Plato › Greek Lexicon › πειράω

πειράω

peirao

attempt, endeavour, try

Appears 209 times across Plato's dialogues.

Frequency by work

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Dictionary (LSJ)

πειράω, Il. 8.8, etc. : impf. ἐπείρων Th. 4.25 : fut. -άσω [ᾱ] ib.9, 43 : aor. ἐπείρᾱσα S. OC 1276, Ar. Eq. 517, Th. 6.54 : pf. πεπείρᾱκα Luc. Am. 26 :—Pass., aor. ἐπειράθην [ᾱ] Th. 6.54; cf. πειράζω. M B. more freq. in Med. πειράομαι, Il. 2.193, 24.390, etc. : fut. -άσομαι [ᾱ] S. OC 959, etc.; Dor. 2pl. πειρασεῖσθε Ar. Ach. 743, cf. Hippod. ap. Stob. 4.1.94; later πειρᾱθήσομαι Gp. 12.13.12 : aor. ἐπειρᾱσάμην, Ion. ἐπειρησάμην, Od. 8.120, Hdt. 7.135, Th. 2.44,al.; but aor. Pass. ἐπειρήθην, Att. ἐπειράθην [ᾱ], found in med. sense, Il. 19.384, al., Hdt. 3.152,al., Th. 2.5 (v.l.), 33, 6.92, and in later Prose : pf. πεπείρᾱμαι, Ion. -ημαι, Od. 3.23, Pi. Fr. 110, Hdt. 9.46, S. Fr. 584, Antipho 5.1, etc. : 3pl. plpf. ἐπεπείραντο D.C. Fr. 24.3, Ion. ἐπεπειρέατο Hdt. 7.125. (From πεῖρα.) A. Act., attempt, endeavour, try, c. inf., μήτε τις . . πειράτω διακέρσαι ἐμὸν ἔπος Il. 8.8; πειρήσω (δύναμαι) φηλητέων ὄρχαμος εἶναι h.Merc. 175; π. ἐς τὴν Μηδικὴν ἐσβάλλειν Hdt. 6.84, cf. Ar. V. 1025, al. : folld. by ὡς . . , Il. 4.66, Od. 2.316, etc.; by ὅπως . . , 4.545 : c. Adj. neut., πολλὰ πειρῶντες Th. 6.38; πάντα Plu. 2.1122b : with inf. understood, Th. 7.32. II. c. gen. pers., make trial of one, μή μευ πειράτω, for the purpose of persuading, Il. 9.345, cf. 24.433; of things, τευχέων A.R. 3.1249 : in hostile sense, make an attempt on, μήλων πειρήσοντα Il. 12.301, Od. 6.134; οὐ πειρᾶν τῆς πόλιος, πρὶν . . Hdt. 6.82; π. τοῦ χωρίου Th. 1.61; Νισαίας Id. 4.70; ἀλλήλων Id. 7.38; νυμφείας εὐνᾶς Pi. N. 5.30. III. abs., ναυσὶ π. make an attempt by sea, Th. 4.25; π. ἐπὶ τὴν κώμην ib.43. IV. c. acc. rei, experience, τύχης ἐπήρειαν Luc. Am. 46. 2. c. acc. pers., make an attempt on a womanʼs honour, Ar. Eq. 517 (ubiv. Sch.), Pl. 150, 1067, Lys. 1.12, X. Cyr. 5.2.28, etc. :—Pass., πειραθεὶς ὁ Ἁρμόδιος ὑπὸ Ἱππάρχου Th. 6.54, cf. Pl. Phdr. 227c ; v. infr. B. IV, cf. πεῖρα II. B. more freq. in Med., c. inf., try to do, Il. 4.5, Hdt. 5.71, 6.138, al., Ar. Pl. 459, X. Oec. 6.2, Lys. 12.64, Isoc. 3.41, Pl. Tht. 186b : c. fut. inf., J. AJ 17.8.4 : the inf. is sts. understood, πειρήσεται (sc. ἀλύξαι) Od. 4.417 : folld. by εἰ, Il. 13.806, Pl. Phd. 95b; πειρήσεται αἴ κε θέῃσιν Il. 18.601; by ἐάν or ἄν, A. Pr. 327, Pl. Lg. 638e; by μὴ . . , lest . . , Od. 21.394; by ὅπως . . , X. An. 3.2.3 : c. part., freq. in Hdt., ἐπειρᾶτο ἐπιών 1.77; προσβαίνων ib.84; π. βιώμενοι 4.139; π. ἀποσχίζων 6.9, cf. 5,50, 7.139, al.; π. σκοπῶν Pl. Tht. 190e; c. neut. Adj., τὰ μεγάλα καὶ τὰ μικρὰ π. X. Cyr. 1.5.14. II. most freq. (v. A. II) c. gen., 1. c. gen. pers., make trial of one, Il. 10.444, Od. 13.336, etc.; νῦν σεῦ, ξεῖνε, ὀΐω πειρήσεσθαι, εἰ . . 19.215; ἕο αὐτοῦ ἐν ἔντεσι . . εἰ οἷ ἐφαρμόσσειε Il. 19.384; with gen. not expressed, ἔπεσιν πειρήσομαι 2.73 ; ἦ πρῶτʼ ἐξερέοιτο ἕκαστά τε πειρήσαιτο test him in each particular, Od. 4.119 (v.l. μυθήσαιτο) ; π. θεοῦ make trial of, tempt a god, Hdt. 6.86.γʹ, cf. A. Ag. 1663 (troch.) : in hostile sense, πρὶν πειρήσαιτʼ Ἀχιλῆος Il. 21.580 (with acc. cogn. added ἀέθλους . . ἐπειρήσαντʼ Ὀδυσῆος Od. 8.23) : freq. in Hdt., esp. ἀλλήλων πειρᾶσθαι, as ἐπειρῶντο κατὰ τὸ ἰσχυρὸν ἀλλήλων 1.76; πειρᾶσθέ μου γυναικὸς ὡς ἀφράσμονος A. Ag. 1401, etc.; π. τῆς Πελοποννήσου make an attempt on it, Hdt. 8.100; π. τοῦ τείχους Th. 2.81. 2. c. gen. rei, make proof or trial of . . , σθένεος Il. 15.359; ἥβης 23.432; χειρῶν καὶ σθένεος π., ἢ . . ἦ . . Od. 21.282; try oneʼs chance at or in a work or contest, ἔργου 18.369; ἀέθλου, ἀέθλων, Il. 23.707, Od. 8.100, etc.; παλαιμοσύνης ib. 126; make proof of, try a weapon, τόξου 21.159,180; νευρῆς ib.410 (but [ὀϊστοί,] τῶν τάχʼ ἔμελλον πειρήσεσθαι arrows whose force they were soon to make trial of, i. e.feel, ib. 418); also, make proof of, have experience of, esp. in pf. Pass., first in Hes., νηῶν Op. 660 ; οὐ πεπειρημένοι πρότερον [οἱ] Αἰγύπτιοι Ἑλλήνων Hdt. 4.159, cf. Pl. Phd. 118; πειρασάμενος ἀγαθῶν, δουλείας, Th. 2.44, 5.69, cf. Antipho 5.1; κακῶν D. 18.253; ὀρφανίας π., i.e. to be an orphan, Phalar. Ep. 49; but π. τινὸς μετρίου find him moderate by experience or on trial, Plu. Aem. 8, cf. Arat. 43; also, πεπείρανται ὅτι . . Lys. 27.2. 3. abs., try oneʼs fortune, try the chances of war, αἴ κε θεὸς πειρώμενος ἐνθάδʼ ἵκηται Il. 5.129 ; πειρώμενος ἢ ἐν ἀέθλῳ ἠὲ καὶ ἐν πολέμῳ making trial of oneʼs powers, 16.590; Ἕκτορι πειρηθῆναι ἀντιβίην, ἢ . . ἦ . . to try oneʼs fortune against him, 21.225; περὶ δʼ αὐτῆς πειρηθήτω (sc. τῆς ἵππου) let him try for her, as a prize, 23.553. III. make a trial or put a matter to the test, ἐν σοὶ πειρώμεθα Pl. Phlb. 21a : c. dat. modi, ἐγχείῃ πειρήσομαι Il. 5.279; ἐπειρήσαντο πόδεσσι tried their luck in the foot-race, Od. 8.120, cf. 205; σφαίρῃ 8.377; also π. σὺν ἔντεσι, σὺν τεύχεσι π., Il. 5.220, 11.386 : but in pf., οὐδέ τί πω μύθοισι πεπείρημαι I have not tried myself, have not found my skill, in words, Od. 3.23 : abs., ὁ πειραθεὶς πιστεύσει X. Eq.Mag. 1.16 ; πεπειραμένος σαφῶς οἶδα by experience, Id. Hier. 2.6. IV. c. acc. pers., make an attempt on (v. A.IV.2), Διὸς ἄκοιτιν Pi. P. 2.34.
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