Everyday LifeGreek → English
Idea
/aɪˈdɪə/
A thought or mental conception.
The Greek roots
ἰδέα
idéa
form, appearance
Literally: “a form seen by the mind”
Follow a root:ἰδέα5 words
The story of the word
For Plato, idéa was the perfect form behind every visible thing. The word settled gently into meaning any thought that appears in the mind.
The same roots elsewhere
Other languages reached for exactly the same Greek pieces.
In a sentence
A better idea occurred to her on the walk home.