sign, mark, token
σῆμα, Dor.
σᾶμα
Berl.Sitzb. 1927.161 (Cyrene), etc.:ατος , τό:—
A. sign, mark, token, Il. 10.466 , 23.326 , Od. 19.250 , etc.; of the star on a horse's forehead, Il. 23.455 ; ἥβης σήματα γεινομένης
Sol. 27.4
; νέφος ς. χειμῶνος
Archil. 54
; esp.
1. sign from heaven, omen, portent, in phrases, σήματα φαίνω
Il. 2.353
, cf. 308 ; κτύπε Ζεύς, ς. τιθεὶς Τρώεσσι
8.171
; δεικνὺς ς. βροτοῖσι
13.244
; θεοῦ σάμασιν πιθόμενοι
Pi. P. 4.200
, cf. 1.3 ;φλογωπὰ ς. A. Pr. 498 , cf. Ch. 259 ; of things heard as well as seen, ἔπος φάτο ς. ἄνακτι
Od. 20.111
.
2. generally,sign to doorbegin something, τόδε ς. τετύχθω
21.231
; ς. ἀροτοῖο
Hes. Op. 450
; esp.watchword, τί τὸ σῆμα; θρόει
E. Rh. 12
(anap.), cf. 688 ;battle-sign, signal, ς. μάχης
Id. Ph. 1378
.
3. sign by which a grave is known, mound, cairn, barrow, Il. 2.814 , etc.; τοῦ δὲ τάφον καὶ σῆμ' ἀϊδὲς ποίησεν Ἄναυρος
Hes. Sc. 477
;ἐπὶ σῆμ' ἔχεενraiseda mound, Il. 6.419 , etc.; ς. κυνός
E. Hec. 1273
: c. dat. pers., σῆμά τέ οἱ χεύω
Od. 2.222
; σῆμά τέ μοι χεῦαι . . ἀνδρὸς δυστήνοιο
11.75
; σάματι πὰρ Πέλοπος
Pi. O. 10(11).24
;grave, tomb, Hdt. 1.93 , 4.72 ,Berl.Sitzb.l.c., etc.;τὸ δημόσιον ς. Th. 2.34 ; στῆλαι ἀπὸ σημάτων
Id. 1.93
, cf. Ar. Th. 886 , 888 , etc.;ἤδη του . . ἤκουσα τῶν σοφῶν ὡς τὸ μὲν σῶμά ἐστιν ἡμῖν ς. Pl. Grg. 493a , cf. Cra. 400c .
4. mark to show the cast of a quoitorjavelin, ὑπέρβαλε σήματα πάντων
Il. 23.843
; ὑπέρπτατο ς. πάντων
Od. 8.192
; also,boundary, D.P. 18 .
5. tokenby which any one's identity or commission was certified, μιν ἐρέεινε καὶ ᾔτεε ς. ἰδέσθαι
Il. 6.176
, cf. 178 ;ς. λυγρά, of written characters or symbols, ib. 168 ;mark, tokenon the lot of Ajax, 7.189 ; so,deviceorbearingon a shield, by which a warrior is known, freq. in A. Th. , as 387 , 404 , E. El. 456 (lyr.); of thesealset on a box,τῶνδ' ἀποίσεις ς. S. Tr. 614 ;markmade by an illiterate person, PMasp. 163.37
(vi A.D.).
6. constellation, mostly in pl.,heavenly bodies, S. Fr. 432 ; alsoλαμπρότατος μὲν ὅ γ' ἐστί, κακὸν δέ τε σῆμα τέτυκται, of Sirius, Il. 22.30 . (Perh. cogn. with Skt.dhyāti'thinks'.)
