Learn Greek › B1 › ξένος
ξένος
stranger /ˈkse.nos/
nounB1#1134 most common
Also: foreigner, guest, outsider
Example sentences
Ο Τομ είναι ξένος.
Tom is a foreigner.
Δεν καταλαβαίνω αυτόν τον ξένο.
I don't understand that stranger.
Πολλοί ξένοι επισκέπτονται την Ελλάδα το καλοκαίρι.
Many foreigners visit Greece in the summer.
Ένιωσα σαν ξένος στη δική μου πόλη.
I felt like a stranger in my own city.
Η φιλοξενία προς τον ξένο θεωρείται ιερή αξία στην ελληνική παράδοση.
Hospitality toward the stranger is considered a sacred value in Greek tradition.
Ο ξένος παρέμεινε αμίλητος, σαν να φοβόταν να αποκαλύψει την ταυτότητά του.
The stranger stayed silent, as if he feared revealing his identity.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | ξένος | ξένοι |
| Genitive | ξένου | ξένων |
| Accusative | ξένο | ξένους |
| Vocative | ξένε | ξένοι |
Word family
ξένοςforeign, strange
ξενίαhospitality
ξενοδοχείοhotelξενιτιάlife or exile in a foreign land
ξενοφοβίαxenophobia, fear of strangers
Etymology
The word goes back to Ancient Greek ξένος, which meant both stranger and guest. In the Homeric world these were close to the same idea: a traveler from elsewhere was owed protection and hospitality under the custom of xenia. Modern scholars regard the origin of ξένος as uncertain. Robert Beekes argued it likely comes from a pre-Greek substrate language rather than from Proto-Indo-European.
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