ὅστις

Ancient Greek

Etymology

From ὅς (hós, “who, which”, relative pronoun) +‎ τῐς (tis, “someone, anyone”, indefinite pronoun).

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /hós.tis/ → /ˈos.tis/ → /ˈos.tis/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /hós.tis/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈ(h)os.tis/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈos.tis/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈos.tis/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈos.tis/

Pronoun

ὅστῐς • (hóstis)

1. indefinite relative pronoun: whoever, whichever; anyone who, anything which; someone who, something which
2. indirect interrogative pronoun corresponding to direct interrogative τίς (tís), τί (tí): who, what, which
   1. replaces τίς (tís), τί (tí) when someone repeats a question asked by another person
      • 405 BCE, Aristophanes, The Frogs 197–198:

        Χάρων   […] οὗτος τί ποιεῖς;
        Διόνυσος   ὅ τι ποιῶ;

        Khárōn   […] hoûtos tí poieîs?
        Diónusos   hó ti poiô?

        Charon: This man, what are you doing?
        Dionysus: What am I doing?

Inflection

Declined forms (Attic)

Number		Singular				Dual				Plural
Case/Gender		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative		ὅστῐς hóstis	ἥτῐς hḗtis	ὅτῐ hóti		ὥτῐνε hṓtine	ὥτῐνε hṓtine	ὥτῐνε hṓtine		οἵτῐνες hoítines	αἵτῐνες haítines	ᾰ̔́τῐνᾰ / ᾰ̔́ττᾰ hátina / hátta
Genitive		οὗτῐνος / ὅτου hoûtinos / hótou	ἧστῐνος hêstinos	οὗτῐνος / ὅτου hoûtinos / hótou		οἷντῐνοιν hoîntinoin	οἷντῐνοιν hoîntinoin	οἷντῐνοιν hoîntinoin		ὧντῐνων / ὅτων hôntinōn / hótōn	ὧντῐνων hôntinōn	ὧντῐνων / ὅτων hôntinōn / hótōn
Dative		ᾧτῐνῐ / ὅτῳ hôitini / hótōi	ᾗτῐνῐ hêitini	ᾧτῐνῐ / ὅτῳ hôitini / hótōi		οἷντῐνοιν hoîntinoin	οἷντῐνοιν hoîntinoin	οἷντῐνοιν hoîntinoin		οἷστῐσῐ / οἷστῐσῐν / ὅτοις hoîstisi(n) / hótois	αἷστῐσῐ / αἷστῐσῐν haîstisi(n)	οἷστῐσῐ / οἷστῐσῐν / ὅτοις hoîstisi(n) / hótois
Accusative		ὅντῐνᾰ hóntina	ἥντῐνᾰ hḗntina	ὅτῐ hóti		ὥτῐνε hṓtine	ὥτῐνε hṓtine	ὥτῐνε hṓtine		οὕστῐνᾰς hoústinas	ᾱ̔́στῐνᾰς hā́stinas	ᾰ̔́τῐνᾰ / ᾰ̔́ττᾰ hátina / hátta
Vocative		—	—	—		—	—	—		—	—	—
Notes:		This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Declined forms (Epic)

Number		Singular				Dual				Plural
Case/Gender		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative		ὅστῐς / ὅτῐς hóstis / hótis	ἥτις hḗtis	ὅ τῐ / ὅ ττῐ hó ti / hó tti		ὥτῐνε hṓtine	ὥτῐνε hṓtine	ὥτῐνε hṓtine		οἵτῐνες hoítines	αἵτῐνες haítines	ᾰ̔́σσᾰ hássa
Genitive		ὅττεο / ὅττευ / ὅτευ hótteo / hótteu / hóteu	ἧστῐνος hêstinos	ὅττεο / ὅττευ / ὅτευ hótteo / hótteu / hóteu		οἷντῐνοιν hoîntinoin	οἷντῐνοιν hoîntinoin	οἷντῐνοιν hoîntinoin		ὅτων hótōn	ὅτων hótōn	ὅτων hótōn
Dative		ὅτεῳ / ὅτῳ hóteōi / hótōi	ᾗτῐνῐ hêitini	ὅτεῳ / ὅτῳ hóteōi / hótōi		οἷντῐνοιν hoîntinoin	οἷντῐνοιν hoîntinoin	οἷντῐνοιν hoîntinoin		ὁτέοισῐ hotéoisi	αἷστῐσῐ / αἷστῐσῐν haîstisi(n)	ὁτέοισῐ hotéoisi
Accusative		ὅντῐνᾰ / ὅτῐνᾰ hóntina / hótina	ἥντῐνᾰ hḗntina	ὅ τῐ / ὅ ττῐ hó ti / hó tti		ὥτῐνε hṓtine	ὥτῐνε hṓtine	ὥτῐνε hṓtine		ὅτῐνᾰς hótinas	ᾱ̔́στῐνᾰς hā́stinas	ᾰ̔́σσᾰ hássa
Vocative		—	—	—		—	—	—		—	—	—
Notes:		This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

See also

Ancient Greek correlatives ^(edit)

type	interrogative	indefinite	(medial) demonstrative	proximal demonstrative	distal demonstrative	relative	indefinite relative	identity	other
basic	τίς	τις, ἔνιοι	†ὁ, οὗτος	ὅδε	ἐκεῖνος	ὅς	ὅστις	ὁ αὐτός (αὑτός), ὁμός	ἕτερος, ἄλλος
dual	πότερος	πότερος, ποτερός				ὁπότερος
quality	ποῖος	ποιός	†τοῖος, τοιοῦτος	τοιόσδε		οἷος	ὁποῖος	ὅμοιος	ἑτεροῖος, ἀλλοῖος
quantity	πόσος	ποσός	†τόσος, τοσοῦτος	τοσόσδε		ὅσος	ὁπόσος
manner	πῶς	πως	†τώς, †ὥς, οὕτως	ὧδε		ὡς	ὅπως	ὁμῶς	ἑτέρως, ἄλλως
method, path, place	πῇ	πῃ	τῇ, ταύτῃ	τῇδε	ἐκείνῃ	ᾗ	ὅπῃ		ἄλλῃ
place	ποῦ, †πόθι	που, †ποθι	ἐνταῦθα	ἐνθάδε	ἐκεῖ, ἔνθα, †ἐκεῖθι	οὗ, ἔνθα, †ὅθι	ὅπου, †ὁπόθι	αὐτόθι, ὁμοῦ	ἄλλοθι
source	πόθεν	ποθεν	†τόθεν, ἔνθεν, ἐντεῦθεν	ἐνθένδε	ἐκεῖθεν	ὅθεν	ὁπόθεν	†ὁμόθεν	ἄλλοθεν
destination	ποῖ, †πόσε	ποι	ἔνθα, ἐνταῦθα	ἐνθάδε, δεῦρο	ἐκεῖσε	οἷ	ὅποι, †ὁπόσε	αὐτόσε, ὁμόσε	ἄλλοσε
time	πότε, πῆμος	ποτέ, ποτε, τοτέ, ἐνίοτε	τότε, τῆμος	τημόσδε		ὅτε, ἦμος	ὁπότε, †ὁππῆμος	ἅμα	ἄλλοτε
exact time	πηνίκα		†τηνίκα, τηνικαῦτα	τηνικάδε		ἡνίκα	ὁπηνίκα	αὐτίκα
duration of time			τέως			ἕως
size, age	πηλίκος	πηλίκος	†τηλίκος, τηλικοῦτος	τηλικόσδε		ἡλίκος	ὁπηλίκος	ὁμῆλιξ
repetition	ποσάκις, ποσίνδα	ποσάκις	τουτάκις, τοσάκις			†ὁσάκις ὁποσάκις	ὁποσάκις
multiplication	ποσαπλάσιος					ὁσαπλάσιος, ὁσαπλασίων
order	πόστος	ποστός					ὁπόστος
† Forms rarely or never used in Classical Attic prose Relative also used in exclamations; either relative or indefinite relative used in indirect questions.

Further reading

• “ὅστις”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “ὅστις”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “ὅστις”, in Autenrieth, Georg (1891) A Homeric Dictionary for Schools and Colleges, New York: Harper and Brothers
• “ὅστις”, in Slater, William J. (1969) Lexicon to Pindar, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter
• G3748 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.
  • adopted idem, page 13.
  • else idem, page 265.
  • which idem, page 976.
  • whichever, whichsoever idem, page 976.
  • who idem, page 977.
  • whoever idem, page 977.
• 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
• Smyth, Herbert Weir (1920) “Part II: Inflection”, in A Greek grammar for colleges, Cambridge: American Book Company, § 339