This article examines the neglected evidence of the Greek Pentateuch for verbs of sexual intercourse. I aim to demonstrate the translators’ skilful application of their mimetic translation method and the native-speaker competence suggested by their vocabulary choices in the relevant sphere. With one exception manifesting Hebrew interference through semantic extension, all the verbs deployed to describe sexual intercourse represent natural Greek usage and are found in classical literature going back in some cases to early epic. This provides yet another indication that the evidence of the Septuagint should no longer be dismissed when considering the post-classical development of the Greek language.

Cicero’s friend and correspondent Titus Pomponius Atticus was a key figure in the Graeco-Roman cultural life of his time, and knowing about the Greek that he used would give us insight not only into this broader culture, but also into the Greek language itself at this crucial point of its history. However, no writings by him survive, and his Greek can only be reconstructed from Cicero’s letters. The only previous attempt to do this was made nearly a century ago and was generously inclusive but lacking in discernment. The current study seeks to distinguish the different types of evidence on this question that Cicero’s letters can offer. It provides a list of those Greek words we can be most confident featured in Atticus’ letters and suggests some criteria for judging the more numerous doubtful instances. Finally, it points to some conclusions about Atticus’ Greek, and how this may have differed from Cicero’s.