μυκτήρ

Ancient Greek

Etymology

From μύσσομαι (mússomai, “to blow the nose”) +‎ -τήρ (-tḗr). Ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *mew-k- (“slip, slime”), the same root of μύκης (múkēs, “mushroom”), μύξα (múxa, “mucus, slime”) and Latin mucus.

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /myk.tɛ̌ːr/ → /mykˈtir/ → /mikˈtir/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /myk.tɛ̌ːr/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /mykˈte̝r/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /mykˈtir/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /mykˈtir/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /mikˈtir/

Noun

μῠκτήρ • (muktḗr) m (genitive μῠκτῆρος); third declension

1. (in the plural) nostril

   Synonym: ῥώθων (rhṓthōn)

2. nozzle of a lamp
3. (zoology) elephant's trunk
4. (zoology) funnel of the cuttlefish
5. (figuratively) sneerer, scorner
6. (in the abstract) sarcasm, raillery

Declension

Third declension of ὁ μῠκτήρ; τοῦ μῠκτῆρος (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ὁ μῠκτήρ ho muktḗr	τὼ μῠκτῆρε tṑ muktêre	οἱ μῠκτῆρες hoi muktêres
Genitive	τοῦ μῠκτῆρος toû muktêros	τοῖν μῠκτήροιν toîn muktḗroin	τῶν μῠκτήρων tôn muktḗrōn
Dative	τῷ μῠκτῆρῐ tôi muktêri	τοῖν μῠκτήροιν toîn muktḗroin	τοῖς μῠκτῆρσῐ / μῠκτῆρσῐν toîs muktêrsi(n)
Accusative	τὸν μῠκτῆρᾰ tòn muktêra	τὼ μῠκτῆρε tṑ muktêre	τοὺς μῠκτῆρᾰς toùs muktêras
Vocative	μῠκτήρ muktḗr	μῠκτῆρε muktêre	μῠκτῆρες muktêres
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Derived terms

• μυκτηρίζω (muktērízō)
• μυκτήρισμα (muktḗrisma)
• μυκτηρισμός (muktērismós)
• μυκτηριστής (muktēristḗs)
• μυκτηρόθεν (muktēróthen)
• μυκτηρόκομπος (muktērókompos)

 

Descendants

• Greek: μυκτήρ (myktír)

Further reading

• “μυκτήρ”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “μυκτήρ”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
• μυκτήρ in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette

Greek

Etymology

From Ancient Greek μυκτήρ (muktḗr), from μύσσομαι (mússomai, “I blow my nose”). Related to μύξα (múxa, “snot, booger”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /miˈktir/
• Hyphenation: μυ‧κτήρ

Noun

μυκτήρ • (myktír) m (plural μυκτήρες)

1. (anatomy, formal, archaic, Katharevousa) nostril (either of the two orifices located on the nose)

Declension

	singular	plural
nominative	μυκτήρ (myktír)	μυκτήρες (myktíres)
genitive	μυκτήρος (myktíros)	μυκτήρων (myktíron)
accusative	μυκτήρ (myktír)	μυκτήρες (myktíres)
vocative	μυκτήρ (myktír)	μυκτήρες (myktíres)

Synonyms

• ρουθούνι n (routhoúni, “nostril”) (everyday term)

Related terms

• μυκτηρίζω (myktirízo, “to sniff at contemptuously, to disparage”)