Greek

[ greek ]

adjective

1. of or relating to Greece, the Greeks, or their language.
2. pertaining to the Greek Orthodox Church.
3. noting or pertaining to the alphabetic script derived from a Semitic form of writing, employing some letters that originally represented consonants for use as vowel sounds, which was used from about the beginning of the first millennium b.c. for the writing of Greek, and from which the Latin, Cyrillic, and other alphabets were derived.

noun

1. a native or inhabitant of Greece.
2. the language of the ancient Greeks and any of the languages that have developed from it, as Hellenistic Greek, Biblical Greek, the Koine, and Modern Greek. : Gk, Gk.
3. Informal. anything unintelligible, as speech, writing, etc.:

   This contract is all Greek to me.

4. a member of the Greek Orthodox Church.
5. Hellenic ( def 3 ).
6. a person who belongs to a Greek-letter fraternity or sorority.
7. Archaic: Usually Offensive. a cheater, especially one who cheats at cards.

Greek

/ ɡriːk /

noun

1. the official language of Greece, constituting the Hellenic branch of the Indo-European family of languages See Ancient Greek Late Greek Medieval Greek Modern Greek
2. a native or inhabitant of Greece or a descendant of such a native
3. a member of the Greek Orthodox Church
4. informal.
   anything incomprehensible (esp in the phrase it's ( all ) Greek to me )
5. Greek meets Greek
   equals meet

adjective

1. denoting, relating to, or characteristic of Greece, the Greeks, or the Greek language; Hellenic
2. of, relating to, or designating the Greek Orthodox Church

Sensitive Note

The noun Greek in its archaic meaning of “cheater” is usually perceived as insulting to or by Greeks.

Derived Forms

• ˈGreekness, noun

Other Words From

• Greekdom noun
• Greekish adjective
• anti-Greek adjective noun
• half-Greek adjective
• non-Greek adjective noun
• pre-Greek adjective noun
• pro-Greek adjective noun
• pseudo-Greek adjective noun
• quasi-Greek adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of Greek¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English Grēcas (plural) from Latin Graecī “the Greeks” (nominative plural of Graecus ) from Greek Graikoí, plural of Graikós Greek

Word History and Origins

Origin of Greek¹

from Old English Grēcas (plural), or Latin Graecus, from Greek Graikos

Example Sentences

In Greek mythology, the species became associated with numerous gods.

From The Daily Beast

The Greek embassy confirmed the death, which has barely registered by the international press.

From The Daily Beast

That distant whirring sound you hear is a long-dead Greek physician spinning in his grave.

From The Daily Beast

In 1984, gay men were not openly accepted in Southern Greek culture.

From The Daily Beast

The root of the word irony is in the Greek eironeia, “liar.”

From The Daily Beast

John of Damascus, an important Greek theologian of the eighth century, often cited by Thomas.

From Project Gutenberg

The Greek character will now become easy to decipher; and the evening papers may take King Otho both off the throne and on.

From Project Gutenberg

Just got a telegram saying that M. Venezelos has gained a big majority in the Greek Election.

From Project Gutenberg

The fact that the earth was globular in form was understood by the Greek men of science.

From Project Gutenberg

In Greek especially she was proficient, and Plato was to her more interesting than any story book.

From Project Gutenberg