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• koine
  koine

  noun

  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.
• Koine
  Koine

  noun

  (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

koine

American  

[koi-ney, koi-ney] / kɔɪˈneɪ, ˈkɔɪ neɪ /

noun

1. (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.

2. a lingua franca.

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Koine ¹ British  

/ ˈkɔɪniː /

noun

1. (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

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koine ² British  

/ ˈkɔɪniː /

noun

1. a common language among speakers of different languages; lingua franca

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Etymology

Origin of koine

1910–15; < Greek koinḗ ( diálektos ) common (dialect); see ceno- ²

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

koine Koine

The word koine came from the Greek word for “common.”

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2012

Others were third-rate and knew only the koine kais, which have as much meaning as our colloquial ands.

From Time Magazine Archive

He calls this degree /stata forma/,—a rational, mediocre sort of beauty, which is not liable to be either /koine/ or /poine/.

From My Novel — Volume 04 by Edward Bulwer Lytton, Baron Lytton

He calls this degree stata forma,—a rational, mediocre sort of beauty, which is not liable to be either koine or poine.

From My Novel — Complete by Edward Bulwer Lytton, Baron Lytton

Operation Koine is currently looking into more than 70 reports regarding practices at the firm.

From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2025

Police Scotland concluded its search of the firm's premises earlier this month but said its investigation - Operation Koine - remains ongoing.

From BBC ● May 29, 2024

This I had a bead on, because I knew that Koine was the word for Biblical Greek.

From The New Yorker ● Jan. 7, 2019

Koine is the common tongue, like lingua franca.

From The New Yorker ● Jan. 7, 2019

But as we were then leaving Koine, and were not yet melted with the grief of absence, I had the courage to resist their demand.

From Roman Holidays, and Others by William Dean Howells