krínein

krínein (Greek κρίνω) is an ancient Greek verb meaning to separate, distinguish, decide, or judge. It is central in discussions of judgment, epistemology, and law within classical literature. The core sense is to separate things, people, or options, and through that separation to form a judgment or verdict. In philosophical and ethical contexts it can mean discerning truth or forming a value judgment. In legal and political contexts it can mean to adjudicate or decide a case.

Etymology and derivatives: krínein belongs to a family of terms built around judgment and discernment. The noun κρίσις (krísis) denotes a decision or verdict, κριτής (kritḗs) is a judge, and κριτήριον (kritērion) or κριτήριος underlies the English term criterion. The adjective κριτικός (kritikós) yields 'critic' and 'critical'. The verb also has middle/passive forms such as κρινόμενος (krinoménos) meaning 'being judged'.

Usage in antiquity: In literary and philosophical Greek, krínein appears in contexts ranging from courtrooms to dialectical inquiry. Aristotle discusses judgment and decision, while Socratic dialogues employ discernment and evaluation of arguments. In rhetoric, krínein can mean to weigh evidence and reach a conclusion.

In modern Greek: The verb persists with senses 'to think, to judge, to consider', and is used in phrases like 'κρίνω ότι' ('I think that'), 'να κρίνεις' ('to judge'), and the noun κρίση has come to mean 'crisis' in contemporary usage.

See also: κρίσις, κριτήριον, κριτής, κριτικός, κριτήριο.