ῥέμβω

Ancient Greek

Etymology

Traditionally derived from a Proto-Indo-European *wremb-, a nasal-infixed form of *werb- (“to turn, twist, bend”), from *wer-, and compared with Middle Low German wrimpen, Lithuanian reñgtis, Latin vertō (“to turn, bend”), Old English weorpan (“to throw away”), English versus.

However, Beekes argues for a Pre-Greek origin instead, based on the strange structure of the supposed Indo-European root, as well as interchange in labials π/β/φ of the word's derivatives and relatives, and assigns a Pre-Greek origin.^[1]

On the other hand, Kroonen maintains an Indo-European origin, deriving the Greek from *wremgʷ-, a nasal-infixed form of a root *wergʷ- (“to bend, spin, warp”), comparing Proto-Germanic *werpaną (“to throw, cast”).^[2]

Pronunciation

(5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /r̥ém.bɔː/
(1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈrem.bo/
(4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈrem.bo/
(10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈrem.bo/
(15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈrem.bo/

Verb

ῥέμβω • (rhémbō)

to turn in circles
- 129 CE – 216 CE, Galen, 19 134
(middle voice) to roam, rove about
- 40 CE – 115 CE, Dio Chrysostom, Collected Works 62.7
- 342 BCE – 290 BCE, Menander 481.15
- 46 CE – 120 CE, Plutarch, Demosthenes 6
- 46 CE – 120 CE, Plutarch, Fabius Maximus 20
- Ptol.Euerg. 3J
- 300 BCE – 200 BCE, Septuagint, Proverbs 7.12
1. (figuratively) to be unsteady, act at random
  - 46 CE – 120 CE, Plutarch, Moralia 2.80f
  - 46 CE – 120 CE, Plutarch, Pompey 20
  - 160 CE – 210 CE, Sextus Empiricus, Against the Mathematicians 2.52

Inflection

Present: ῥέμβω, ῥέμβομαι

number		singular			dual		plural
		first	second	third	second	third	first	second	third
active	indicative	ῥέμβω	ῥέμβεις	ῥέμβει	ῥέμβετον	ῥέμβετον	ῥέμβομεν	ῥέμβετε	ῥέμβουσῐ(ν)
	subjunctive	ῥέμβω	ῥέμβῃς	ῥέμβῃ	ῥέμβητον	ῥέμβητον	ῥέμβωμεν	ῥέμβητε	ῥέμβωσῐ(ν)
	optative	ῥέμβοιμῐ	ῥέμβοις	ῥέμβοι	ῥέμβοιτον	ῥεμβοίτην	ῥέμβοιμεν	ῥέμβοιτε	ῥέμβοιεν
	imperative		ῥέμβε	ῥεμβέτω	ῥέμβετον	ῥεμβέτων		ῥέμβετε	ῥεμβόντων
middle/ passive	indicative	ῥέμβομαι	ῥέμβῃ, ῥέμβει	ῥέμβεται	ῥέμβεσθον	ῥέμβεσθον	ῥεμβόμεθᾰ	ῥέμβεσθε	ῥέμβονται
	subjunctive	ῥέμβωμαι	ῥέμβῃ	ῥέμβηται	ῥέμβησθον	ῥέμβησθον	ῥεμβώμεθᾰ	ῥέμβησθε	ῥέμβωνται
	optative	ῥεμβοίμην	ῥέμβοιο	ῥέμβοιτο	ῥέμβοισθον	ῥεμβοίσθην	ῥεμβοίμεθᾰ	ῥέμβοισθε	ῥέμβοιντο
	imperative		ῥέμβου	ῥεμβέσθω	ῥέμβεσθον	ῥεμβέσθων		ῥέμβεσθε	ῥεμβέσθων
		active				middle/passive
infinitive		ῥέμβειν				ῥέμβεσθαι
participle	m	ῥέμβων				ῥεμβόμενος
	f	ῥέμβουσᾰ				ῥεμβομένη
	n	ῥέμβον				ῥεμβόμενον
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For conjugation in dialects other than Attic, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal conjugation.

Imperfect: ἔρρεμβον, ἐρρεμβόμην

number		singular			dual		plural
		first	second	third	second	third	first	second	third
active	indicative	ἔρρεμβον	ἔρρεμβες	ἔρρεμβε(ν)	ἐρρέμβετον	ἐρρεμβέτην	ἐρρέμβομεν	ἐρρέμβετε	ἔρρεμβον
middle/ passive	indicative	ἐρρεμβόμην	ἐρρέμβου	ἐρρέμβετο	ἐρρέμβεσθον	ἐρρεμβέσθην	ἐρρεμβόμεθᾰ	ἐρρέμβεσθε	ἐρρέμβοντο
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For conjugation in dialects other than Attic, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal conjugation.

Aorist: ἐρρέμφθην

number		singular			dual		plural
		first	second	third	second	third	first	second	third
passive	indicative	ἐρρέμφθην	ἐρρέμφθης	ἐρρέμφθη	ἐρρέμφθητον	ἐρρεμφθήτην	ἐρρέμφθημεν	ἐρρέμφθητε	ἐρρέμφθησᾰν
	subjunctive	ῥεμφθῶ	ῥεμφθῇς	ῥεμφθῇ	ῥεμφθῆτον	ῥεμφθῆτον	ῥεμφθῶμεν	ῥεμφθῆτε	ῥεμφθῶσῐ(ν)
	optative	ῥεμφθείην	ῥεμφθείης	ῥεμφθείη	ῥεμφθεῖτον, ῥεμφθείητον	ῥεμφθείτην, ῥεμφθειήτην	ῥεμφθεῖμεν, ῥεμφθείημεν	ῥεμφθεῖτε, ῥεμφθείητε	ῥεμφθεῖεν, ῥεμφθείησᾰν
	imperative		ῥέμφθητῐ	ῥεμφθήτω	ῥέμφθητον	ῥεμφθήτων		ῥέμφθητε	ῥεμφθέντων
							passive
infinitive							ῥεμφθῆναι
participle	m						ῥεμφθείς
	f						ῥεμφθεῖσᾰ
	n						ῥεμφθέν
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For conjugation in dialects other than Attic, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal conjugation.

Derived terms

ἀπορρέμβομαι (aporrhémbomai)
διαρρέμβομαι (diarrhémbomai)
περιρρέμβομαι (perirrhémbomai)
συρρέμβομαι (surrhémbomai)
ὑπορέμβομαι (huporémbomai)

Related terms

ῥεμβεύω (rhembeúō)
ῥέμβη (rhémbē)
ῥεμβός (rhembós)
ῥέμβος (rhémbos)
ῥεμβώδης (rhembṓdēs)
ῥόμβος (rhómbos)

References

^ Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010) “*ῥέμβομαι”, in Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 10), with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 1280
^ Guus Kroonen (2013) “*werpan-”, in Alexander Lubotsky, editor, Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 11)‎^[1], Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 581