdt. 1.3; rarely folld. by ὥστε, E. Hipp. 1327: later c. ἵνα, Ev.Matt. 7.12, etc.: not used c. acc. only, exc. when an inf. is easily supplied, εὔκηλος τὰ φράζεαι ἅσσʼ ἐθέλῃσθα (sc. φράζεσθαι) Il. 1.554, cf. 9.397,7.182, Od. 14.172; σιτέονται δὲ οὐκ ὅσα ἐθέλουσι (sc. σιτέεσθαι) Hdt. 1.71, cf. Th. 5.50; εἰ καὶ τῆς ἀξίας ἔλαττον ἐθελήσειέ τις (sc. φράσαι) Jul. Or. 1.132a: also with neut. Pron. or Adj., τί δὴ θέλων; with what intent? A. Pr. 118. 2. with neg., almost, = δύναμαι, as μίμνειν οὐκ ἐθέλεσκον ἐναντίον they cared not to make a stand, i.e. they were unable, Il. 13.106; οὐδʼ . . ἤθελε θυμὸς τειρομένοις ἑτάροισιν ἀμυνέμεν 17.702: metaph. of things, of a stream, οὐδʼ ἔθελε προρέειν ἀλλʼ ἴσχετο would not run on, but stopped, 21.366, cf. Od. 8.223,316, h.Cer. 45; αὔλειοι δʼ ἔτʼ ἔχειν οὐκ ἐθέλουσι θύραι Sol. 4.28; τὰ δένδρα οὐδέν μʼ ἐθέλει διδάσκειν Pl. Phdr. 230d, cf. R. 370b (said to be an Att. use, Greg.Cor.p.135 S.). 3. part., ἐθέλων or θέλων willingly, gladly, Od. 3.272, etc. (also πιθοῦ θελήσας S. OT 649 (lyr.)); οὐκ ἐθέλων, = ἀεκών, Il. 4.300; with Art. like ὁ βουλόμενος, whoever will, i.e. any one, S. Ph. 619, Aj. 1146, Pl. Grg. 508c, etc. 4. θέλεις οὐ θέλεις nolens volens, Arr. Epict. 3.9.16; θέλει οὐ θέλει ib.3.3, M.Ant. 11.15. 5. μὴ ἔθελε, c. inf., do not, Il. 1.277,2.247, E. Fr. 174. 6. εἰ θέλεις if you please, S. OT 343. 7. folld. by subj., τί σοι θέλεις δῆτʼ εἰκάθω; in what wilt thou that I give way to thee? ib.651 (lyr.); θέλεις μείνωμεν αὐτοῦ; Id. El. 80. 8. maintain, hold, c. acc. et inf., Plu. 2.883e, Paus. 1.4.6. 9. delight in, love, ἔν τινι LXX 1 Ki. 18.22; τινά ib.Ps. 17(18).20; but οἱ κακῶς τινὰς θέλοντες their ill-wishers, Cat.Cod.Astr. 7.234. 10. ordain, decree, ἠθέλησεν [ὁ ἡγεμὼν] τὸν κίνδυνον τῆς προβολῆς εἶναι πρός τινας CPR 20.17 (iii A.D.), etc. II. of inanimate things (cf. supr. I.2), 1. to express a future event, like our will or shall, εἰ ἐθελήσει ἀναβῆναι ἡ τυραννίς Hdt. 1.109; εἰ ἐθελήσει ἐκτρέψαι τὸ ῥέεθρον ὁ Νεῖλος Id. 2.11; εἰ θέλει τοι μηδὲν ἀντίξοον καταστῆναι Id. 7.49, cf. Pl. R. 370b, etc.:—in this sense, very rarely of living things, οὐ δοῦναι θέλοι, = οὐκ ἂν δοίη, A. Eu. 429; εἴπερ . . οὗτός <σʼ> ἐθέλει κρατῆσαι Ar. V. 536, cf.Pi. N. 7.90, Pl. R. 375a. 2. to be naturally disposed, to be wont or accustomed, c. inf., συμβάσιες ἰσχυραὶ οὐκ ἐ. συμμένειν Hdt. 1.74; μεγάλα πρήγματα μεγάλοισι κινδύνοισι ἐ. καταιρέεσθαι Id. 7.50; αἱ πλευραὶ οὐκ ἐθέλουσιν ἐς τὸ εὐρὺ αὔξεσθαι Hp. Art. 41; οὐκ ἐ. αἱ γνῶμαι . . ὁμοῖαι εἶναι Th. 2.89; τοῦτʼ ἐνδελεχὲς ἐ. γίγνεσθαι Arist. Mete. 347a5, cf. Metaph. 1013b27, al.; οὐ θέλει ζῆν, of premature births, Id. HA 575a28. 3. in phrases expressive of meaning, τὸ θέλει σημαίνειν τὸ τέρας Hdt. 1.78; τὸ θέλει τὸ ἔπος εἶπαι Id. 6.37; τὸ θέλει τὰ δῶρα λέγειν Id. 4.131; τὸ ἔπος τοῦτο ἐθέλει λέγειν ὡς . . Id. 2.13. 4. τοῦ θέλοντος, = τοῦ θελήματος, S. OC 1220 (lyr., s.v.l.).
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