greek

CEFRA2

/ɡɹiːk/

adjective · noun

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    adjective

    Relating to Greece, its people, or its language.

  2. 02

    adjective

    Extra detail

    Of or relating to collegiate fraternities, sororities, or (uncommon) honor societies.

Examples

  • The Roman football game was like the Greek game.

  • We studied Greek culture from various aspects.

At a glance

Sits at A2 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
2
Citations
4

Deep Dive

adjective

Extra meaning

  1. Synonym of incomprehensible, used for foreign speech or text, technical jargon, or advanced subjects.

noun

Extra meanings

  1. Alternative letter-case form of Greek (“nonsense writing or talk; gibberish”).

  2. Alternative letter-case form of Greek (“anal sex”).

More examples

In context

  • We studied the writings of the Greek philosopher Aristotle.

  • The Greeks believed the sun went round the earth.

  • Was Joe a Greek in college?

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

The ancient city of Athens is known for its blank history.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

adjective

Inherited 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 so...