ἡλίκος (G2245) — Greek Lexicon

ἡλίκος

hēlíkos

G2245 determiner

SILEX Entry

Root ἡλ- of what age, of what size, of what degree

Definition

An interrogative or exclamatory adjective denoting degree, size, quality, or extent: how great?, how large?, of what magnitude or importance? Can function in direct or indirect questions or as an exclamation expressing wonder or emphasis at the scale, importance, or impressiveness of something, whether physical (size, age) or abstract (importance, effect).

Semantic Range

how great, how large, of what size, of what age, of what extent, of what quality, how important, how much, exclamatory or interrogative emphasizing magnitude or significance

Root / Etymology

Formed from the root ἡλ- (related to ἧλιξ, hēlix, meaning 'of the same age, peer, comrade, or contemporary'). The adjective originally referred to belonging to the same age group, but in ἡλίκος it broadens to express the idea of equality or extent in size, measure, or quality. The word thus carries a sense of 'of what sort/size?' or 'how great/how much?' The ending -ικός is adjectival, forming relational or qualitative adjectives.

Historical & Contextual Notes

Earliest attestations are in classical Greek (e.g., Euripides, Herodotus), where it commonly carried the sense of 'of what age?' (with respect to people or things), but already expands in Hellenistic and Koine Greek to indicate degree or extent generally, similar to English 'how great/how much.' In the Septuagint and New Testament, ἡλίκος frequently appears in rhetorical or emotive questions or exclamations to emphasize degree, often as 'how great/how important/how significant.' Standard English translations often render it as 'how great' or 'what' (e.g., 'what great things'), but the Greek combines a sense of both magnitude and qualitative degree. Not common outside rhetorical or poetic usage; less formal than πολύς ('many, much'), and distinct from πόσος ('how much, how many'), which is more quantitative in focus.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from (a comrade, i.e. one of the same age); as big as, i.e. (interjectively) how much:--how (what) great.

Root Family

ἡλίκος (hēlikos) — of what age, of what size, of what degree, of what extent

Word Forms

2 distinct forms

SIDANCE	Surface	Transliteration	Morphology	Common	SIBI-P1	Occurrences
`G2245-02`	ἡλίκον	elikon	`DET ACC M SG`	how great	how great	2
`G2245-01`	ἡλίκην	eliken	`DET ACC F SG`	a forest	how great (feminine singular accusative)	1

Occurrences in Scripture

3 total occurrences

SIDANCE	Reference	Word	Transliteration	Morphology	Common	SIBI-P1
`G2245-02`	Colossians 2:1	ἡλίκον	elikon	`DET ACC M SG`	how great	how great
`G2245-02`	James 3:5	ἡλίκον	elikon	`DET NOM N SG`	how great	how great
`G2245-01`	James 3:5	ἡλίκην	eliken	`DET ACC F SG`	a forest	how great (feminine singular accusative)

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