/ɡɹiːk/
OriginInherited from Old English Grēcas (“Greeks”), variant of Crēcas, from Proto-West Germanic *Krēkō, from Latin Graecus of uncertain origin, perhaps derived from the toponym Γραῖα (Graîa) or from other Paleo-Balkanic forms from a tribal name Graii.
Greek in any case has the cognate Γραικός (Graikós), the mythological ancestor of the Γραίοι (Graíoi, “Graecians”). Germanic cognates include Dutch Griek, German Grieche. The ⟨g⟩ in English and Germanic cognates was restored under influence from French grec and classical Latin Graecus. The adjective dates to 14th-century Middle English, replacing Old English Grēċisċ (“Greekish”) and earlier Middle English Gregeis. In reference to fraternities and sororities, a clipping of earlier Greek-letter in reference to their usual names being initialisms of mottos in the Greek language. In reference to terms used to analysize financial derivatives, from their usual names consisting of Greek letters.
- Of or relating to Greece, its people, its language, or its culture.
“Ikey the blacksmith had forged us a spearhead after a sketch from a picture of a Greek warrior; and a rake-handle served as a shaft.”
“Sanskrit, Greek, Slavonic, Germanic, and Celtic names were all of this type, but there are also shorter names formed from the compound ones; […].”
“The ancient Greek physician Hippocrates promoted wine for various purposes, including reducing fevers and dressing wounds.”
- colloquial, figurativelySynonym of incomprehensible, used for foreign speech or text, technical jargon, or advanced subjects.
- US, not-comparableOf or relating to collegiate fraternities, sororities, or (uncommon) honor societies.
““Every single person is going to have a different experience watching this film,” she said when I asked about possibly labeling the Greek system as “toxic”.”
- countable, uncountableThe language spoken by people of Greece, particularly, depending on context, Ancient Greek or Modern Greek.
“For it is vain and foolish to talk of knowing Greek, since in our ignorance we should be at the bottom of any class of schoolboys, since we do not know how the words sounded, or where precisely we oug”
“It’s one that I would personally endorse: My individual circumstances were such that, by the age of 12, I could speak German, Greek and English, so languages became my passion and my hobby.”
- countable, uncountableThe written form of these languages.
- countable, uncountableA surname.
- countableA person from Greece or of Greek descent.
“The Greeks believed the sun went round the earth.”
- uncountableGreek cuisine, traditional or representative Greek food.
- colloquial, figuratively, uncountableSynonym of gibberish, used for foreign speech or text, technical jargon, or advanced subjects.
“"I don't hear one word in ten that they say," continued Mrs. Abingdon; "it's Greek to me. However, ..."”
“"It's all Greek to me," said my companion at the outset, but as the warrior continued, his fears arose within him; it might be sentence of death—what did he know what it might not be?”
“preferred risk... family maintenance... 20-pay life. That's a bare sampling of the merchandise you're asked to pick and choose from. If it sounds like Greek to you, don't worry. It sounds like Greek t”
- colloquial, figuratively, metonymically, uncountableSynonym of lorem ipsum, dummy placeholder text used in greeking.
- US, colloquial, countable, metonymicallyA member of a collegiate fraternity or sorority.
“Was Joe a Greek in college?”
- archaic, countable, slangA cunning rogue.
“The wind-up is, that the father becomes bankrupt; the wife and daughters town-traders; the sons Greeks, Fancy-swells, Conveyancers (pickpockets), or Cracksmen (house breakers), and the New Drop is the”
“When Greek meets Greek neither is wont to get much satisfaction.”
- archaic, countable, slangA merry fellow.
- slang, uncountableAnal sex.
“She is absolutely a total GFE, no limits, except no Greek. (Well...I say “no Greek” - - if she is really hot for you, and if she is really turned on in a long session, she might beg for a finger in he”
““What's within reason?” “Hand-job, blow-job, full sex — straight, full service. Greek, maybe, if you're not too big. Golden shower, if you like, but not reverse. No hardsports. And absolutely nothing ”
- countable, in-plural, uncountableOne of the Greeks, measures of derivative price sensitivity.
- alt-ofAlternative letter-case form of Greek (“nonsense writing or talk; gibberish”).
- alt-ofAlternative letter-case form of Greek (“anal sex”).
- obsoleteTo cheat at cards.
“A discovery of Greeking at Brighton, has made considerable noise this month in the sporting world.”
- alt-of, uncommonAlternative letter-case form of greek.
- transitiveTo display a placeholder (instead of text), especially to optimize speed in displaying text that would be too small to read.
“You can specify the type size below which text will be greeked in the Preferences dialog box. Designers often prefer to use greeked text in rough layouts because it helps the client focus on the desig”
“If text gets smaller than this value, [Adobe] Illustrator shows the text blocks as gray bars, an operation called greeking. Both type size and view size figure into the equation, so that 6-point type ”
- transitiveTo fill a template with nonsense text (particularly the Lorem ipsum), so that form can be focused on instead of content.
- transitiveTo obscure a corporate logo that has not been permitted for use in a production.
FormsGreeker(comparative) · Greekest(superlative) · Gr.(alternative, abbreviation) · Greeke(alternative, obsolete) · Greeks(plural) · Greeks(present, singular, third-person) · Greeking(participle, present) · Greeked(participle, past) · Greeked(past) · greeks(plural) · greeks(present, singular, third-person) · greeking(participle, present) · greeked(participle, past) · greeked(past)