Diogenes Laërtius · fl. 3rd century CE
Lives of Eminent Philosophers 7.57 — Diogenes Laërtius on the Stoics
Translation by R. D. Hicks (1925)
Diogenes Laërtius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers 7.57
Reported speech · Diogenes Laërtius on the Stoics
Seven of the letters are vowels, a, e, ē i, o, u, ō, and six are mutes, b, g, d, k, p, t. There is a difference between voice and speech; because, while voice may include mere noise, speech is always articulate. Speech again differs from a sentence or statement, because the latter always signifies something, whereas a spoken word, as for example βλίτυρι, may be unintelligible— which a sentence never is. And to frame a sentence is more than mere utterance, for while vocal sounds are uttered, things are meant, that is, are matters of discourse. There are, as stated by Diogenes in his treatise on Language and by Chrysippus, five parts of speech: proper name, common noun, verb, conjunction, article. To these Antipater in his work On Words and their Meaning adds another part, the “mean.”
Cite this passage
Diogenes Laërtius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers 7.57 (on the Stoics), tr. R. D. Hicks (1925)
https://whatwouldstoicsdo.com/passage/lives-of-the-stoics/7.57
Diogenes Laërtius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers, Book VII, tr. R. D. Hicks (Loeb, 1925). Text: Perseus Digital Library (CC BY-SA 4.0). Sources and licences
In plain English
AI-written notesLists the vowels and consonants of Greek, distinguishes noise from speech and a word from a meaningful sentence, and names five parts of speech with a sixth added by one author. Grammar reference with no practical advice.
Older wording
- “mutes”
- — consonants that cannot be sounded alone
- “articulate”
- — divided into clear, meaningful sounds
- “conjunction”
- — a word that joins parts of a sentence
Themes and situations
- Speech and silence
Quote cards
The opening line of this passage as an image, with its citation — for sharing or keeping.