From the book
Lysis
Plato · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordPhilippos means fond of horses; a horse-lover.
- In LysisThe plural φίλιπποι begins the list that tests whether everything loved must love in return.
- Reading contextHorses also appeared among the desirable possessions at 211d–e and appear again in the quoted verse at 212e.
- A place to readThe Greek example means “Then there are no horse-lovers either.”
- English renderings
- Fond of horses; a horse-lover
Meaning
Fond of horses; a horse-lover.
Grammatical category: adjective.
Use in the book
The plural φίλιπποι begins the list that tests whether everything loved must love in return. If reciprocity were required across the entire φίλ- vocabulary, a horse-lover would count as such only if the horses loved him back.
The compound describes the person’s attachment, and does not by itself assert a mutual personal friendship. Its familiarity gives the reductive consequence its force. Horses also appeared among the desirable possessions at 211d–e and appear again in the quoted verse at 212e.
Places to read
- 212dΟὐδ’ ἄρα φίλιπποί εἰσιν — Then there are no horse-lovers either.