ὄπισθεν

ὄπισθεν, in Ion. (Hdt. 4.72, al., SIG 46.65 (Halic., v B. C.), etc.) and late Att. (Luc. Am. 16, etc.) ὄπισθε before a conson., as also in Poets, E. Cyc. 545, IT 1333 : poet. also ὄπῐθεν Il. 6.181, al., Pi. O. 10(11).35, A. Pers. 1001 (lyr.) :—Adv. : I. of Place, behind, at the back, opp. πρόσθε, Il. 5.595 ; πρόσθε λέων ὄπιθεν δὲ δράκων μέσση δὲ χίμαιρα 6.181 ; ὄπισθεν καταλιπεῖν Od. 10.209 ; μένειν Il. 9.332, etc. ; πέμψει οὖρον ὄ. Od. 15.34 ; ὄπιθεν κομόωντες with long back-hair, Il. 2.542 ; ὄπιθεν κομόωσαι ἔθειραι IG 12(9).1179.9 (Euboea) ; ὄ. ἕπεσθαι, ἀκολουθεῖν, A. l. c., etc. ; οἱ ὄπιθεν those who are left behind, e.g. at home, Od. 11.66 ; but also, those who are in the rear, X. Cyr. 2.2.8 ; εἰ τοὺς ὄ. ἐς τὸ πρόσθεν ἄξομεν shall bring the rear ranks to the front (metaph.), S. Aj. 1249 ; αἱ ὄ. ἁψῖδες the hinder fellies, Hdt. 4.72 ; τὰ ὄ. the hinder parts, rear, back, Il. 11.613 ; οἱ ὄ. ἁρμοί IG 12.372.117 ; εἰς τοὔπισθεν back, backwards, E. Ph. 1410, Pl. Sph. 261b, etc. ; εἰς τ. τοξεύειν, i. e. ‘versis sagittis’, like the Parthians, X. An. 3.3.10 : opp. ἐκ τοὔπισθεν Ar. Ec. 482, cf. Th. 7.79, X. An. 4.1.6 ; ἐν τῷ ὄ. Pl. R. 614c, X. Cyn. 9.8, etc. ; ὄ. ποιήσασθαι τὸν ποταμόν place the river in his rear, Id. An. 1.10.9. 2. Prep. c. gen., behind, στῆ δʼ ὄπιθεν δίφροιο Il. 17.468 ; ὄπισθε μάχης 13.536 ; ὄπισθε τῆς θύρης Hdt. 1.9 ; ἔμπροσθέ τε Θερμοπυλέων καὶ ὄ. Id. 7.176 ; ὄ. ἐμοῦ . . εἰσῄει Pl. Smp. 175a, etc. : sts. after its case, δίφρου ὄπισθεν Il. 24.15 ; ἴμεν φάμας ὄπισθεν follow the voice, Pi. O. 6.63 ; γνώμης πατρῴας πάντʼ ὄ. ἑστάναι S. Ant. 640 ; also τούτοισι δʼ ὄ. ἴτω Cratin. 30 ; πνοιαῖς ὄπιθεν Βορέα Pi. O. 3.31 (s. v.l.). II. of Time, after, in future, hereafter, Il. 4.362, Od. 2.270, 18.168, etc. ; either of a thing absolutely future, or of one which follows something else, opp. αὐτίκα, Il. 9.519 ; ὄπιθεν οὐ πολλόν Pi. O. 10(11).35 ; πολλοῖς μησὶν ὄ. Theoc. Ep. 22.8 ; cf. ὀπίσω II.1. 2. ἐν τοῖσι ὄ. λόγοισι in the books yet to come, in the following books, Hdt. 5.22, 7.213 ; cf. ὀπίσω II.2 : but, in Gramm., of what has gone before, Sch. Od. 3.366, Hsch. s.v. Ἴωνες, Sch.Ar. Ra. 1488 ; ὁ ὄπιθεν χρόνος the earlier time, PMasp. 158.22 (vi A. D.) :—for Comp. ὀπίστερος, Sup. ὀπίστατος, v. sub vocc. (Prob. from *ὄπις ‘back’, contained in ἀνόπιν, κατόπιν, μετόπιν, ὀπίσω.)