φίλος

See also: φῖλος and -φιλος

Ancient Greek

Etymology

From Proto-Hellenic *pʰílos, traditionally derived from from Proto-Indo-European *bʰil-o-s, from *bʰil- (“decent, good, harmonious, friendly”). In this case, cognate with Old Irish bil (“good, mild”) and Proto-Germanic *biliz (“kind, gentle; decent, fair”), whence Old English bile- (“kind, suitable, appropriate”, prefix), German billig (“appropriate, fitting, inexpensive, cheap”), and Dutch billijk (“appropriate”).

However, Beekes rejects the above etymology based on the original meaning of the Greek word apparently being "own, accompanying" rather than "beloved", and leaves the origin open.

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /pʰí.los/ → /ˈɸi.los/ → /ˈfi.los/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /pʰí.los/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈpʰi.los/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈɸi.los/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈfi.los/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈfi.los/

Adjective

φῐ́λος • (phĭ́los) m (feminine φῐ́λη, neuter φῐ́λον); first/second declension

1. That which is loved or important: beloved, dear, of or from a friend
2. (less commonly): loving, friendly

Inflection

First and second declension of φῐ́λος; φῐ́λη; φῐ́λον (Attic)

Number		Singular				Dual				Plural
Case/Gender		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative		φῐ́λος phĭ́los	φῐ́λη phĭ́lē	φῐ́λον phĭ́lon		φῐ́λω phĭ́lō	φῐ́λᾱ phĭ́lā	φῐ́λω phĭ́lō		φῐ́λοι phĭ́loi	φῐ́λαι phĭ́lai	φῐ́λᾰ phĭ́lă
Genitive		φῐ́λου phĭ́lou	φῐ́λης phĭ́lēs	φῐ́λου phĭ́lou		φῐ́λοιν phĭ́loin	φῐ́λαιν phĭ́lain	φῐ́λοιν phĭ́loin		φῐ́λων phĭ́lōn	φῐ́λων phĭ́lōn	φῐ́λων phĭ́lōn
Dative		φῐ́λῳ phĭ́lōi	φῐ́λῃ phĭ́lēi	φῐ́λῳ phĭ́lōi		φῐ́λοιν phĭ́loin	φῐ́λαιν phĭ́lain	φῐ́λοιν phĭ́loin		φῐ́λοις phĭ́lois	φῐ́λαις phĭ́lais	φῐ́λοις phĭ́lois
Accusative		φῐ́λον phĭ́lon	φῐ́λην phĭ́lēn	φῐ́λον phĭ́lon		φῐ́λω phĭ́lō	φῐ́λᾱ phĭ́lā	φῐ́λω phĭ́lō		φῐ́λους phĭ́lous	φῐ́λᾱς phĭ́lās	φῐ́λᾰ phĭ́lă
Vocative		φῐ́λε phĭ́le	φῐ́λη phĭ́lē	φῐ́λον phĭ́lon		φῐ́λω phĭ́lō	φῐ́λᾱ phĭ́lā	φῐ́λω phĭ́lō		φῐ́λοι phĭ́loi	φῐ́λαι phĭ́lai	φῐ́λᾰ phĭ́lă
Derived forms		Adverb				Comparative				Superlative
		φῐ́λως phĭ́lōs				φῐλώτερος phĭlṓteros				φῐλώτᾰτος phĭlṓtătos
Notes:		This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

First and second declension of φῐ́λος; φῐ́λη; φῐ́λον (Epic)

Number		Singular				Dual				Plural
Case/Gender		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative		φῐ́λος phĭ́los	φῐ́λη phĭ́lē	φῐ́λον phĭ́lon		φῐ́λω phĭ́lō	φῐ́λᾱ phĭ́lā	φῐ́λω phĭ́lō		φῐ́λοι phĭ́loi	φῐ́λαι phĭ́lai	φῐ́λᾰ phĭ́lă
Genitive		φῐ́λου / φῐλοῖο / φῐ́λοιο / φῐλόο / φῐ́λοο phĭ́lou / phĭloîo / phĭ́loio / phĭlóo / phĭ́loo	φῐ́λης phĭ́lēs	φῐ́λου / φῐλοῖο / φῐ́λοιο / φῐλόο / φῐ́λοο phĭ́lou / phĭloîo / phĭ́loio / phĭlóo / phĭ́loo		φῐ́λοιῐν phĭ́loiĭn	φῐ́λαιν / φῐ́λαιῐν / φῐ́λῃῐν phĭ́lai(ĭ)n / phĭ́lēiĭn	φῐ́λοιῐν phĭ́loiĭn		φῐ́λων phĭ́lōn	φῐλᾱ́ων / φῐλέ͜ων / φῐλῶν phĭlā́ōn / phĭlé͜ōn / phĭlôn	φῐ́λων phĭ́lōn
Dative		φῐ́λῳ phĭ́lōi	φῐ́λῃ phĭ́lēi	φῐ́λῳ phĭ́lōi		φῐ́λοιῐν phĭ́loiĭn	φῐ́λαιν / φῐ́λαιῐν / φῐ́λῃῐν phĭ́lai(ĭ)n / phĭ́lēiĭn	φῐ́λοιῐν phĭ́loiĭn		φῐ́λοισῐ / φῐ́λοισῐν / φῐ́λοις phĭ́loisĭ(n) / phĭ́lois	φῐ́λῃσῐ / φῐ́λῃσῐν / φῐ́λῃς / φῐ́λαις phĭ́lēisĭ(n) / phĭ́lēis / phĭ́lais	φῐ́λοισῐ / φῐ́λοισῐν / φῐ́λοις phĭ́loisĭ(n) / phĭ́lois
Accusative		φῐ́λον phĭ́lon	φῐ́λην phĭ́lēn	φῐ́λον phĭ́lon		φῐ́λω phĭ́lō	φῐ́λᾱ phĭ́lā	φῐ́λω phĭ́lō		φῐ́λους phĭ́lous	φῐ́λᾱς phĭ́lās	φῐ́λᾰ phĭ́lă
Vocative		φῐ́λε / φῖλε phĭ́le / phîle	φῐ́λη phĭ́lē	φῐ́λον phĭ́lon		φῐ́λω phĭ́lō	φῐ́λᾱ phĭ́lā	φῐ́λω phĭ́lō		φῐ́λοι phĭ́loi	φῐ́λαι phĭ́lai	φῐ́λᾰ phĭ́lă
Derived forms		Adverb				Comparative				Superlative
		φῐ́λως phĭ́lōs				φῐλώτερος / φῐλίων / φίλτερος phĭlṓteros / phĭlíōn / phílteros				φῐλώτᾰτος / φίλτᾰτος phĭlṓtătos / phíltătos
Notes:		Dialects other than Attic are not well attested. Some forms may be based on conjecture. Use with caution.

Derived terms

• Ἀντίφιλος (Antíphilos)
• ἀρηΐφιλος (arēḯphilos)
• Θεόφιλος (Theóphilos)
• Σώφιλος (Sṓphilos)
• φῐλέω (phĭléō)
• Φίλιππος (Phílippos)
• φιλο- (philo-)
• Φιλοίτιος (Philoítios)
• Φιλοκλῆς (Philoklês)
• Φιλοκράτης (Philokrátēs)
• Φιλοκτήτης (Philoktḗtēs)
• Φιλομήλη (Philomḗlē)
• Φιλοπαθώ (Philopathṓ)
• Φιλόστρατος (Philóstratos)
• φῐλότης (phĭlótēs)
• φιλότιμος (philótimos)
• φιλῳδός (philōidós)
• φίλως (phílōs)

 

Related terms

• φῐλία (phĭlía)
• φῖλος (phîlos)
• φιλότης (philótēs)

Descendants

• Latin: -phila

Noun

φῐ́λος • (phĭ́los) m (genitive φῐ́λου); second declension

1. friend

Declension

Second declension of ὁ φῐ́λος; τοῦ φῐ́λου (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ὁ φῐ́λος ho phĭ́los	τὼ φῐ́λω tṑ phĭ́lō	οἱ φῐ́λοι hoi phĭ́loi
Genitive	τοῦ φῐ́λου toû phĭ́lou	τοῖν φῐ́λοιν toîn phĭ́loin	τῶν φῐ́λων tôn phĭ́lōn
Dative	τῷ φῐ́λῳ tôi phĭ́lōi	τοῖν φῐ́λοιν toîn phĭ́loin	τοῖς φῐ́λοις toîs phĭ́lois
Accusative	τὸν φῐ́λον tòn phĭ́lon	τὼ φῐ́λω tṑ phĭ́lō	τοὺς φῐ́λους toùs phĭ́lous
Vocative	φῐ́λε phĭ́le	φῐ́λω phĭ́lō	φῐ́λοι phĭ́loi
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Second declension of φῐ́λος; φῐ́λου (Epic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	φῐ́λος phĭ́los	φῐ́λω phĭ́lō	φῐ́λοι phĭ́loi
Genitive	φῐ́λου / φῐλοῖο / φῐ́λοιο / φῐλόο / φῐ́λοο phĭ́lou / phĭloîo / phĭ́loio / phĭlóo / phĭ́loo	φῐ́λοιῐν phĭ́loiĭn	φῐ́λων phĭ́lōn
Dative	φῐ́λῳ phĭ́lōi	φῐ́λοιῐν phĭ́loiĭn	φῐ́λοισῐ / φῐ́λοισῐν / φῐ́λοις phĭ́loisĭ(n) / phĭ́lois
Accusative	φῐ́λον phĭ́lon	φῐ́λω phĭ́lō	φῐ́λους phĭ́lous
Vocative	φῐ́λε phĭ́le	φῐ́λω phĭ́lō	φῐ́λοι phĭ́loi
Notes:	Dialects other than Attic are not well attested. Some forms may be based on conjecture. Use with caution.

Second declension of ὁ φῐ́λος; τοῦ φῐ́λοιο (Doric)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ὁ φῐ́λος ho phĭ́los	τὼ φῐ́λω tṑ phĭ́lō	τοὶ φῐ́λοι toì phĭ́loi
Genitive	τοῦ φῐ́λοιο toû phĭ́loio	τοῖν φῐ́λοιν toîn phĭ́loin	τῶν φῐ́λων tôn phĭ́lōn
Dative	τῷ φῐ́λῳ tôi phĭ́lōi	τοῖν φῐ́λοιν toîn phĭ́loin	τοῖς φῐ́λοις toîs phĭ́lois
Accusative	τὸν φῐ́λον tòn phĭ́lon	τὼ φῐ́λω tṑ phĭ́lō	τοὺς φῐ́λους toùs phĭ́lous
Vocative	φῐ́λε phĭ́le	φῐ́λω phĭ́lō	φῐ́λοι phĭ́loi
Notes:	Dialects other than Attic are not well attested. Some forms may be based on conjecture. Use with caution.

Descendants

• Mariupol Greek: фи́лос (fílos)

Further reading

• “φίλος”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “φίλος”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “φίλος”, in Autenrieth, Georg (1891) A Homeric Dictionary for Schools and Colleges, New York: Harper and Brothers
• φίλος in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• Bauer, Walter et al. (2001) A Greek–English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, Third edition, Chicago: University of Chicago Press
• φίλος in Cunliffe, Richard J. (1924) A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect: Expanded Edition, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, published 1963
• “φίλος”, in Slater, William J. (1969) Lexicon to Pindar, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter
• G5384 in Strong, James (1979) Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance to the Bible
• Woodhouse, S. C. (1910) English–Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language‎^[1], London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited.
  • acceptable idem, page 5.
  • adherent idem, page 11.
  • adorable idem, page 13.
  • agreeable idem, page 19.
  • beloved idem, page 73.
  • cheering idem, page 129.
  • cherished idem, page 129.
  • dear idem, page 198.
  • endearing idem, page 272.
  • favourable idem, page 311.
  • friend idem, page 345.
  • friendly idem, page 345.
  • glad idem, page 360.
  • gracious idem, page 368.
  • joyful idem, page 464.
  • kind idem, page 469.
  • loved idem, page 502.
  • loving idem, page 502.
  • pleasant idem, page 619.
  • precious idem, page 634.
  • propitious idem, page 653.
  • sweet idem, page 848.
  • tender idem, page 861.
  • valued idem, page 943.
  • welcome idem, page 973.

Greek

Etymology

Inherited from Ancient Greek φίλος (phílos), probably from Proto-Hellenic *pʰílos, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰil-o-s, from *bʰil- (“decent, good, harmonious, friendly”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfi.los/
• Hyphenation: φί‧λος

Noun

φίλος • (fílos) m (plural φίλοι, feminine φίλη)

1. friend
2. boyfriend
3. acquaintance

Declension

Declension of φίλος

	singular	plural
nominative	φίλος (fílos)	φίλοι (fíloi)
genitive	φίλου (fílou)	φίλων (fílon)
accusative	φίλο (fílo)	φίλους (fílous)
vocative	φίλε (fíle)	φίλοι (fíloi)

Related terms

• -φιλος (-filos)
• φίλαθλος m (fílathlos, “sports fan”)
• φιλικός (filikós, “friendly”)
• φιλικά (filiká, “in a friendly manner”, adverb)
• φιλικό n (filikó, “friendly (match)”)
• φιλοξενία f (filoxenía /⁠hospitality⁠/)
• φιλόξενος (filóxenos, “hospitable”)
• φιλοξενούμενος (filoxenoúmenos, “hospitable”)

Adjective

φίλος • (fílos) m (feminine φίλη, neuter φίλο)

1. friendly
2. dear
3. beloved (obsolete, literary)

Declension

Declension of φίλος

	singular				plural
	masculine	feminine	neuter		masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	φίλος (fílos)	φίλη (fíli)	φίλο (fílo)		φίλοι (fíloi)	φίλες (fíles)	φίλα (fíla)
genitive	φίλου (fílou)	φίλης (fílis)	φίλου (fílou)		φίλων (fílon)	φίλων (fílon)	φίλων (fílon)
accusative	φίλο (fílo)	φίλη (fíli)	φίλο (fílo)		φίλους (fílous)	φίλες (fíles)	φίλα (fíla)
vocative	φίλε (fíle)	φίλη (fíli)	φίλο (fílo)		φίλοι (fíloi)	φίλες (fíles)	φίλα (fíla)

Derivations:
Comparative: πιο + positive forms (e.g. πιο φίλος, etc.)
Relative superlative: definite article + πιο + positive forms (e.g. ο πιο φίλος, etc.)