ὥσπερ

A. like as, even as, ζῆν ὥ. ἤδη ζῇς S. Ph. 1396; ἐσῴζετ’ ἂν . . , ὥ. οὐχὶ σῴζεται Id. El. 994; but the Verb is more often left to be supplied, οὔ τι κατακρύπτουσιν . . , ὥ. Κύκλωπες Od. 7.206, cf. 2.333, Il. 4.263, 14.50; ἔξεστί θ’, ὥ. Ἡγέλοχος, ἡμῖν λέγειν . . Ar. Ra. 303; τεταγμένοι ὥ. ἔμελλον Th. 4.93; τοῖς ἠτυχηκόσιν ὥ. ἐγώ D. 45.1; Hom. freq. puts a word between ὡς and περ, e.g. ὡς σύ περ αὐτή, ὡς τὸ πάρος περ, ὡς ἔσεταί περ Od. 19.385, Il. 5.806, 1.211; as for instance, ὅταν χορὸς . . γίγνηται, ὥ. ὁ εἰς Η=λον πεμπόμενος X. Mem. 3.3.12; ὥσπερ differs from ὡς in Hom., in that it seldom has an antecedent expressed, as in Il. 24.487, τηλίκου ὥ. ἐγών; also in Hes. Th. 402, ὣς δ’ αὔτως . . , ὥ. ὑπέστη; but in Trag. and Att. ὥ. is very freq. after demonstr. words; before οὕτως, Meliss. 3, Ar. Av. 188; after it, S. Tr. 475, etc.; ὥ. καὶ . . , οὕτω καὶ . . X. Cyr. 7.5.75, cf. Pl. R. 354b; ὥ . . , ὧδε . . S. OT 276; τοιοῦτος ὥ. Pl. Prt. 327d; αὐτοῦ ὥ. εἶχον just as they were, then and there, Hdt. 2.121.δ/, cf. S. Ant. 1235; εὐθὺς ὥ. εἶχεν X. An. 4.1.19; εὐθὺς ὥ. ἔτυχε Id. HG 3.1.19; τὰν τράπεζαν κάτθετε ὥ. ἔχει Sophr. in PSI 11.1214a2; καὶ τὸν δαελὸν σβῆτε ὥ. ἔχει on the spot, ib.14: c. gen., ὥ. ἔχει δόξης Pl. R. 612d: strengthd., ὥ. γε just exactly as, Ar. Nu. 673; ὥ. καί even as, ὡς καὶ ἐγώ περ Il. 6.477; ὥ. καὶ ἄλλο τι Th. 1.142, etc.: ὥ. also follows ἴσος, in Od. 20.282, μοῖραν . . ἴσην, ὡς αὐτοί περ ἐλάγχανον, cf. S. El. 533; so after ὁ αὐτός, Pl. Phd. 86a, D. 9.33; after ὅμοιος, ὅμοιος ἀτμὸς ὥ. ἐκ τάφου πρέπει A. Ag. 1311, cf. Th. 4.34.

2. ὥσπερ ἄν c. subj., v. infr.111; c. opt., ὥσπερ ἄν τις . . λέγοι Pl. Phd. 87b, cf. X. HG 3.1.14; cf. ὡσπερεί 11.

II. to limit or modify an assertion or apologize for a metaphor, as it were, so to speak, ὥ. ἀκονιτί Th. 4.73; τὸν ἐγκέφαλον ὥ. σεσεῖσθαί μοι δοκεῖς Ar. Nu. 1276, cf. Pax 234; ἅμα μὲν . . ὥ. ὑπεφθόνει X. Cyr. 4.1.13, cf. Pl. Phdr. 270d, Cra. 384c; in later Gk. sts. after the word to which it refers, ἐσφιγμένον ὥ. Porph. Chr. 26; βάθρον ὥ. Sch.Pi. O. 8.33; στέφανος ὥ. τῶν πόλεων τὰ τείχη ib.42: freq. with parts., ὥ. ἐγγελῶσα S. El. 277; ὥ. ἐντεταμένου τοῦ σώματος Pl. Phd. 86b; ὥ. τι τῶν ἄλλων εὐλόγως πεποιηκότες as if they had done, Lys. 12.7; ὥ. ἐξόν as if it were in our power, X. An. 3.1.14; σιωπῇ ἐδείπνουν, ὥ. τοῦτο ἐπιτεταγμένον αὐτοῖς Id. Smp. 1.11, cf. Mem. 2.3.3; with a change of construction, ὥ. τὸν ἀριθμὸν τοῦτον ἔχοντα ἀνάγκην . . , καὶ οὔτε . . οἷόν τε εἴη γενέσθαι Id. HG 2.3.19; τὴν ὥ. ἐπὶ τοῦ δίφρου ἕδραν a seat like that used in the chariot, Id. Eq. 7.5.

III. rarely of Time,

1. ὥσπερ ἄν = ἕως ἄν, so long as, or however long (cf. ὡς Ad. 2), ὥσπερ ἂν ζῶ S. OC 1361 (sed leg. ἕωσπερ).

2. as soon as, Ar. Pax 24.

IV. after a Comp. (cf. ὡς Ab. 1.4); οὐ μείους ὥ. χίλιοι Xenoph. 3.4; ἧττον . . ὥ. X. HG 2.3.16.—Cf. ὡσπερεί, ὥσπερ οὖν.