γλῶσσα

Ancient Greek

Etymology

From γλῶχες (glōkhes, “beard of corn”) (which perhaps comes from Proto-Indo-European *glōgʰs) and -ια (-ia), suffix used by short-a first-declension nouns and adjectives.

Alternative forms

• γλάσσα (Ionic)
• γλῶττα (Attic)

Pronunciation

• (5th BC Attic): IPA: /ɡlɔ́͜ɔs̚sa/

• (1st BC Egyptian): IPA: /ɣlóːs̚sa/

• (4th AD Koine): IPA: /ɣlós̚sa/

• (10th AD Byzantine): IPA: /ɣlós̚sa/

• (15th AD Constantinopolitan): IPA: /ɣlósa/

Noun

γλῶσσα (genitive γλώσσης) f, first declension; (glōssa)

1. a tongue
2. a language
3. the mouthpiece of a pipe

Inflection

Inflection

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ἡ γλῶσσᾰ	τὼ γλώσσᾱ	αἱ γλῶσσαι
Genitive	τῆς γλώσσης	τοῖν γλώσσαιν	τῶν γλωσσῶν
Dative	τῇ γλώσσῃ	τοῖν γλώσσαιν	ταῖς γλώσσαις
Accusative	τὴν γλῶσσᾰν	τὼ γλώσσᾱ	τὰς γλώσσᾱς
Vocative	γλῶσσᾰ	γλώσσᾱ	γλῶσσαι

Descendants

• English: glossary, gloss
• Greek: γλώσσα
• Italian: glossa
• Latin: glossārium

References

• Smyth, Greek Grammar, paragraph 221: -ya in short-a first declension nouns
• Bauer lexicon
• Liddell & Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon
• Strong’s concordance number: G1200