koine
(usually initial capital letter) an amalgam of Greek dialects, chiefly Attic and Ionic, that replaced the Classical Greek dialects in the Hellenistic period and flourished under the Roman Empire.
a lingua franca.
Origin of koine
1Words Nearby koine
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use koine in a sentence
He calls this degree stata forma,—a rational, mediocre sort of beauty, which is not liable to be either koine or poine.
My Novel, Complete | Edward Bulwer-LyttonThe author, as already shown, writes in the smooth and easy koine of a gifted and cultivated Jew of Palestine.
Studies in the Epistle of James | A. T. RobertsonBut as we were then leaving koine, and were not yet melted with the grief of absence, I had the courage to resist their demand.
Roman Holidays and Others | W. D. Howells
British Dictionary definitions for koine (1 of 2)
/ (ˈkɔɪniː) /
a common language among speakers of different languages; lingua franca
Origin of koine
1British Dictionary definitions for Koine (2 of 2)
/ (ˈkɔɪniː) /
the Koine (sometimes not capital) the Ancient Greek dialect that was the lingua franca of the empire of Alexander the Great and was widely used throughout the E Mediterranean area in Roman times
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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