kalos

Greek Learning Greek
1

Is there no better word for handsome in Greek? All I can think of is kalos. It’s like they used kalos for almost everything or am I greatly mistaken? Everything is just good instead of pretty, handsome, nice and so on…
Do I just need to learn my vocabulary better or if not, then how did the Greeks express all the meanings of the word? Did it always have a slightly different meaning to them when used in combination with some other words?

2

There’s ?αυσικάα λευκώλενα, and Οδυσσευς μεγαλήτω?.
How about expressing one’s most prominent point of charm?

By the way, I’m always curious if the name Nausicaa have some connection to ναυς(ship, or boat?). Since her country was of sailors. This name is adopted in Miyazaki Hayao’s animation “Nausicaa of The Valley of Wind”, where the people refer airplanes by “ships,” and Nausicaa is one of the best pilots and air-sailors(she’s especially good at flying on a glider).

3

I’m a beginner myself, but so far I’ve come across several words that could be synonyms of “handsome” or “beautiful”, like:

[size=150]εὔμορφοσὡραῖοσπερικαλλήσκομψόσεὐσχήμωνκαλλιπρόσωποσκαλλίμορφοσεὐφυήσἐπίχαρις

4

Yes, thank you! I haven’t read a lot of Greek texts so far (only Lysias and Plato), which is why I haven’t come across all those words. It seemed strange to me that the only word I could think of at all was kalos, which was why I asked. As you said one word in Greek can have so many different meanings, and I know that kalos has many. I wondered whether that was because they only had the one word.
Thank you for replying! :smiley:

5

I like it that greek has rich stash of vocabulary. Anyway they had rhetoric as a major disciplinary of learning.

I see many of the words for ‘good looking’ are combined words; kalli- and eu- appears often, and -morphos too. I’ll have to study harder and learn the composition of words to coin a word for novel conception.

6

mingshey, you also asked about the name [size=150] ναυσικᾶ

7

Thanks greagach!

Nausicaa’s the name of choice if I have a daughter. If it sounds too exotic in my land I would at least use it as her nickname.

How do you construct your private thesaurus? From books you read, I guess? What do you use for collection and arrangements? (A topic for Open Forum?) I think I should make it a habit. I’m too far short of vocabulary.