A.“πλοῖ” S.Ph.304, X.An.5.7.7; gen. “πλῶν” OGI132.9 (Egypt, ii B.C.); dat. “πλοῖς” Antipho 5.83; acc. “πλοῦς” Arist.Mete.362b24; later, a gen. sg. πλοός, as if of third declens. (cf. χοῦς A), Peripl.M.Rubr.62, OGI572.21 (Myra, ii/iii A.D.), X. Eph.1.14; dat. “πλοΐ” D.S.21.2: pl. “πλόες” Phot.; acc. “πλόας” IGRom. 4.841 (Hierapolis): (πλέω):—sailing, voyage, Od.3.169, Hdt. (who always has the disyll. form) 2.29, etc.; “ἔσσεται Ἀγεάνακτι καλὸς π. ἐς Μιτυλάναν” Theoc.7.52; “ναῶν π.” Pi.O.7.32; “πλόον ὁρμαίνειν” Od. l.c.; πλοῦν στεῖλαι, ποιεῖσθαι, S.Aj.1045, Ph.552; ἔξω πλόου out of one's course, Pi.P.11.39; “ἐπ᾽ ἡμέρας τέσσερας πλόος” Hdt.2.29; μῆκός ἐστι πλόος ἡμέραι τέσσερες its length is four days' sail, ib.158; ἐκ τῶν πλόων when the voyage is done, Id.1.185: metaph., “διὰ τοῦ πλοῦ . . τῆς ζωῆς” Pl.Lg.803b.
2. time or tide for sailing, ὡραῖος π., εἰαρινὸς π., Hes.Op.630, 678; “καιρὸς καὶ π.” S.Ph.1450 (anap.); π. ἡμῖν ἐγίγνετο, i.e. the wind was fair, Antipho 5.24, cf. Th.1.137; “π. ἐστί τινι” E.Hec.899, IA92; “παραπεσόντος π. τισί” Plb.4.57.6; πλῷ χρήσασθαι to have a fair wind, Th.3.3; “πλόον δοκάζων” Sophr.52: pl., “καλλίστοις ἐχρήσαντο πλοῖς” Antipho 5.83.
3. prov., δεύτερος π. 'the next best way', of those who try another scheme if the first fails (from those who use oars when the wind fails, ὁ δ. π. ἐστι δήπου λεγόμενος, ἂν ἀποτύχῃ τις οὐρίου (cj.), “κώπαισι πλεῖν” Men.241), Pl.Phd. 99d, Phlb.19c, Plt.300c; δεύτερος δὲ π. . . , πειρᾶσθαι . . the next best thing is to try . . , Arist.Pol.1284b19; “κατὰ τὸν δ. πλοῦν” Id.EN1109a35; “δ. ἂν εἴη π. τὸ . .” Plb.8.36.6: prov., “οὐ παντὸς ἀνδρὸς ἐπὶ τράπεζάν ἐσθ᾽ ὁ π.” Nicol.Com.1.26, cf. Κόρινθος; ἡμέτερος ὁ π. 'our innings', Com.Adesp.274.
