χείρ
Etym. the penult. is regularly short, when the ult. is long: e.g. χειρός, χερών, but Poets used the penult. long or short, as the verse required.
I. "the hand", Hom., etc.: also "the hand and arm, the arm", χεῖρα μέσην ἀγκῶνος ἔνερθεν Il.; χεῖρες ἀπ᾽ ὤμων ἀΐσσοντο Hes.; so, ἐν χερσὶ πεσεῖν into "the arms", Il., etc.; ἄκρη χείρ, to denote "the hand" as distinct from "the arm", id=Il.
II. Special usages:
1. to denote position, ἐπ᾽ ἀριστερὰ χειρός Od.; ἐπὶ δεξιὰ χειρός Pind.; λαιᾶς χειρός "on" the left "hand", Aesch.; ποτέρας τῆς χειρός; on which "hand?" Eur.
2. the dat. is common with Verbs which imply the use of hands, χειρὶ λαβεῖν, χερσὶν ἑλέσθαι, etc., Hom., etc.
3. the gen. is used when "one takes a person by the hand", χειρὸς ἔχειν τινά Il.; χειρὸς ἑλών id=Il.
4. the acc. is used when "one takes the hand of a person", χεῖρα γέροντος ἑλών id=Il.; χεῖράς τ᾽ ἀλλήλων λαβέτην, in pledge of good faith, id=Il.
5. other uses of the acc.:
a. of suppliants, χεῖρας ἀνασχεῖν θεοῖς, in prayer, id=Il.; χεῖρας ἀμφιβάλλειν γούνασι or δείρῃ Od.; also, χεῖρας αἴρειν is to hold up "hands" in voting, Xen., etc.:— χεῖρα ὑπερέχειν τινός or τινί to hold "the hand" over him as a protector, Il.
b. in hostile sense, χεῖρας or χεῖρα ἐπιφέρειν τινί, ἐφιέναι τινί Hom.
c. χεῖρας ἀπέχειν τινός to keep "hands" off a person or thing, Lat. abstinere manus ab aliquo, id=Hom.
6. with Preps., ἀπὸ χειρὸς λογίζεσθαι to reckon "off hand, roughly", Ar.:— διὰ χερῶν λαβεῖν, literally, to take "between the hands", Soph.; διὰ χειρὸς ἔχειν to have "in hand", i. e. "under control", Thuc.; and so, to have a work "in hand", id=Thuc.: —so, εἰς χεῖρας λαμβάνειν to take "in hand", undertake, Eur.; ἄγεσθαί τι ἐς χεῖρας Hdt.; ἐς χεῖρας ἱκέσθαι τινός to fall into his "hands", Il.; ἐς χεῖρας ἐλθεῖν, ἰέναι τινί to come to "blows or close quarters" with, Lat. manum conserere cum aliquo, Aesch., Soph.; Hdt. expresses this by ἐς χειρῶν νόμον ἀπικέσθαι:—also, εἰς χεῖρας δέχεσθαι or ὑπομένειν to await their charge, Xen., Thuc.: —ἐκ χειρός "from near at hand, close", Lat. cominus, Xen.:— ἐν χερσίν or ἐν χειρὶ ἔχειν, like διὰχειρὸς ἔχειν, to have "in hand, be engaged in", Hdt., Plat.; ἐν χερσί "hand to hand", Lat. cominus, Thuc.:— κατὰ χειρός, of washing the hands before meals, ὕδωρ κατὰ χειρός or κατὰ χειρὸς ὕδωρ (sc. φερέτω τις), Ar.:— μετὰ χερσὶν ἔχειν "between" i. e. "in, the hands", Il.; but, μετὰ χεῖρας ἔχειν to have "in hand", be engaged in, Hdt., Thuc.:— πρὸ χειρῶν "close before one", Soph., Eur.:— πρὸς χεῖρα at a sign "given by hand", Soph.:— ὑπὸ χεῖρα ποιεῖσθαι to bring "under one's power", Xen.; cf. ὑποχείριος.
III. to denote "act or deed", as opp. to mere words, in pl., ἔπεσιν καὶ χερσὶν ἀρήξειν Il.; χερσίν τε ποσίν τε id=Il.; χερσὶν ἢ λόγῳ Soph.; μιᾷ χειρί "single-" "handed", Dem.; χειρὶ καὶ ποδὶ καὶ πάσῃ δυνάμει Aeschin.:—esp. of deeds of violence, πρὶν χειρῶν γεύσασθαι before we try "force", Od.; ἀδίκων χειρῶν ἄρχειν to give the first "blow", Xen.
IV. like Lat. manus, a body of men, "a band, number", Hdt., Thuc.; πολλῇ χ. Eur.; οἰκεία χείρ, for χεὶρ οἰκετῶν, id=Eur.
V. one's "hand", i. e. "handwriting", NTest.: also "a handiwork, a work of art", σοφαὶ χέρες Anth.
VI. of any implement resembling a hand:
1. a kind of "gauntlet or target", Xen.
2. χ. σιδηρᾶ a "grappling-" iron, "grapnel", Thuc.