From the book
Lysis
Plato · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordKenos means empty.
- In LysisThe substantival neuter τὸ κενόν is “the empty” or “what is empty.”
- Reading contextIt helps express need and replenishment within the opposites theory, but should not automatically be equated with the later claim that every desire arises from something taken away.
- A place to readThe Greek example means “And the empty, of filling.”
- English renderings
- Empty
Meaning
Empty.
Grammatical category: adjective.
Use in the book
The substantival neuter τὸ κενόν is “the empty” or “what is empty.” It is said to desire πλήρωσις, filling, while the full desires emptying.
This example differs slightly from simple pairs of adjectives: the empty is directed towards a process that changes its condition. It helps express need and replenishment within the opposites theory, but should not automatically be equated with the later claim that every desire arises from something taken away.
Places to read
- 215eτὸ δὲ κενὸν πληρώσεως — And the empty, of filling.