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τᾰχύς [ῠ], εῖα, ύ:

I. of motion, swift, fleet, opp. βραδύς,

1. of persons and animals, either abs., Il.18.69, etc.; or more fully, πόδας ταχύς 13.249,482, 17.709, etc.; ταχὺς ἔσκε θέειν Od.17.308; θείειν τ. Il.16.186, Od.3.112; κύνες, ἔλαφος, πτώξ, ἵππος, Il.3.26, 8.248, 17.676, 23.347, etc.; οἰωνόν, ταχὺν ἄγγελον 24.292, cf. Od.15.526; τ. βαδιστής a quick walker, E.Med.1182; σφοδροὶ καὶ τ. X.Cyr.2.1.31.

2. of things, τ. πόδες Il.6.514, cf. Od.13.261, etc.; τ. ἰός, ὀϊστοί, Il.4.94, Od.22.3, etc.; πτερά Ar.Av.1453; -ύτατα ἅρματα Pi.O.1.77; νῆες, τριήρεις, Hdt.8.23, Th.6.43, etc.; [ἴχνος] τὸ τοῦ ποδὸς μὲν βραδύ, τὸ τοῦ δὲ νοῦ ταχύ E.Ion742.

II. of thought and purpose, quick, hasty, φρονεῖν γὰρ οἱ ταχεῖς οὐκ ἀσφαλεῖς S.OT617: c. inf., βλάπτειν τ. Ar.Ra.1428; τ. βουλεῦσαί τι ἀνήκεστον Th.1.132, cf. 118, Luc. Dem.Enc.12; also τ. πρὸς ὀργήν Plu.Cat.Mi.1; τὸ ταχύ speed, haste, E.Ph.452, X.Eq.7.18, etc.

2. of actions, events, etc., rapid, sudden, πήδημα S.Aj.833; ᾅδης, μόρος, E.Hipp.1047, Mosch.3.26; πόλεμος Th.4.55, 6.45; φυγή Id.4.44; μεταβολή Pl.R.553d; short, τ. ἐλπίδες fleeting hopes, Pi.P.1.83; ἐπαυρέσεις Th.2.53; ἀτραπός Ar. Ra.127; ταχεῖ σὺν χρόνῳ S.OC1602; τ. διήγησις short, rapid, Arist. Rh.1416b30.

B. Adv.,

1. regul. τᾰχέως, quickly, opp. βραδέως, Il.23.365, Hes.Th.103, etc.:—
rarely in sense perhaps (cf. τάχα 11), Plb.16.25.8.

2. the Adv. is also expressed by periphr., διὰ ταχέων in haste, Th.1.80, 3.13, Pl.Ap.32d, X.An.1.5.9; ἐκ ταχείας S.Tr.395; cf. τάχος 11.

3. neut. ταχύ as Adv., Pi.P.10.51, N.1.51, S.Ph.349, E.HF885 (lyr.), Ar.Eq.109, Gal.16.665, etc.; ἤδη ἤδη τ. τ. Sammelb. 4321.21, BGU956.3 (both iii A.D.); ἄρτι ἄρτι τ. τ. Arch.Pap.5.393 (ii A.D.); also τάχα (q.v.).

4. the Adj. ταχύς is freq. construed with Verbs, where we should use the Adv., ταχέες δ' ἱππῆες ἄγερθεν Il.23.287; ταχεῖά γ' ἦλθε χρησμῶν πρᾶξις A.Pers.739; ὁρμάσθω ταχύς S.Ph.526; δεῦρ' ἀφίξεται τ. Id.OC307; τ. χάρις διαρρεῖ Id.Aj. 1266, cf. Th.2.75, 5.66.

C. Degrees of Comparison:

I. Comp.:

1. the form τᾰχύτερος, α, ον, is used by Hdt., ἐποίησα ταχύτερα ἢ σοφώτερα 3.65, cf. 7.194; also in Arist.Mu.394b3, Arr.Ind.9.6, Aret.SD1.16, but not in good Att.; ταχύτερον as Adv., Hdt.4.127, 9.101, Hp. Prog.17.

2. the more usual form is θάσσων, neut. θᾶσσον, gen. ονος, Att. θάττων, neut. θᾶττον, Il.15.570, 13.819 (elsewh. only neut. in Hom.), etc.:—
neut. as Adv., freq. in Hom., Od.2.307, al.; θᾶσσον ἂν ..κλύοιμι sooner, i.e. rather, would I hear, S.Ph. 631; θᾶσσον also often stands for the Positive, Il.2.440, Od.15.201, 16.130, Pi.P.4.181, Ar.Nu.506, V.187, Ra.94; οὐ θᾶσσον οἴσεις; i.e. make haste and bring, S.Tr.1183, cf. OT430; θᾶττον νοήματος quicker than thought, X.Mem.4.3.13, cf. Ar.V.824, etc.; with a Conj., ὅτι θᾶσσον, like ὅτι τάχιστα, Theoc.24.48; ἐπειδὴ θᾶττον συνεσκότασεν as soon as .., D.54.5; ἐπειδὰν θ. συνιῇ τις Pl.Prt.325c; ὅταν θ. φθέγγηται ὁ κόκκυξ Arist.HA563b17, cf. 611a5; ἐὰν or ἢν θ. as soon as .., X.Cyr.3.3.20, An.6.5.20, Pl.Alc.1.105a; ἂν θ. Men. Pk.174; εἰ θ. Pl.Ep.324b; ὡς θ. Plb.1.66.1, 3.82.1; θ. rarely = sooner than, before, ἐξήλαυνον μεσημβρίας οὐ πολλῷ τινι θ. Aristid. Or.51 (27).13 (cf. τάχιον infr. 3).

3. the form ταχίων [ῑ], neut. ιον, is freq. in late Prose, as LXX Wi.13.9, 1 Ma.2.40, Ph.Bel.69.14, 17, 73.23, Gem.1.20, D.H.6.42, D.S.20.6, J. (v. infr.), Plu.2.240d, Ev.Jo. 20.4, Alciphr.3.4; also in Hp.Mul.1.1, Men.402.16; but condemned by Phryn.58, Hdn.Philet.p.436 P.; τὴν ταχίονα τῆς τροφῆς παράθεσιν earlier, sooner, Gal.19.206:—
Adv. τάχιον earlier, πλέεται ..περὶ τὸν Σεπτέμβριον μῆνα .., οὐδὲν δὲ κωλύει κἂν τ. Peripl.M.Rubr. 24; τ. τῆς ὑποσχέσεως sooner than they had promised, Rev.Ét.Gr. 6.159 (Iasus); τ. τοῦ παραγγέλματος J.BJ4.4.2; εἰς μακρὸν αὐτῶν γῆρας καὶ βίου μῆκος ὅμοιον τοῖς τ. ἐπερχομένων Id.AJ1.3.7; ἀποπαύεται οὔτε τ. ἐτῶν τεσσαράκοντα οὔτε βράδιον ἐτῶν πεντήκοντα Sor. 1.20, cf. 48, al.; formerly, ἐπεσκεύασαν τὸ παρόχιον, ..τ. γενόμενον γυμνάσιον IGRom.3.639 (Lycia, ii A.D.), cf. 4.1517 (Sardis), 1632.14 (Philadelphia), 1665.5 (Tira), Keil-Premerstein Dritter Bericht p.79 (iii A.D.), Hermes 63.229 (Callatis); cf. supr. 2 fin.

II. Sup.:

1. the form ταχύτατος is rare, ταχύτατα ἅρματα Pi.O.1.77; ταχύτατα as Adv., X.HG5.1.27 codd., Antiph.87 codd.; but both passages have been corrected.

2. the usual form is τάχιστος, η, ον, used by Hom. only in neut. pl. τάχιστα as Adv., most quickly, most speedily, ὅττι τάχιστα as soon as may be, as soon as possible, Il.4.193, 9.659, al.; ὅτι τάχιστα S.OT1341 (lyr.), Th.3.31, etc.; so ὅσον τ. A.Ch.772, S. OT1436, etc.; ᾳ (prob.) τ. Pi.O.13.79; ὅπως τ. A.Ag.605, S.OT1410, Ar.V.167; ὡς τ. IG12.76.23, Hdt.1.210, Th.4.15, E.Rh.147, X.An.1.3.14: these are ellipt. phrases, as may be seen from the foll. examples, ὡς δυνατόν ἐστι τάχιστα Pl.Lg.710b, X.Cyr. 5.4.3; ᾗ δυνατὸν τ. Id.HG6.3.6; ὡς or ᾗ ἠδύνατο τ. Id.Cyr.3.2.14, An.1.2.4; ὡς δύναιτο τ. Hdt.1.79; ὡς or ᾗ ἂν δύνωμαι τ. X.HG4.1.38, Cyr.7.1.9, cf. IG12.106.18.

b. τάχιστα after Particles of Time, as soon as, ἐπεὶ (Ion. ἐπεί τε) τάχιστα A.Pr.201, Hdt.1.27,75, 7.163, X.An.7.2.6, PCair.Zen.34.12 (iii B.C.); ἐπειδὴ τ. Pl.Prt.310d, Is.9.3, D.27.16, etc.; ἐπεὰν τ. Hdt.4.134, 7.129, 8.144; ἐπὰν τ. X.An.4.6.9; ἐπειδὰν τ. Id.Cyr.1.3.14, An.3.1.9; ὅταν τ. Id.Cyr.4.5.33: also ὡς τ. separated by one or more words, ὡς ἡμέρη τ. ἐγεγόνεε Hdt.1.11, cf. 19, 47,65, al., X.Cyr.1.3.2, Mem.1.2.16, al.; ὡς δὲ τ. ἐξῆλθε ..κόρον ἔτεκε IG42(1).121.4 (Epid., iv B.C.); ὡς γὰρ τ. εἰσῆλθον Men.Pk.287; ὡς ἂν τ. λάβῃς τὴν ἐπιστολήν PCair.Zen.241.1 (iii B.C.); but ὡς τ. γὰρ ἀπεδήμησας ib.472.7 (iii B.C.); ὅπως τ. A.Pr.230:—
the same notion is sometimes expressed by the part., ἀπαλλαγεὶς τάχιστα, = ὡς ἀπηλλάγη τ., Plu.Dem.8, cf. 25.

3. freq. also in Prose, τὴν ταχίστην (in full, τὴν τ. ὁδόν X.An.1.2.20, Luc.Rh.Pr.4) as Adv., by the quickest way, i.e. most quickly, Hdt. 1.24,73,81,86, Hyp.Eux.7, Men. Pk.75, Plb.1.33.4, etc. (Cf. Lith. (dial.) deñgti, Lett. diêgt, both = 'run quickly', Polish dy 'hurry'.)