λόχος

λόχος, ὁ, ([etym.] λέχομαι):

I ambush, i.e.

1 place for lying in wait,

εἰγὰρ νῦν παρὰ νηυσὶ λεγοίμεθα πάντες ἄριστοι ἐς λ. Il.13.277

;

ἐκ λ. ἀμπήδησε 11.379

; κοῖλος λ., of the wooden horse, Od.4.277, 8.515;

ξεστὸς λ. E. Tr.534

(lyr.);

ὠδίνων λ. Lyc.342

; ξύλινος λ., of the enemy's ships, Orac. ap.Hdt.3.57.

2 ambuscade, ἐσίζεσθαι λόχον ἀνδρῶν take up one's post in ambush, Il.13.285; λόχον εἷσαι place an ambush, 4.392, Od.4.531;

εἷσε δέ μιν κρύψασα λόχῳ Hes.Th.174

;

λόχον ἀρτύνειν Od.14.469

;

λόχονδ' ἰέναι Il.1.227

;

ὁπότε κρίνοιμι λόχονδε ἄνδρας ἀριστῆας Od.14.217

;

φύτευέ οἱ θάνατον ἐκ λόχου Pi.N.4.60

;

δεινοῖς κρυπτομένα λόχοις Ἐρινύς S.El.490

(lyr.);

τὸν εὔαγρον τελειῶσαὶ λ. Id.OC1089

(lyr.). b. c. gen. objecti, λόχος θείοιο γέροντος the way to ambush him, Od.4.395.

3 the men that form the ambush,

μὴ λ. εἰσέλθῃσι πόλιν Il.8.522

, cf. E.Andr.1114, etc.

b any armed band, body of troops (of foot, rarely of horse, Arr.Alan.20), Od.20.49; also in Trag., A.Th.56, 460, S.OC1371, etc.: metaph.,

παρθένων ἱκέσιος λ. A.Th.111

(lyr.); θαυμαστὸς λ. γυναικῶν, of the Furies, Id.Eu.46, cf. 1026;

ἐλάφων κεραὸς λ. AP9.244

(Apollonid.);

ἐμῶν προγόνων λ. OGI383.48

(Nemrud Dagh, i B.C.).

c in historical writers, mostly, a company, reckoned at 24 men in X.Cyr.6.3.21, but at 100 in Id.An.3.4.21, 4.8.15; in the Spartan army, the fourth or fifth part of a μόρα (q.v.), Hdt.9.53,57, cf. Th.5.68, Arist.Fr.541, etc.;

ὁ Πιτανάτης λ. Th.1.20

; ὁ ἱερὸς λ. the sacred company at Thebes, Din.1.73, Plu.Pel.18; also at Carthage, D.S.16.80, 20.10; later λ., = 16 men, Ascl.Tact.2.7, Ael.Tact.4.3, Arr.Tact.5.5; but of light-armed, 8 men, Ascl.l.c., Arr.Tact.14.2.

d any body of people united for civil purposes, X.Hier.9.5, Arist. Pol.1309a12; αἱ ἐν λόχοις συντέλειαι (where λόχοι seems to represent συμμορίαι) Catal. ap. D.18.106.

e = Lat. centuria, D.H.4.16, App. BC1.59, etc.

f = Lat. curia, D.H.2.7.

II child-birth, A.Ag. 137 (lyr.): pl., Id.Supp.677 (lyr.).

III dub. sens. in SIG1002.8 (Milet., v/iv B.C.).