μαθαλίς

Ancient Greek

Etymology

Formation like ἀγκαλίς (ankalís), τρυφαλίς (truphalís) and φυσαλίς (phusalís), but without etymology. Connection with μάθυαι (máthuai, “jaws”) and μασάομαι (masáomai, “to chew”) seems impossible. Furnée compares Latin matula (“vessel for liquids; chamber pot”), Georgian მათარა (matara, “waterskin, flask”) and βάτος (bátos, “Hebrew unit of measure”). Beekes does not dismiss a Pre-Greek origin.

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /ma.tʰa.lís/ → /ma.θaˈlis/ → /ma.θaˈlis/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /ma.tʰa.lís/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ma.tʰaˈlis/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ma.θaˈlis/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ma.θaˈlis/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ma.θaˈlis/

Noun

μᾰθᾰλῐ́ς • (măthălĭ́s) f (genitive μᾰθᾰλῐ́δος); third declension

1. kind of cup, used as a unit of measure

Inflection

Third declension of ἡ μᾰθᾰλῐ́ς; τῆς μᾰθᾰλῐ́δος (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ἡ μᾰθᾰλῐ́ς hē măthălĭ́s	τὼ μᾰθᾰλῐ́δε tṑ măthălĭ́de	αἱ μᾰθᾰλῐ́δες hai măthălĭ́des
Genitive	τῆς μᾰθᾰλῐ́δος tês măthălĭ́dos	τοῖν μᾰθᾰλῐ́δοιν toîn măthălĭ́doin	τῶν μᾰθᾰλῐ́δων tôn măthălĭ́dōn
Dative	τῇ μᾰθᾰλῐ́δῐ têi măthălĭ́dĭ	τοῖν μᾰθᾰλῐ́δοιν toîn măthălĭ́doin	ταῖς μᾰθᾰλῐ́σῐ / μᾰθᾰλῐ́σῐν taîs măthălĭ́sĭ(n)
Accusative	τὴν μᾰθᾰλῐ́δᾰ tḕn măthălĭ́dă	τὼ μᾰθᾰλῐ́δε tṑ măthălĭ́de	τᾱ̀ς μᾰθᾰλῐ́δᾰς tā̀s măthălĭ́dăs
Vocative	μᾰθᾰλῐ́ς măthălĭ́s	μᾰθᾰλῐ́δε măthălĭ́de	μᾰθᾰλῐ́δες măthălĭ́des
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension. Nominative singular -ς (-s) arose by reduction of the original cluster *-ds.

Further reading

• “μαθαλίς”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• μαθαλίς in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010) Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 10), with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN