αἰσχροκερδής

Ancient Greek

Etymology

From αἰσχρός (aiskhrós, “shameful”) + κέρδος (kérdos, “profit, gain”).

Pronunciation

(5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /ai̯s.kʰro.ker.dɛ̌ːs/
(1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ɛs.kʰro.kerˈde̝s/
(4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ɛs.xro.cerˈðis/
(10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /es.xro.cerˈðis/
(15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /es.xro.cerˈðis/

Adjective

αἰσχροκερδής • (aiskhrokerdḗs) m or f (neuter αἰσχροκερδές); third declension

sordidly greedy for gain; shamefully avaricious
- 484 BCE – 425 BCE, Herodotus, 1 187
- 425 BCE, Euripides, Andromache 451
- 440 BCE – 390 BCE, Andocides, Against Alcibiades 32
- 375 BCE, Plato, The Republic 408c
- 384 BCE – 322 BCE, Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics 1122a.8

Usage notes

Used chiefly in **ethical and political discourse** to condemn the pursuit of profit in a morally disgraceful manner. Closely associated with vice lists contrasting proper generosity or justice.

Inflection

Third declension of αἰσχροκερδής; αἰσχροκερδές (contracted, Attic)

Number	Singular			Dual			Plural
Case/Gender	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative	αἰσχροκερδής aiskhrokerdḗs		αἰσχροκερδές aiskhrokerdés	αἰσχροκερδεῖ aiskhrokerdeî		αἰσχροκερδεῖ aiskhrokerdeî	αἰσχροκερδεῖς aiskhrokerdeîs		αἰσχροκερδῆ aiskhrokerdê
Genitive	αἰσχροκερδοῦς aiskhrokerdoûs		αἰσχροκερδοῦς aiskhrokerdoûs	αἰσχροκερδοῖν aiskhrokerdoîn		αἰσχροκερδοῖν aiskhrokerdoîn	αἰσχροκερδῶν aiskhrokerdôn		αἰσχροκερδῶν aiskhrokerdôn
Dative	αἰσχροκερδεῖ aiskhrokerdeî		αἰσχροκερδεῖ aiskhrokerdeî	αἰσχροκερδοῖν aiskhrokerdoîn		αἰσχροκερδοῖν aiskhrokerdoîn	αἰσχροκερδέσῐ αἰσχροκερδέσῐν aiskhrokerdésĭ(n)		αἰσχροκερδέσῐ αἰσχροκερδέσῐν aiskhrokerdésĭ(n)
Accusative	αἰσχροκερδῆ aiskhrokerdê		αἰσχροκερδές aiskhrokerdés	αἰσχροκερδεῖ aiskhrokerdeî		αἰσχροκερδεῖ aiskhrokerdeî	αἰσχροκερδεῖς aiskhrokerdeîs		αἰσχροκερδῆ aiskhrokerdê
Vocative	αἰσχροκερδές aiskhrokerdés		αἰσχροκερδές aiskhrokerdés	αἰσχροκερδεῖ aiskhrokerdeî		αἰσχροκερδεῖ aiskhrokerdeî	αἰσχροκερδεῖς aiskhrokerdeîs		αἰσχροκερδῆ aiskhrokerdê
Derived forms	Adverb			Comparative			Superlative
Derived forms	αἰσχροκερδῶς aiskhrokerdôs			αἰσχροκερδέστερος aiskhrokerdésteros			αἰσχροκερδέστᾰτος aiskhrokerdéstătos
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Derived terms

αἰσχροκερδῶς (aiskhrokerdôs)

Related terms

αἰσχρός (aiskhrós)
κέρδος (kérdos)
πλεονεκτικός (pleonektikós)

References

“αἰσχροκερδής”, in Liddell & Scott (1940), A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
“αἰσχροκερδής”, in Liddell & Scott (1889), An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
αἰσχροκερδής in Bailly, Anatole (1935), Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
αἰσχροκερδής in the Diccionario Griego–Español en línea (2006–2026)
Woodhouse, S. C. (1910), English–Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language‎^[1], London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited.
- avaricious idem, page 54.
- covetous idem, page 180.
- curmudgeon idem, page 190.
- extortionate idem, page 297.
- extortioner idem, page 297.
- gain idem, page 352.
- grasping idem, page 370.
- greedy idem, page 372.
- harpy idem, page 387.
- ill-gotten idem, page 416.
- lucre idem, page 504.
- mean idem, page 519.
- mercenary idem, page 525.
- miser idem, page 533.
- miserly idem, page 534.
- niggardly idem, page 558.
- parsimonious idem, page 593.
- rapacious idem, page 672.
- skin-flint idem, page 781.
- sordid idem, page 794.
- usurer idem, page 940.
- usurious idem, page 941.
- vampire idem, page 943.