Lexical Definition

‎χρή‎ chrḗ (khray) to ought/need ^G:V
third person singular of the same as ‎χράομαι‎ or ‎χράω‎ used impersonally

ought.

• it needs (must or should) be

Abbott-Smith

* χρή impers. (< χράω, v. LS, s.v.),
it is necessary: Ja 3:10 (cf. δεῖ.).†

Abbott-Smith References

Liddell-Scott-Jones

χρή,

impersonal, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; Aeolic dialect χρῆ [Refs 7th c.BC+]; other forms are contractions (crases) of χρή (probably originally a neuter substantive) with forms of εἰμί (sum): future χρἤσται [Refs 5th c.BC+]: subjunctive χρῇ [Refs 5th c.BC+]; infinitive χρῆναι [Refs 5th c.BC+]; also χρῆν (see. below 111); participle neuter plural χρηεόντα (or χρὴ ἐόντα) [Refs 3rd c.AD+]: imperfect ἐχρῆν [Refs 5th c.BC+]: frequently also without the augment, χρῆν [Refs 5th c.BC+]; both forms in [Refs 5th c.BC+]: future χρήδει [Refs 5th c.BC+]: —it is necessary: with infinitive praes. aut aorist, it must needs, one must or ought to do (like δεῖ, which is only once used in [Refs 8th c.BC+]; ὅτι χ. πάσχειν ἐθέλω[Refs 5th c.BC+]: more frequently with accusative person et infinitive, one must, ἐμὲ δὲ χ. γήραϊ πείθεσθαι [Refs 8th c.BC+]; οὐδέ τί σε χ. νηλεὲς ἦτορ ἔχειν [Refs 5th c.BC+]—Sts. the infinitive must be supplied from the context, especially in [χρή}">Refs 8th c.BC+] (i.e. ἀποπαύεσθαι) [Refs 8th c.BC+]; ὅθι χ. πεζὸν ἐόντα (i.e. μάρνασθαι) [Refs 8th c.BC+]; so in Trag. and Attic dialect, πορθεῖν ἃ μὴ χ. (i.e. πορθεῖν) [Refs 4th c.BC+]; φύς τ᾽ ἀφ᾽ ὧν οὐ χρῆν (i.e. φῦναι), ξὺν οἷς τ᾽ οὐ χρῆν (i.e. ὁμιλεῖν) ὁμιλῶν [Refs 5th c.BC+]; ἔκανες ὃν οὐ χρῆν (i.e. κτεῖναι) [Refs 4th c.BC+]; ἐπιπλεύσειέ τις ὡς χ. (i.e. ἐπιπλεῦσαι) [Refs 5th c.BC+]; θύσαντες οἷς χ. (i.e. θῦσαι) [Refs 5th c.BC+] —The imperfect frequently expresses something that ought to have been, but is not, ἐνθάδ᾽ οὐ παραστατεῖ, ὡς χρῆν, Ὀρέστης[χρή, χρῆν τι λέγειν ὑμᾶς σοφὸν ῳ νικήσετε 5th-6th c.BC: Aristophanes Comicus “Plutus” 487 (\_anapaest meter\_), compare 432: \_absolutely\_, ἐρεῖτις, οὐ χρῆν· ἀλλὰτί ἐχρῆν εἴπατε [prev. author] “Ach.” 540. ">Refs 5th c.BC+]

__2 in [Refs 8th c.BC+]infinitive, with accusative person et genitive of things, οὐδέ τί σε χρὴ ἀφρποσύνης thou hast no need of imprudence, i. e. it does not befit thee, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; μυθήσεαι ὅττεό (i.e. ὅτου) σε χ. [Refs] is found in most codices of [Refs 5th c.BC+]
__3 with dative person pro accusative is not found; in [Refs 8th c.BC+], the dative belongs to the infinitive μέλει; in [Refs 5th c.BC+] Dobree restored με for γ; in [Refs 5th c.BC+] depends on μετεῖνα; in [Refs 5th c.BC+]
__II sometimes in a less strong sense, πῶς τοῦτο περᾶσαι χρ; how is one to get through this? [Refs 3rd c.BC+]; τί ἐχρῆν με ποιεῖ; what was I to do? [Refs 4th c.BC+]; ἓν οὐδὲν κατέστη ἴαμα ὅτι χρῆν προσφερόντας ὠφελεῖν there was no one remedy by the application of which one could (or was bound to) help them, [Refs 5th c.BC+]
__III τὸ χρῆν (infinitive) fate, destiny, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; τὸ χρή [Refs]; conjecture for τὸ χρεών (monosyllable) in [Refs]