DEFINITIONS
1. Every sentence must contain two parts, a subject and a predicate. The subject is that of which something is stated. The predicate is that which is stated of the subject. Thus in the sentence Aapeios
βασιλεύει, Darius is king, Δαρεῖος is the subject and
βασιλεύει is the predicate.
Note. 1. When any part of
εἰμί, be, connects the subject with a following noun or adjective, the verb is called the copula (i.e. means of coupling), and what follows is called the predicate; asΔαρεῖόςἐστιβασιλεύς, Darius is king,Σόλωνἐστὶσοφός, Solon is wise, whereἐστίis the copula. (See § 136, Rem.)Εἰμί, however, can form a complete predicate, as inεἰσὶθεοί, Gods exist.
Note. 2. The simple subject and predicate may each be modified by additional words or clauses; as
Κῦρος,ἀκούσαςaεἶπεν,εἰσῆλθενεἰςτὴνπόλιν, Cyrus, on hearing what he said, went into the city, whereΚῦρος,ἀκούσαςἃεἶπεν, is the modified subject, and the rest is the modified predicate.
2. That upon which the action of a verb is exerted is called the object. The object may be either direct or indirect: thus, in ἔδωκε τὰ χρήματα τῷ ἀνδρί, he gave the money to the man, χρήματα is the direct object and ἀνδρί is the indirect (or remote) object.
Note. Some verbs, called transitive, generally need the addition of an object to complete the sense. Others, called intransitive, admit no such addition; as
ἀπῆλθον, I departed.
SUBJECT AND PREDICATE
§ 134
Subject
1. The subject of a finite verb is in the nominative; as ὁ ἀνὴρ ἦλθεν, the man came. A verb in a finite mood is called a finite verb (§ 89).
2. The subject of the infinitive mood is in the accusative; as λέγουσι τοὺς ἄνδρας ἀπελθεῖν, they say that the men went away.
3. But the subject of the infinitive is generally omitted when it is the same as the subject or the object of the leading verb; as βούλεται ἀπελθεῖν, he wishes to go away; φησὶ γράφειν, he says that he is writing; παραινοῦμέν σου μένειν, we advise you to remain.
So when it is the same with any important adjunct of the leading verb; as κακούργου ἐστὶ κριθέντ᾽ ἀποθανεῖν, it is like a malefactor to die by sentence of the law (§ 138, N. 3, b).
Note. 1. The subject nominative of the first or second person is omitted, except when special emphasis is required. (See foot-note, page 143.) The nominative of the third person is omitted: -
(a) When it is expressed or implied in the context;
(b) When it is a general word for persons; as λέγουσι, they say, it is said;
(c) When it is indefinite; as in ὀψὲ ἦν, it was late; καλῶς ἔχει, it is well; δηλοῖ, it is evident (the case shows): so in the impersonal construction with the verbal in τέον, as in πειστέον (ἐστὶ) τῷ νόμῳ, we must obey the law (§ 281, 2).
(d) When the verb implies its own subject, as κηρύσσει, the herald (κῆρυξ) proclaims, ἐσάλπιγξε, the trumpeter sounded the trumpet, κωλύει, a hindrance occurs. In passive expressions like παρεσκεύασταί μοι, preparation has been made by me (I am prepared), like ventum est in Latin, the subject is really the idea of preparation, &c. contained in the verb. See § 198.
(e) With verbs like ὕει, it rains, ἀστράπτει, it lightens, σείει, there is an earthquake (it shakes), where, however, some subject like Ζεύς or θεός was originally supplied.
Note. 2. Many verbs in the third person singular have an infinitive or a sentence as their subject. These are called impersonal verbs. Such are
πρέπειandπροσήκει, it is proper,ἔνεστιandἔξεστι, it is possible,δοκεῖ, it seems good,συμβαίνει, it happens, and the like; asἔξεστινὑμῖντοῦτοποιεῖν, it is in your power to do this (to do this is possible for you). So alsoδεῖandχρή, it is required, we ought; asδεῖἡμᾶςἀπελθεῖν, we must go away (here, however, the infinitive might be considered an object, andδεῖandχρήmight be classed under Note 1 (c); cf. § 172, N. 2).
The name impersonal is applied with still greater propriety (though less frequently) to the verbs included in (c) and (d) of Note 1.
§ 135
Subject Nominative and Verb
1. A verb agrees with its subject nominative in number and person; as (ἐγὼ) λέγω, I say, οὗτος λέγει, this man says, οἱ ἄνδρες λέγουσιν, the men say.
2. But a nominative in the neuter plural regularly takes a singular verb; as ταῦτα ἐγένετο, these things happened, τὰ οἰκήματα ἔπεσεν, the buildings fell. So ἀδύνατά ἐστι (or ἀδύνατόν ἐστι), it is impossible.
But exceptions sometimes occur, especially with nouns denoting persons. Several are found in Xenophon.
3. A singular collective noun may take a plural verb; as τὸ πλῆθος ἐψηφίσαντο πολεμεῖν, the majority voted for war.
Note. 1. When several subjects are connected by and, they generally have a plural verb. But the verb often agrees with one of the subjects (generally the nearest), and is understood with the rest. The latter generally happens when they are connected by or or nor. E.g.
Ξυμφωνοῦμεν ἐγὼ καὶ ὑμεῖς, I and you agree: σοφοὶ ἐγὼ καὶ σὺ ἦμεν,
I and you were wise; καὶ σὺ καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοὶ παρῆστε, both you and your
brothers were present. Ἐμὲ οὔτε καιρὸς... οὔτ᾽ ἐλπὶς οὔτε φόβος
Note. 2. ff the subjects are of different persons, the verb is in the first person rather than the second, and in the second rather than the third. (See examples under N. 1.)
Note. 3. A verb in the dual may follow two subjects in the singular, or even a plural subject denoting two persons or things. But even a subject in the dual may have a verb in the plural. (See II. iy. 453; v. 10, 275; xvi. 218.)
Note. 4. Sometimes a verb agrees with the predicate nominative; as
αἱχορηγίαιἱκανὸνεὐδαιμονίαςσημεῖόνἐστιν, the payments for choruses are a sufficient sign of prosperity.
Note. 5. Rarely a singular verb has a masculine or feminine subject in the plural; as
ἔστιδὲἑπτὰστάδιοιἐξἈβύδουἐςτὴνἀπαντίον, and there is a distance of seven stades from Abydos to the opposite coast. In such cases the subject follows the verb, and its plural form seems to have arisen from an afterthought.
See also the phrases ἔστιν οἵ, &c., § 152, N. 2.
§ 136
Predicate Noun and Adjective
With verbs signifying to be, to become, to appear, to be named, chosen, considered, and the like, a noun or adjective in the predicate is in the same case as the subject. E.g.
Οὗτός ἐστι βασιλεύς, this man is king; Ἀλέξανδρος θεὸς ὠνομάζετο, Alexander was named a God; ᾑρέθη στρατηγός, he was chosen general; ἡ πόλις φρούριον κατέστη, the city became a fortress; οὗτός ἐστιν εὐδαίμων, this man is happy; ἡ πόλις μεγάλη ἐγένετο, the city became great; ηὔξηται μέγας, he has grown (to be) great.
Remark. The verbs which are here included with the copula
εἰμί(§ 133, 1, N. 1) are called copulative verbs. The predicate nominative with the passive verbs of this class represents the predicate accusative of the active construction (§ 166).
Note. 1 The predicate adjective agrees with the subject in gender and number as well as in case (§ 138, Remark).
Note. 2 The predicate of an infinitive with its subject accusative expressed (§ 134, 2) is in the accusative; as
βούλεταιτὸνυἱὸνεἶναισοφόν, he wishes his son to be wise. So when the participle is used like the infinitive in indirect discourse (§ 280); asἤδεσαντὸνΚῦρονβασιλέαγενόμενον, they knew that Cyrus had become king.
Note. 3 (a) When the subject of
εἶναιor of a copulative infinitive is omitted because it refers to the same person or thing as a nominative, genitive, or dative connected with the leading verb (§ 134, 3), a predicate noun or adjective which belongs to the omitted subject is generally assimilated in case to the preceding nominative, genitive, or dative. But it may stand in the accusative instead of being assimilated to a genitive or dative; especially a predicate noun is very seldom assimilated to a genitive. E.g.
(Nom.) Βούλεται σοφὸς εἶναι, he wishes to be wise; ὁ Ἀλέξανδρος ἔφασκεν εἶναι Διὸς υἱός, Alexander asserted that he was a son of Zeus.
(Gen.) Κύρου ἐδέοντο ὡς προθυμοτάτου γενέσθαι, they asked Cyrus to be as devoted to them as possible; but (with a noun) Ἀθηναίων ἐδεήθησαν σφίσι βοηθοὺς γενέσθαι, they asked the Athenians to become their helpers.
(Dat.) νῦν σοι ἔξεστιν ἀνδρὶ γενέσθαι, it is now in your power to show yourself a man; πρέπει σοι εἶναι προθύμῳ, it becomes you to be zealous; but also συμφέρει αὐτοῖς φίλους εἶναι, it is for their interest to be friends.
(b) So when a participle (in any case) represents the leading verb, and its noun the leading subject; as ἦλθον ἐπί τινα τῶν δοκούντων εἶναι σοφῶν, I went to one of those who seemed to be wise; πολλοὶ τῶν προσποιησαμένων εἶναι σοφιστῶν, many of those who professed to be sophists. So τοῖς δοκοῦσιν εἶναι σοφοῖς.
Note. 4. The same principle (N. 3) applies to the predicate of
ὧνor of the participle of a copulative verb; asᾔδεσανσοφοὶὄντες, they knew that they were wise (butἤδεσαντούτουςσοφοὺςὄντας, they knew that these men were wise). See Note 2.
Note. 5. For the application of the same principle to all adjective words which refer to the omitted subject of an infinitive, see § 138, N. 8
APPOSITION
A noun annexed to another noun to describe it, and denoting the same person or thing, agrees with it in case. This is called apposition. E.g.
Δαρεῖος ὁ βασιλεύς, Darius the king. Ἀθῆναι, μεγάλη πόλις, Athens, a great city. Ὑμᾶς τοὺς σοφούς, you, the wise ones. Ἡμῶν τῶν Ἀθηναίων, of us, the Athenians. Θεμιστοκλῆς ἥκω (sc. ἐγώ), I Themistocles am come. Φιλήσιος καὶ Λύκων οἱ Ἀχαιοί, Philesius and Lycon, the Achaeans.
Note. 1. Possessive pronouns and adjectives may have a genitive in apposition with a genitive which they imply; as
ὁἐμὸςτοῦταλαιπώρουβίος, the life of me, miserable one;Ἀθηναῖοςὤν,πόλεωςτῆςμεγίστης, being (a citizen) of Athens, the greatest city. Soτὰὑμέτερααὐτῶν(forτὰὑμῶναὐτῶν), your own (§ 147, N. 4).
Note. 2. A noun which might stand in the partitive genitive (§ 168) sometimes takes the case of the words denoting its parts, especially when the latter include the whole of the former; as
οἰκίαιαἱμὲνπολλαὶπεπτώκεσαν,ὀλίγαιδὲπεριῆσαν, most of the houses had fallen, but a few remained (where we might haveτῶνοἰκιῶν). Soοὗτοιἄλλοςἄλλολέγει. This is called partitive apposition.
Note. 3. A noun may be in apposition with a whole sentence, being in the nominative or accusative as it is more closely connected in thought with the subject or with the object of the sentence; as
κεῖνταιπεσόντες,πίστιςοὐσμικρὰπόλει, they lie prostrate, no small (cause of) confidence to the city;Ἑλένηνκτάνωμεν,Μενέλεῳλύπηνπικράν, let us kill Helen, (which will be) a bitter grief to Menelaus.
Note. 4. A noun may be in apposition with the subject or the object of a sentence, where we use as or a like word; as
ἵπποιἤγοντοθύματατῷἩλίῳ, horses were brought as offerings to the Sun (in active,ἵππουςἄγεινθύματα, to bring horses as offerings);συμμάχουςἕξειςθεούς, you will have Gods as allies. Soτυχεῖντινοςφίλου, to gain some one as a friend;χρῶμαιτούτῳφίλῳ, I treat him as a friend.
Τίνος διδάσκαλοι ἥκετε; as teachers of what are you come? See § 166, Note 2.
AGREEMENT OF ADJECTIVES
Adjectives agree with their nouns in gender, number, and case. This applies also to the article and to adjective pronouns and participles. E.g.
Ὁ σοφὸς ἀνήρ, the wise man; τοῦ σοφοῦ ἀνδρός, τῷ σοφῷ ἀνδρί, τὸν σοφὸν ἄνδρα, τῶν σοφῶν ἀνδρῶν, &c. Οὗτος ὁ ἀνήρ, this man; τούτου τοῦ ἀνδρός, τούτων τῶν ἀνδρῶν. Αἱ πρὸ τοῦ στόματος νῆες ναυμαχοῦσαι, the ships engaged in battle before the mouth (of the harbor). It includes predicate adjectives with copulative verbs, the case of which has already been considered (§ 136); as αἱ ἄρισται δοκοῦσαι εἶναι φύσεις, the natures which seem to be best.
Note. The adjective may be either attributive or predicate.
An attributive adjective simply qualifies the noun, without the intervention of a verb (like all the adjectives above, except ἄρισται). The predicate adjective may be connected with its noun by the copula (§ 183, 1, N. 1), or by a copulative verb (§ 136); as ὁ ἀνὴρ ἀγαθὸς ἐστιν, the man is good; καλεῖται ἀγαθός, he is called good: or it may stand to its noun in any relation which implies some part of εἰμί; as πτηνὰς διώκεις τὰς ἐλπίδας, you are pursuing hopes which are winged (i.e. hopes being winged); ἀθάνατον τὴν μνήμην καταλείψουσιν, immortal is the memory they will leave behind them (i.e. τὴν μνήμην οὖσαν ἀθάνατον); ποιεῖ τοὺς Μήδους ἀσθενεῖς, he makes the Medes (to be) weak (§ 166).
A predicate adjective is often known by its position with respect to
Note. 1. (a) An attributive adjective belonging to several nouns generally agrees with the nearest or the most prominent one, and is understood with the rest; as
τὸνἀγαθὸνἄνδρακαὶγυναῖκα, the good man and woman;παντὶκαὶλόγῳκαὶμηχανῇ, by every word and device.
(b) But such an adjective is occasionally plural if it belongs to several singular nouns, or dual if it belongs to two; as σωφρόνων ἐστὶ καὶ ἀνδρὸς καὶ γυναικὸς οὕτω ποιεῖν, it is the part of prudent (persons), both men and women, thus to do.
Note. 2. (a) A predicate adjective is regularly plural if it belongs to several singular nouns, or dual if it belongs to two. If the nouns are of different genders, the adjective is commonly masculine if one of the nouns denotes a male person, and commonly neuter if all denote things. Thus,
εἶδεπατέρατεκαὶμητέρακαὶἀδελφοὺςκαὶτὴνἑαυτοῦγυναῖκααἰχμαλώτουςγεγενημένους, he saw that both his father and his mother, his brothers, and his own wife had been made captives;πόλεμοςκαὶστάσιςὀλέθριαταῖςπόλεσίνἐστιν, war and faction are destructive to states.
(b) But it sometimes follows both, the gender and number of the nearest or most prominent noun; as πρόρριζος αὐτὸς, ἡ γυνὴ, τὰ παιδία, ἀπολοίμην, may I perish root and branch, myself, my wife, my children.
(c) A predicate adjective is sometimes neuter, being used like a noun (§ 139), even when its noun is masculine or feminine; as καλὸν ἡ ἀλήθεια, a beautiful thing is truth.
Note 3. A collective noun in the singular denoting persons may take a plural participle; as
ΤροίανἑλόντεςἈργείωνστόλος, the Argives’ army having taken Troy.
Note 4. An adjective may conform to the real rather than the grammatical gender of a noun denoting a person; as
φίλετέκνον, dear child!
Note 5. The masculine form of the dual is very often used for the feminine in adjective pronouns and the article; as
τούτω τὼ τέχνα, these two arts. Especially rare are the femininesτά,ταῦτα.
Note 6.
Δύο, two, is often used with a plural noun.ὄσσε, the eyes, andδοῦρε, two spears, in Homer, may have plural adjectives.
Note 7. A predicate adjective is sometimes used where we should use an adverb or adverbial phrase; as
ἑκόντεςἦλθον, they came willingly;ὅρκιόςσοιλέγω, I say it to you on my oath;πρῶτοςδ᾽ἐξερέεινεΝέστωρ, and first, Nestor inquired. There is often, however, a great distinction between the adjective and the adverb; asπρῶτοςαὐτοὺςεἶδον, I was the first to see them;πρώτουςαὐτοὺςεἶδον, they were the first whom I saw;πρῶτον(adv.)αὐτοὺςεἶδον, first (of all that I did) I saw them.
Note. 8. (a) When the subject of an infinitive is omitted because it refers to the same person or thing as a nominative, genitive, or dative connected with the leading verb (§ 134, 3), adjectives, adjective pronouns, and participles which belong to the omitted subject are generally assimilated in case to the preceding nominative, genitive, or dative; but they sometimes stand in the accusative (agreeing with the omitted subject) instead of the genitive or dative, rarely instead of the nominative. This occurs chiefly in the predicate of
εἶναι, or of a copulative verb; for the usage in such cases and for examples, see § 136, Note 3.
(b) With the infinitives of other verbs, the assimilation of an adjective to a subject nominative is regular and very rarely neglected; after a genitive, assimilation seldom (if ever) occurs, and the accusative is regular; after a dative either the dative or the accusative may be used. E.g.
(Nom.) Οὐχ ὁμολογήσω ἄκλητος ἥκειν, I shall not admit that I am come unbidden; οὐκ ἔφη αὐτὸς, ἀλλ᾽ ἐκεῖνον στρατηγεῖν, he said that not (he) himself, but he (Nicias) was general; he said οὐκ (ἐγὼ) αὐτὸς (στρατηγῶν) ἀλλ᾽ ἐκεῖνος στρατηγεῖ, αὐτός being adjective (§ 145, 1) and ἐκεῖνος Substantive.
(Dat.) ἔδοξεν αὐτοῖς συσκευασαμένοις ἃ εἶχον καὶ ἐξοπλισαμένοις προιέναι, they decided to pack up what they had and arm themselves completely, and to advance (Anab. ii. 1, 2); but ἔδοξεν αὐτοῖς προφυλακὰς καταστήσαντας συγκαλεῖν τοὺς στρατιώτας, they decided to station pickets and to assemble the soldiers (ib. iii. 2, 1); in i. 2, we find two datives and an accusative.
(Accus. for Gen.) κακούργου ἐστὶ κριθέν τ᾽ ἀποθανεῖν, στρατηγοῦ δὲ μαχόμενον τοῖς πολεμίοις, it is like a malefactor to die by the sentence of a court, but like a general (to die) fighting the enemy; δέομαι ὑμῶν μεμνημένους τῶν εἰρημένων τὰ δίκαια ψηφίσασθαι, I beg of you to remember what has been said, and to vote what is just.
ADJECTIVE USED AS A NOUN
1. An adjective or participle, generally with the article, may be used as a noun; as ὁ δίκαιος, the just man; ὁ ἐχθρός, the enemy; φίλος, a friend; κακή, a base woman; τὸ μέσον or μέσον, the middle; οἱ κακοί, the bad; τοῖς ἀγαθοῖς, to the good; τῶν κρατούντων, of those in power; κακά, evils; τὰ θνητά, mortal things; οἱ γραψάμενοι Σωκράτην, the accusers of Socrates (§ 276, 2).
Note. In some cases, a noun is distinctly implied; as
τῇὑστεραίᾳ(sc.ἡμέρᾳ), on the next day.
2. The neuter singular of an adjective with the article is often used as an abstract noun; as τὸ καλόν, beauty (= κάλλος), τὸ δίκαιον, justice (= δικαιοσύνη).
Note. The participle, which is a verbal adjective, is occasionally thus used for the infinitive, which is a verbal noun; as
τὸδεδιός, fear (=τὸδεδιέναι);ἐντῷμὴμελετῶντι, in the not practising (=ἐντῷμὴμελετᾶν); both in Thucydides. So in Latin, opus est maturato, there is need of haste.
THE ARTICLE
§ 140
Homeric Use of the Article
In the oldest Greek (as in Homer) the article appears generally as a demonstrative or personal pronoun, sometimes as a relative. E.g.
Τὴν δ᾽ ἐγὼ οὐ λύσω, but I will not free her; τοῦ δὲ κλύε Φοῖβος Ἀπόλλων, and Phoebus Apollo heard him; ὁ γὰρ ἦλθε θοὰς ἐπὶ νῆας Ἀχαιῶν, for he came, &c. As relative, πυρὰ πολλὰ τὰ καίετο, many fires which were burning; δῶρα τὰ ἔδωκαν, gifts which they gave.
Note. 1. Even in Homer, adjectives and participles used as nouns (§ 189, 1) have the article, as in Attic Greek; as
οἱγὰρἄριστοιἐννηυσὶνκέαται, for the bravest sit in the ships;οἱἄλλοι, the others;τάτ᾽ἐόντατάτ᾽ἐσόμενα, both things that are and things that are to be.
Note. 2. (a) When the article is used with nouns in Homer, it is generally a pronoun, with which the noun is in apposition; as
ὁδ᾽ἔβραχεχάλκεοςἌρης, and he, brazen Ares, roared;ἡδ᾽ἀέκουσ᾽ἅματοῖσιγυνὴκίεν, and she, the woman, went with them unwilling.
(b) Nearer the Attic use of the article are examples like these:
αὐτὰρ ὁ τοῖσι γέρων ὁδὸν ἡγεμόνευεν, but he, the old man, showed them the way; τὸν δ᾽ οἷον πατέρ᾽ εὗρον, and they found him, the father, alone.
(c) Hardly, if at all, to be distinguished from the Attic article is that found in examples like these: ὅτε δὴ τὴν νῆσον ἀφίκετο, when now he came to the island; τό τε σθένος Ὠρίωνος, and the might of Orion; αἱ δὲ γυναῖκες ἱστάμεναι θαύμαζον, and the women stood and wondered.
(d) It is, therefore, often difficult to decide the exact force of an article in early Greek. The above examples show a gradual transition, even in Homer, from the original pronoun to the true definite
Note. 3. The examples in Note 2 (c) are exceptional; and in such cases the nouns usually stand without the article in Homer, as in Latin. Thus
δεινὴδὲκλαγγὴγένετ᾽ἀργυρέοιοβιοῖοwould in Attic Greek requireἡκλαγγὴandτοῦβιοῦ(§ 141).
Note. 4. Herodotus generally uses the forms of the article beginning with
τin the place of the ordinary relative, — of which he uses only the formsὅς,ἥ,οἵ, andαἵ, except after prepositions. Thusὄρνιςἱρὸς,τῷοὔνομαΦοῖνιξ, a sacred bird, whose name is Phoenix. In other respects, he uses the article as it is used in Attic prose.
Note. 5. The Lyric poets follow the Homeric usage with respect to the article more closely than Herodotus; and the Attic poets, especially in the lyric chorus, admit Homeric uses.
§ 141
Attic Use of the Article
In Attic Greek the article generally corresponds to the English definite article the; as ὁ ἀνήρ, the man; τῶν πόλεων, of the cities; τοῖς Ἕλλησιν, to the Greeks.
Note. 1. The Greek uses the article in certain cases in which the English generally omits it. Such are the following: –
(a) Proper names may take the article; as ὁ Σωκράτης or Σωκράτης, Socrates.
(b) Abstract nouns very often take the article; as ἡ ἀρετή, virtue, ἡ δικαιοσύνη, justice; ἡ εὐλάβεια, caution. But ἀρετή, &c. are also used in the same sense.
(c) Nouns qualified by a demonstrative or possessive pronoun regularly take the article; as οὗτος ὁ ἀνήρ, this man; ὁ ἐμὸς πατήρ, my father;περὶ τῆς ἡμετέρας πόλεως, about our state. (See § 142, 4.) So with nouns on which a possessive genitive of a personal, demonstrative, or reflexive pronoun depends; as ὁ πατήρ μου, my father; ὁ ἐμαυτοῦ πατήρ, my own father (§ 142, 1, Note); ὁ τούτων πατήρ`, their father.
(d) Τοιοῦτος, τοσοῦτος, τοιόσδε, τοσόσδε, and τηλικοῦτος may take the article; as τὸν τοιοῦτον ἄνδρα; such a man. It is always used with δεῖνα, such a one.
Note. 2. The article is sometimes used, where we use a possessive pronoun, to mark something as belonging to a person or thing mentioned in the sentence; as
ἔρχεταιΜανδάνηπρὸςτὸνπατέρα, Mandane comes to her father (lit. to the father).
Note. 3. An adverb, a preposition with its case, or any similar attributive adjective; as
οἱτότεἄνθρωποι, the men of that time;τοῦπάλαιΚάδμου, of ancient Cadmus;οἱἐνἄστειἈθηναῖοι, the Athenians in the city. Here a noun denoting men or things is often omitted; asοἱ ἐνἄστει, those in the city;τοῖςτότε, to those of that time;οἱἀμφὶΠλάτωνα, those about Plato (generally Plato and his school, or simply Plato).
Note. 4. The nouns
γῆ, land,πράγματα, things or affairs,υἱός, son, and sometimes other nouns which are readily suggested by the context, may be omitted after the article, when a qualifying adjective or genitive is added; asεἰςτὴνἑαυτῶν(sc.γῆν), to their own land;ἐκτῆςπεριοικίδος, from the neighboring country;τὰτῆςπόλεως, the affairs of the state;ΠερικλῆςὁΞανθίππου(sc.υἱός), Pericles, the son of Xanthippus;τὴνταχίστην(sc.ὁδόν), the quickest way. Expressions likeτὰτῆςΤύχης,τὰτῆςὀργῆς, with no definite nouns understood, sometimes do not differ fromΤύχη, Fortune, andὀργή, wrath.
Note. 5. Instead of repeating a noun with new adjuncts in the same sentence, it is sufficient to repeat its article; as
οἱτῶνπολιτῶνπαῖδεςκαὶοἱτῶνἄλλων, the children of the citizens and those of the others.
Note. 6. The infinitive, as a verbal noun (§ 258), may take a neuter article; as
τὸεἰδέναι, the knowing;σοὶτὸμὴσιγῆσαιλοιπὸνἦν, it remained for you not to be silent.
Note. 7. In like manner, a neuter article may precede a whole clause considered as a noun; as
τὸγνῶθισαυτὸνπανταχοῦἐστιχρήσιμον, the saying “know thyself” is everywhere useful.
Note. 8. A predicate noun seldom has the article; as
νὺξἡἡμέραἐγένετο, the day became night;οὗτοίεἰσικάκιστοιἀνθρώπων, these are the worst of men. But when the predicate refers definitely to distinct individuals, it may have the article; asεἰσὶδ᾽οὗτοιοἱεἰδότεςτἀληθές; and are these those (whom I mean) who know the truth?
§ 142
Position of the Article
1. An attributive adjective which qualifies a noun with the article commonly stands between the article and the noun; as ὁ σοφὸς ἀνήρ, the wise man; τῶν μεγάλων πόλεων, of the great cities. The position of such an adjective with reference to the article (with the two modifications mentioned in 2) is called the attributive position and is opposed to the predicative (see 3).
Note. This applies to possessive pronouns and all expressions which have the force of attributive adjectives, when they are preceded by the article (§ 141, N. 3), and to dependent genitives (except partitives and the genitive of the personal pronoun); as
ὁἐμὸςπατήρ, my father;ἡσὴμήτηρ, thy mother;ὁἐμαυτοῦπατήρ, my own father;οἱἐνἄστειἄνθρωποι, the men in the city;οὐδεὶςτῶντότεἙλλήνων, none of the Greeks of that time;τὸτῷὄντιψεῦδος, the real falsehood;εἰςτὴνἐκείνωνπόλιν, into their city;οἱτῶνΘηβαίωνστρατηγοί, the generals of the Thebans (2, N. 3). For participles, see 2,Ν. 5. Two or even three articles may thus stand together; asτὰτῆςτῶνπολλῶνψυχῆςὄμματα, the eyes of the soul of the multitude.
2. The article together with any of these qualifying expressions may follow the noun, in which case the noun itself may have another article before it. E.g.
Ὁ ἀνὴρ ὁ σοφός, or ἀνὴρ ὁ σοφός, the wise man (not, however, ὁ ἀνὴρ σοφός, see § 142, 3; αἱ πόλεις αἱ δημοκρατούμεναι, the states which are under democracies; ἄνθρωποι οἱ τότε, the men of that time; πρὸς ἀδικίαν τὴν ἄκρατον, with regard to pure injustice.
Remark. Of the three attributive positions, the first (e.g.
ὁσοφὸςἀνήρ) is the most common and the most simple and natural; the second (ὁἀνὴρὁσοφός) is the most formal; the third (ἀνὴρὁσοφός) is the least common, especially in the more careful prose writers.
Note. 1. The article at the beginning of a clause may be separated from its noun by
μέν,δέ,τέ,γέ,γάρ,δή, and sometimes by other words.
Note. 2. The partitive genitive (§ 168) rarely stands in either of the positions here mentioned, but either precedes or follows the governing noun and its article, like a predicate; as
οἱκακοὶτῶνπολιτῶν, orτῶνπολιτῶνοἱκακοί, the bad among the citizens (rarelyοἱτῶνπολιτῶνκακοί). Even the other forms of the adnominal genitive occasionally have this position, asτῶνπαλαιῶνἡφιλοσοφία, the philosophy of the ancients.
Note. 3. (a)
Ὁἄλλοςgenerally means the rest, seldom the other;οἱἄλλοι, the others: asἡἄλληπόλις, the rest of the state (butἄλληπόλις, another state);οἱἄλλοιἝλληνες, the other Greeks. Bothὁἄλλοςandἄλλος(rarelyἕτερος) may have the meaning of besides; asεὐδαιμονιζόμενοςὑπὸτῶνπολιτῶνκαὶτῶνἄλλωνξένων, congratulated by the citizens and the foreigners besides;οὐγὰρἦνχορτὸςοὐδὲἄλλοδένδένδρον, for there was no grass nor any tree either (lit. any other tree).
(b) Πολύς with the article generally (though not always) means the greater part, especially in οἱ πολλοί, the multitude, the majority, and τὸ πολύ, the greater part. So οἱ πλείονες, the majority, τὸ πλεῖον, the greater part, οἱ πλεῖστοι and τὸ πλεῖστον, the greatest number or
Note. 4. When a noun has two or more qualifying words, each of them may take an article and stand in either of the above positions (1 or 2), or all may stand between one article and its noun; as
ἡἈττικὴἡπαλαιὰφωνή, the ancient Attic speech;τὰτείχητὰἑαυτῶντὰμακρά, their own long walls;ἔπεμπονεἰςτὰςἄλλαςἈρκαδικὰςπόλεις, they sent to the other Arcadian cities;ἡὑπ᾽ἈρετῆςἩρακλέουςπαίδευσις, the instruction of Hercules by Virtue. Occasionally one stands between the article and the noun, while another follows the noun without an article; asἡἐνμάχῃξυμβολὴβαρεῖα.
Note. 5. When an attributive participle (§ 188) with dependent words qualifies a noun with the article, either the participle or the dependent words may follow the noun; as
τὸνῥέονταποταμὸνδιὰτῆςπόλεως, the river which runs through the city;ἡἐντῷἸσθμῷἐπιμονὴγενομένη, the delay which occurred at the Isthmus. But such expressions may also take either of the positions 1 or 2.
Note. 6. The Greeks commonly said the Euphrates river,
τὸνἘῤφράτηνποταμόν, &c., rather than the river Euphrates. So sometimes with names of mountains (rarely with those of cities or islands).
3. When an adjective either precedes the article, or follows the noun without taking an article, it forms a predicate, and some part of εἰμί, be, is implied (§ 138, Remark). E.g.
Ὁ ἀνὴρ σοφός or σοφὸς ὁ ἀνήρ (sc. ἐστίν), the man is wise, or wise is the man; πολλοὶ οἱ πανοῦργοι, many are the evil-doers; ἐφημέρους γε τὰς τύχας κεκτήμεθα, we possess our fortunes for a day (sc. οὔσας).
The predicate force of such adjectives can often be expressed by a periphrasis; as τοῖς λόγοις βραχυτέροις ἐχρῆτο, the words which he used were shorter, lit. he used the words (being) shorter; ἡγοῦντο αὐτονόμων τῶν ξυμμάχων, they presided over their allies (being) independent, i.e. the allies over whom they presided were independent. So πόσον ἄγει τὸ στράτευμα; how great is the army which he is bringing? § 138, Rem. The position of such an adjective with reference to the article is called the predicate position.
4. When a demonstrative pronoun qualifies a noun with the article, it takes the position of a predicate adjective (3), and either precedes the article or follows the noun. E.g.
Οὗτος ὁ ἀνήρ, this man, or ὁ ἀνὴρ οὗτος (never ὁ οὗτος ἀνήρ). Περὶ: τούτων τῶν πόλεων, about these cities.
Note. 1. But if an adjective or other qualifying word is added, the demonstrative may stand between this and its noun, contrary to the rule; as
ἡστενὴαὕτηὁδός, this narrow road;τῷἀφικομένῳτούτῳ
Note. 2.
Ἕκαστος,ἑκάτερος,ἄμφω, andἀμφότεροςhave the predicate position (3), like a demonstrative; but withἕκαστοςthe article may be omitted.Τοιοῦτος,τοσοῦτος;τοιόσδε,τοσόσδεandτηλικοῦτος, when they take the article, have the attributive position (1).
Note. 3. (a) A dependent genitive of the personal pronoun (whether partitive or not) has the predicate position (3), while that of other pronouns (unless it is partitive) has the attributive position (1); as
ἡμῶνἡπόλιςorἡπόλιςἡμῶν, our city (notἡἡμῶνπόλις);ἡτούτωνπόλις, these men’s city (notἡπόλιςτούτων);μετεπέμψατοἈστυάγηςτὴνἑαυτοῦθυγατέρακαὶτὸνπαῖδααὐτῆς, Astyages sent for his own daughter and her son.
(b) But if a qualifying word is added, the personal pronoun may stand between this and the noun; as ἡ δοκοῦσα ἡμῶν πρότερον σωφροσύνη, what previously seemed to be our modesty. See Note 1.
Note. 4. The adjectives
ἄκρος,μέσος, andἔσχατος, when they are in the predicate position (3), mean the top (or extremity), the middle, the last, of the thing which their nouns denote; asμέσηἡἀγορά, the middle of the market (whileἡμέσηἀγοράwould mean the middle market);ἄκραἡχείρ, the extremity of the hand.
The article here may be omitted entirely.
Note. 5.
Πᾶςandσύμπας, all, andὅλος, whole, generally have the predicate position; asπάντεςοἱἄνδρεςorοἱἄνδρεςπάντες, all the men;ὅληἡπόλιςorἡπόλιςὅλη, all the city. But they can also be used like attributive adjectives, preceded by the article; asἡπᾶσαΣικελία, the whole of Sicily,τὸὅλονγένος, the entire race.
The distinction here was probably not greater than that between all the city and the whole city in English. We find even οἱ πάντες πολῖται, the whole body of citizens.
Note. 6.
Αὐτόςas an intensive pronoun, ipse, has the predicate position; asαὐτὸςὁἀνήρ, the man himself. Butὁαὐτὸςἀνήρ, the same man (§ 79, 2).
§ 143
Pronominal Article in Attic Greek
1. In Attic prose the article retains its original demonstrative force chiefly in the expression ὁ μέν... ὁ δέ, the one... the other. E.g.
Ὁ μὲν οὐδὲν, ὁ δὲ πολλὰ κερδαίνει, one man gains nothing, another gains much. Δεῖ τοὺς μὲν εἶναι δυστυχεῖς, τοὺς δ᾽ εὐτυχεῖς, some must be unfortunate, and others fortunate. Τῶν πόλεων αἱ μὲν τυραννοῦνται, αἱ δὲ δημοκρατοῦνται, of states, some are governed by tyrants, others by democracies.
Note. 1. The neuter
τὸμέν...τὸδέmay be used adverbially, partly... partly. Forτοῦτομέν...τοῦτοδέin this sense, see § 148, N. 4.
Note. 2.
Ὁδέ, &c., sometimes means and he, but he, &c., even when noὁμένprecedes: asἸνάρωςἈθηναίουςἐπηγάγετο·οἱδὲ...ἦλθον, Inaros called in Athenians; and they came.
2. A few other relics of the demonstrative meaning of the article are found in Attic, chiefly the following:-
Τὸν καὶ τόν, this man and that; τὸ καὶ τό, this and that; τὰ καὶ τά, these and those; as ἔδει γὰρ τὸ καὶ τὸ ποιῆσαι; καὶ τὸ μὴ ποιῆσαι, for we ought to have done this thing and that, and not to have done the other. Πρὸ τοῦ (or προτοῦ), before this, formerly. καὶ τόν or καὶ τήν, before an infinitive; as καὶ τὸν κελεῦσαι δοῦναι (sc. λέγεται), and (it is said) he commanded him to give tt. Cyr. i. 8, 9.
So occasionally τῷ, therefore, which is common in Homer.
PRONOUNS
PERSONAL AND INTENSIVE PRONOUNS.
§ 144
1. The nominative of the personal pronouns is seldom used, except for emphasis., (See § 134, N. 1.)
Note. The forms
ἐμοῦ,ἐμοί, andἐμέare more emphatic than the encliticsμοῦ,μοί,μέ. The latter seldom occur after prepositions, except inπρόςμε.
2. (a) The pronouns of the third person, οὗ, οἷ, ἕ, σφῶν, σφίσι, &c., when they are used in Attic prose, are generally indirect reflexives, that is, in a dependent clause (or joined with an infinitive or participle in the leading clause) referring to the subject of the leading verb. E.g.
Φοβοῦνται μὴ οἱ Ἀθηναῖοι σφίσιν ἐπέλθωσιν, they fear that the Athenians may attack them; ἐδέοντο ὑμῶν μὴ σφᾶς περιορᾶν φθειρομένους, they begged you not to see them destroyed. See § 79, 1, N. 1.
(b) In Homer and Herodotus they are generally personal pronouns, though sometimes (direct or indirect) reflexives. E.g.:
Ἐκ γάρ σφεων φρένας εἵλετο Παλλὰς Ἀθήνη, for Pallas Athena bereft them of their senses (Hom.); αὐτίκα δέ οἱ εὕδοντι ἐπέστη ὄνειρος, and soon a dream came to him in his sleep (Hdt.).
§ 145
1. Αὐτός in all its cases may be an intensive adjective pronoun, himself, herself, itself, themselves, like ipse. This is always its force in the nominative of all numbers, except when it is preceded by the article and means the same (§ 19, 2). E.g.
Αὐτὸς ὁ στρατηγός, the general himself; ἐπ᾽ αὐτοῖς τοῖς αἰγιαλοῖς, on the very coasts; ἐπιστήμη αὐτή, knowledge itself. (See § 142, 4, N. 6.)
Note. A pronoun with which
αὐτόςagrees is often omitted; asταῦταἐποιεῖτεαὐτοί(sc.ὑμεῖς), you did this yourselves;πλευστέονεἰςταύτας αὐτοῖς ἐμβᾶσιν(sc.ὑμῖν), you must sail, embarking on these yourselves (in person). Soαὐτὸςἔφη(ipse dixit), himself (the master) said it.
2. The oblique cases of αὐτός are the ordinary personal pronouns of the third person. E.g.
Στρατηγὸν αὐτὸν ἀπέδειξε, he designated him as general. See four other examples in Xen. Anab. i. 1, 2 and 3.
For μίν, νίν, and σφέ, see § 79, 1, Notes 3 and 4.
Note. The oblique cases of
αὐτόςare often used where the indirect reflexives (§ 144, 2) might stand, and sometimes even where the direct reflexives (§ 146) would be allowed; asἁπλῶςτὴνἑαυτοῦγνώμηνἀπεφαίνετοΣωκράτηςπρὸςτοὺςὁμιλοῦνταςαὐτῷ, Socrates used to declare his own opinion plainly to those who conversed with him, where of might have been used (Xen. Mem. iv. 7, 1); but in i. 2, 3, we haveἐλπίζεινἐποίειτοὺςσυνδιατρίβονταςἑαυτῷ. The union of an intensive and a personal pronoun inαὐτόςexplains this freedom of usage.
REFLEXIVE PRONOUNS.
§ 146
The reflexive pronouns refer to the subject of the clause in which they stand. Sometimes in a dependent clause they refer to the subject of the leading verb, — i.e. they are indirect reflexives. E.g.
Γνῶθι σαυτόν, know thyself; ἐπέσφαξεν ἑαυτόν, he slew himself; τὰ ἄριστα βουλεύεσθε ὑμῖν αὐτοῖς, take the best counsel for yourselves.
Ὁ τύραννος νομίζει τοὺς πολίτας ὑπηρετεῖν ἑαυτῷ, the tyrant thinks that the citizens are his own servants. (See § 145, 2, Note.)
Note. 1. Occasionally a reflexive refers to some emphatic word which is not the subject; as
ἀπὸσαυτοῦἐγώσεδιδάξω, I will teach you from your own case (from yourself). In fact, these pronouns correspond almost exactly in their use to the English reflexives, myself, thyself, himself, &c.
Note. 2. The third person of the reflexive is sometimes used for the first or second; as
δεῖἡμᾶςἀνερέσθαιἑαυτούς, we must ask ourselves.
Note. 8. The reflexive is sometimes used for the reciprocal (§ 81);
διαλεγόμεθαἡμῖναὐτοῖς, we discourse with one another (i.e. among ourselves).
POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS.
§ 147
The possessive pronouns are generally equivalent to the possessive genitive of the personal pronouns.
Thus ὁ ἡμέτερος πατήρ, --- ὁ πατὴρ ἡμῶν, our father.
The possessive is regularly preceded by the article.
See § 167, 1; § 141, N. 1(c); and below, N. 4.
Note. 1. The possessive is occasionally equivalent to the objective genitive of the personal pronoun; as
ἡἐμὴεὔνοια, which commonly means my good-will (towards others), rarely means good-will (shown) to me.
> Note. 2. In Attic prose, σφέτερος, their, is always (directly or indirectly) reflexive, and ὅς, his, her, its, is not used at all. (See § 144, 2.)
Note. 8. By the possessive pronouns and the possessive genitive (§ 167, 1) the words my father can be expressed in Greek in five forms:
ὁἐμὸςπατήρ,ὁπατὴρὁἐμός,πατὴρὁἐμός(§ 142, 1, 2),ὁπατήρμου, and (after another word)μουὁπατήρ(asἔφημουὁπατήρ). Soὁσὸςπατήρ,ὅτο.
Note. 4. Our own, your own (when your refers to more than one), and their own are generally expressed by
ἡμέτερος,ὑμέτερος, andσφέτερος, withαὐτῶνin apposition withἡμῶν,ὑμῶν, orσφῶνimplied in the possessive (§ 137, N. 1); asτὸνἡμέτεροναὐτῶνπατέρα, our own father;τῇὑμετέρᾳαὐτῶνμητρί, to your own mother;τοὺςσφετέρουςαὐτῶνπαῖδας, their own children. In the third personἑαυτῶνcan be used; asτοὺςἑαυτῶνπαῖδας(alsoσφῶναὐτῶνπαῖδας, without the article); but very seldomἡμῶν(orὑμῶν)αὐτῶν. In the singular, expressions likeτὸνἐμὸναὐτοῦπατέραforτὸν
DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUNS.
§ 148
Οὗτος and ὅδε, this, generally refer to what is near in place, time, or thought; ἐκεῖνος, that, refers to what is more remote.
Note. 1. The distinction between
οὗτοςandὅδε, both of which correspond to our this, must be learned by practice. In the historians,οὗτος(withτοιοῦτος,τοσοῦτος, andοὕτως) frequently refers to a speech just made, whileὅδε(withτοιόσδε,τοσόσδε, andὧδε) refers to one about to be made; asτάδεεἶπεν, he spoke as follows, butταῦταεἶπεν, thus he spoke (said after the speech).
Note. 2.
Οὗτοςis sometimes an exclamation; asοὗτος,τίποιεῖς; You there! what are you doing?
Note. 3. The Greek has no word exactly corresponding to the unemphatic demonstrative which is often used in English as the antecedent of a relative, as I saw those who were present. Here a participle with the article is generally used; as
εἶδοντοὺςπαρόντας; if a demonstrative is used (εἶδοντούτουςοἳπαρῆσαν, I saw these men who were present), it has special emphasis (§ 152, N. 3). A relative with omitted antecedent sometimes expresses the sense required; asεἶδονοὓςἔλαβεν, I saw (those) whom he took (§ 152).
Note. 4.
Τοῦτομέν...τοῦτοδέ, first... secondly, partly... partly, is used nearly in the sense ofτὸμέν...τὸδέ(§ 148, 1, N. 1), especially by Herodotus.
For οὑτοσί, ὁδί, ἐκεινοσί, οὑτωσί, ὡδί, &c., see § 83, N. 2.
INTERROGATIVE PRONOUN.
§ 149
1. The interrogative τίς; who? what? may be either substantive or adjective; as τίνας εἶδον; whom did I see? or τίνας ἄνδρας εἶδον; what men did I see?
2. Τίς may be used both in direct and in indirect questions; as τί βούλεται, what does he want? ἐρωτᾷ τί βούλεσθε, he asks what you want (§ 241, 1).
In indirect questions, however, the relative ὅστις is more common; as ἐρωτᾷ ὅ τι βούλεσθε.
Note. The same principles apply to the pronominal adjectives
πόσος,ποῖος, &c. (§ 87, 1.)
INDEFINITE PRONOUN.
§ 150
The indefinite τις generally means some, any, and may be either substantive or adjective; as τοῦτο λέγει τις, some one says this; ἄνθρωπός τις, some man.
It is sometimes nearly equivalent to the English a or an; as εἶδον ἄνθρωπόν τινα, I saw a certain man, or I saw a man.
Note. Occasionally
τιςmeans every one, likeπᾶς τις; asεὖμέντιςδόρυθηξάσθω, let every one sharpen well his spear. Hom.
RELATIVE PRONOUNS.
§ 151
A relative agrees with its antecedent in gender and number; but its case depends on the construction of the clause in which it stands. E.g.
Εἶδον τοὺς ἄνδρας οἱ ὕστερον ἦλθον, I saw the men who came afterwards; οἱ ἄνδρες οὓς εἶδες ἀπῆλθον, the men whom you saw went away.
Note. 1. The relative follows the person of the antecedent; as
ὑμεῖςοἱτοῦτοποιεῖτε, you who do this;ἐγὼὃςτοῦτοἐποίησα, I who did this.
Note. 2. (a) A relative referring to several antecedents follows the rule given for predicate adjectives (§ 188, N. 2). It may be plural if it refers to a collective noun (§ 188, N. 8); as
τὸπλῆθοςοἵπερδικάσουσιν, the multitude who will judge.
(b) On the other hand, ὅστις, whoever, may have a plural antecedent; as πάντα ὅ τι βούλονται, everything, whatsoever they want.
Note. 3. In Homer the forms of the relative are sometimes used as demonstrative pronouns, like the article (§ 140); as
καὶὃςδεύτατοςἦλθε, and he came second;ὃγὰργέραςἐστὶθανόντων, for this is the right of the dead.
A few similar expressions occur in Attic prose, especially the Platonic ἢ δ᾽ ὅς, said he (where ἢ is imperfect of ἠμί, say). So καὶ ὅς, and he, καὶ οἵ, and they, and (in Herod.) ὃς καὶ ὅς, this man and that. (Compare τὸν καὶ τόν, § 148, 2.) So also ὃς μέν... ὃς δέ, in the oblique cases, may be used for ὁ μέν... ὁ δέ.
Note. 4. In the Epic and Lyric poets the enclitic
τέis often appended to relative words without affecting their meaning; asοὐκἀΐειςἅτέφησι; dost thou not perceive what he says? Sometimes it seems to make the relative more indefinite, likeτιςinὅστις, whoever, quicumque.
But οἷός τε in Attic Greek means able, capable, like δυνατός, being originally elliptical for τοιοῦτος οἷος, such as, and τέ having no apparent force.
Omission of the Antecedent.
§ 152
The antecedent of a relative may be omitted when it can easily be supplied from the context, especially if it is indefinite (§ 229). E.g.
Ἔλαβεν ἃ ἐβούλετο, he took what he wanted; ἔπειθεν ὁπόσους ἐδύνατο, he persuaded as many as he could; ἃ μὴ οἶδα οὐδὲ οἴομαι εἰδέναι, what I do not know I do not even think I know; ἐγὼ καὶ ὧν ἐγὼ κρατῶ μενοῦμεν παρὰ σοί, I and those whom I command will remain with you.
In such cases it is a mistake to say that ταῦτα, ἐκεῖνοι, &c. are understood; see N. 3. The relative clause here really becomes a substantive, and contains its antecedent within itself.
Note. 1. Most relative adverbs regularly omit the antecedent; as
ἦλθενὅτετοῦτοεἶδεν, he came when he saw this (for then, when).
Note. 2. The following expressions belong here:
ἔστινοἵ, some (§ 185, N. 5), more common than the regularεἰσὶνοἵ, sunt qui, there are (those) who;ἔνιοι(fromἔνι, =ἔνεστιorἔνεισι, andοἱ), some;ἐνίοτε(ἔνιandὅτε), sometimes:ἔστινοὗ, somewhere;ἔστινἧ, in some way;ἔστινὅπως, somehow.
Note. 3. When a clause containing a relative with omitted antecedent precedes the leading clause, the latter often contains a demonstrative referring back with emphasis to the omitted antecedent; as
ἃἐβούλετοταῦταἔλαβεν, what he wanted, that he took, entirely different fromταῦταἃἐβούλετοἔλαβεν, he took these (definite) things, which he wanted;ἃποιεῖναἰσχρὸν,ταῦτανόμιζεμηδὲλέγεινεἶναικαλόν, what it is base to do, this believe that it is not good even to say (hereταῦταis not the antecedent ofἅ, which is indefinite and is not expressed). See § 148, N. 8.
Assimilation and Attraction.
§ 153
When a relative would naturally be in the accusative as the object of a verb, it is generally assimilated to the case of its antecedent if this is a genitive or dative. E.g.
Ἐκ τῶν πόλεων ὧν ἔχει, from the cities which he holds (for ἃς ἔχει);
τοῖς ἀγαθοῖς οἷς ἔχομεν, with the good things which we have (for ἃ ἔχομεν).
This is often called attraction.
Note. 1. When an antecedent is omitted which (if it could have been expressed) would have been a genitive or dative, the assimilation still takes place; and a preposition which would have belonged to the antecedent passes over to the relative; as
ἐδήλωσετοῦτοοἷςἔπραττε, he showed this by what he did (likeἐκείνοιςἅ);σὺνοἷςἔχωτὰἄκρακαταλήψομαι, I will seize the heights with the men whom I have (as if it wereσὺντοῖςἀνδράσινοὓςἔχω);οὐδὲνὧνβούλεσθεπράξετε, you will do none of the things which you wish (likeἐκείνωνἅ). See § 148, N. 3.
Note. 2. A relative is very seldom assimilated from any other construction than that of the object accusative, or into any other case than the genitive or dative. Yet exceptions occur; as
ὧνἠπίστειπολλούς, many of those whom he distrusted (likeἐκείνωνοἷς). Even the nominative may be assimilated; asβλάπτεσθαιἀφ᾽ὧνἡμῖνπαρεσκεύασται, to be injured by what has been prepared by us (likeἀπ᾽ἐκείνωνἅ). Thuc.
Note. 3. A like assimilation takes place in relative adverbs; as
διεκομίζοντοεὐθὺςὅθενὑπεξέθεντοπαῖδαςκαὶγυναῖκας, they immediately brought over their children and women from the places in which they had placed them for safety (whereὅθεν, from which, stands forἐκεῖθενοἷ, from the places whither). Thuc.
Note. 4. The antecedent occasionally is assimilated to the case of the relative, when this immediately follows; as
ἔλεγονὅτιπάντωνὧνδέονταιπεπραγότεςεἶεν, they said that they had done all things which they needed (whereπάντωνὧνforπάνταἅis very irregular).
This inverted assimilation takes place in οὐδεὶς ὅστις οὐ, everybody, in which οὐδείς follows the case of the relative; as οὐδενὶ ὅτῳ οὐκ ἀποκρίνεται (for οὐδείς ἐστιν ὅτῳ), he replies to everybody.
Note. 5. A peculiar assimilation occurs in certain expressions with
οἷος; asχαρίζεσθαιοἵῳσοιἀνδρί, to please a man like you (forτοιούτῳοἷοςσύ).
§ 154
The antecedent is often attracted into the relative clause, and agrees with the relative. E.g.
Μὴ ἀφέλησθε ὑμῶν αὐτῶν ἣν κέκτησθε δόξαν καλήν, do not take from yourselves the good reputation which you have gained (for τὴν καλὴν δόξαν ἣν κέκτησθε): here notice the omission of the article.
Even the subject of a verb may be attracted; as οἴχεται φεύγων ὃν ἦγες μάρτυρα, the witness whom you brought (for ὁ μάρτυς ὃν ἦγες) has run away.
Note. This attraction may be joined with assimilation (§ 153); as
ἀμαθέστατοίἐστεὧνἐγὼοἶδαἙλλήνων, you are the most ignorant of the Greeks whom I know;ἐξἧςτὸπρῶτονἔσχεγυναικός, from the wife which he took first;σὺνᾗεἶχεδυνάμει, with the force which he had (forσὺντῇδυνάμειἣνεἶχεν).
Relative in Exclamations, &c.
§ 155
Οἷος, ὅσος, and ὡς are used in exclamations; as ὅσα πράγματα ἔχεις, how much trouble you have! ὡς ἀστεῖος, how witty!
For the relative in indirect questions see § 149, 2.
Relative not repeated.
§ 156
A relative is seldom repeated in a new case in the same sentence, but a personal or demonstrative pronoun commonly takes its place. E.g.
Ἐκεῖνοι τοίνυν, οἷς οὐκ ἐχαρίζονθ᾽ οἱ λέγοντες οὐδ᾽ ἐφίλουν αὐτοὺς ὥσπερ ὑμᾶς οὗτοι νῦν, those men, then, whom the orators did not try to gratify, and whom they did not love as these now love you (lit. nor did they love them as, &c.). Dem. Here αὐτούς is used to avoid repeating the relative in a new case, οὖς.
Note. Sometimes, however, a new case of the relative is understood in the latter part of a sentence; as
Ἀριαῖοςδὲ,ὃνἡμεῖςἠθέλομενβασιλέακαθιστάναι,καὶἐδώκαμενκαὶἐλάβομενπιστά, and Ariaeus, whom we wished to make king, and (to whom) we gave and (from whom) we received pledges,ἕο. Xen.
THE CASES: I. NOMINATIVE AND VOCATIVE
Note. The Greek is descended from a language which had eight cases, – an ablative, a locative, and an instrumental, besides the five found in Greek. The functions of the ablative were chiefly absorbed by the genitive; those of the instrumental and locative chiefly by the dative.
1. The nominative is used chiefly as the subject of a finite verb (§ 134, 1), or in the predicate after verbs signifying to be, &c. (§ 186).
2. The vocative, with or without ὦ, is used in addressing a person or thing; as ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, O men of Athens! ἀκούεις, Αἰσχίνη; dost thou hear, Aeschines?
Note. The nominative is sometimes used in exclamations, and even in other expressions, where the vocative is more common; as
ὦμοιἐγὼδειλός, O wretched me! SoἡΠρόκνηἔκβαινε, Procne, come out!
THE CASES: II. ACCUSATIVE
Note. The primary purpose of the accusative is to denote the nearer or direct object of a verb, as opposed to the remoter or indirect object denoted by the dative. It thus bears the same relation to a verb which the genitive generally bears toa noun. The object denoted by the accusative may be the external object of the action of a transitive verb, or the internal (cognate) object which is often implied in the meaning of even an intransitive verb. But the accusative has also assumed other functions, as will be seen, which cannot be brought under this or any other single category.
Accusative of Direct (External) Object.
§ 158
The direct object of the action of a transitive verb is put in the accusative; as τοῦτο σώζει ἡμᾶς, this preserves us; ταῦτα ποιοῦμεν, We do these things.
Note. 1. Many verbs which are transitive in English, and govern the objective case, take either a genitive or a dative in Greek. (See § 171, § 184, 2, and § 188, 1, N. 2.)
Note. 2. Many verbs which are transitive in Greek are intransitive in English; as
ὀμοῦμαιτοὺςθεούς, I will swear by the Gods;πάνταςἔλαθεν, he escaped the notice of all.
Note. 3. Verbal adjectives and even verbal nouns occasionally take an object accusative instead of the regular objective genitive (§ 167, 8; § 180); as
ἐπιστήμονεςἦσαντὰπροσήκοντα, they were acquainted with what was proper. Xen. Soτὰμετέωραφροντιστής, one who ponders on the things above (likeφροντίζων). Plat.
Cognate Accusative (Internal Object).
§ 159
Any verb whose meaning permits it may take an accusative of kindred signification. This accusative repeats the idea already contained in the verb, and may follow intransitive as well as transitive verbs. E.g.:
Ἥδομαι τὰς μεγίστας ἡδονάς, I enjoy the greatest pleasures. Εὐτυχοῦσι τοῦτο τὸ εὐτύχημα, they enjoy this good fortune. So πίπτειν πέσημα, to fall a fall; νόσον νοσεῖν or νόσον ἀσθενεῖν or νόσον κάμνειν, to suffer under a disease; ἁμάρτημα ἁμαρτάνειν, to commit an error (to sin a sin); δουλείαν δουλεύειν, to be subject to slavery; ἀγῶνα ἀγωνίζεσθαι, to undergo a contest; γραφὴν γράφεσθαι, to bring an indictment; γραφὴν διώκειν, to prosecute an indictment; δίκην ὀφλεῖν, to lose a lawsuit; νίκην νικᾶν, to gain a victory; μάχην νικᾶν, to gain a battle; πομπὴν πέμπειν, to form or conduct a procession; πληγὴν τύπτειν, to strike a blow.
Note. It will be seen that this construction is far more extensive in Greek than in English. It includes not only accusatives of kindred formation and meaning, as
νίκηννικᾶν, to gain a victory; but also those of merely kindred meaning, asμάχηννικᾶν, to gain a battle. The accusative may also limit the meaning of the verb to one of many applications; asὈλύμπιανικᾶν, to gain an Olympic victory;γάμουςἑστιᾶν, to give a wedding feast;ψήφισμανικᾶν, to carry a decree (to gain a victory with a decree);τὰΠαναθήναιαπέμπειν, to celebrate the Panathenaea by a procession.
For the cognate accusative becoming the subject of a passive verb, see § 198.
Note. 1. The cognate accusative may follow adjectives or even nouns; as
κακὸςπᾶσανκακίαν, bad with all badness;ἀγαθὸςπᾶσανἀρετήν, good with all goodness;δοῦλοςτὰςμεγίσταςδουλείας, a slave to the direst slavery.
Note. 2. A neuter adjective sometimes represents a cognate accusative, its noun being implied in the verb; as
μεγάλαἁμαρτάνειν, (sc.ἁμαρτήματα) to commit great faults;ταὐτὰλυποῦμαικαὶταὐτὰχαίρω, I have the same griefs and the same joys. Soτίχρήσομαιτούτῳ; (=τίναχρείανχρήσομαι;) what use shall I make of this? andοὐδὲνχρήσομαιτούτῳ, I shall make no use of this (§ 188, 1, N. 2). Soχρήσιμοςοὐδέν, good for nothing (N. 1). See § 160, 2, Note.
Note. 3. Here belongs the accusative of effect, which expresses a result beyond the action of the verb, which is effected by that action; as
πρεσβεύουσιτὴνεἰρήνην, they negotiate the peace (as ambassadors,πρέσβεις), butπρεσβεύεινπρεσβείαν, to go on an embassy. Compare the English breaking a hole, as opposed to breaking a stick. So after verbs of looking (in poetry); asἌρηδεδορκέναι, to look war (Ares);ἡβουλὴἔβλεψενᾶπυ, the Senate looked mustard.
Note. 4. A transitive verb may have a cognate accusative and another object at the same time; as
γράφεσθαίτινατὴνγραφὴνταύτην, to bring this indictment against any one:ἠδικήσαμεντοῦτονοὐδέν, we did this man no wrong;ταῦταδίδασκέμε, teach me this (§ 164);τοσοῦτονἔχθοςἐχθαίρωσε, so great hatred do I feel for thee;τὴνμάχηντοὺςβαρβάρουςνικήσας, having defeated the barbarians in the battle.
Note. 5. Connected with the cognate accusative is that which follows verbs of motion expressing the ground over which the motion passes; as
ὁδὸνἰέναι(ἐλθεῖν,πορεύεσθαι, &c.), to go (over) a road;πλεῖνθάλασσαν, to sail the sea;ὄροςκαταβαίνειν, to descend a mountain; &c. These verbs thus acquire a transitive meaning. See § 179, 2.
Accusative of Specification. – Adverbial Accusative.
§ 160
1. The accusative of specification may be joined with a verb, adjective, noun, or even a whole sentence, to denote that in respect to which the expression is used. E.g.
Τυφλὸς εἶ τὰ ὄμματα, you are blind in your eyes; καλὸς τὸ εἶδος, beautiful in form; ἄπειροι τὸ πλῆθος, infinite in number; δίκαιος τὸν τρόπον, just in his character; δεινοὶ μάχην, mighty in battle; κάμνω τὴν κεφαλήν, I have a pain in my head; τὰς φρένας ὑγιαίνειν, to be sound in their minds; διαφέρει τὴν φύσιν, he differs in nature; ποταμὸς, Κύδνος ὄνομα, εὖρος δύο πλέθρων, a river, Cydnus by name, of the breadth of two plethra; Ἕλληνές εἰσι τὸ γένος, they are Greeks by race; καὶ τὰ μικρὰ πειρῶμαι ἀπὸ θεῶν ὁρμᾶσθαι, even in small matters I try to begin with the Gods.
Note. This is sometimes called the accusative by synecdoche, or the limiting accusative. It most frequently denotes a part; but often a character or quality, or any circumstance to which the meaning of the expression is restricted.
2. An accusative in certain expressions has the force of an adverb. E.g.
Τοῦτον τὸν τρόπον, in this way, thus; τὴν ταχίστην (sc. ὁδόν), in the quickest way; τὴν ἀρχήν, at first (with negative, not at all); τέλος, finally; προῖκα, as a gift, gratis; χάριν, for the sake of; δίκην, in the manner of; τὸ πρῶτον or πρῶτον, at first; τὸ λοιπόν, for the rest; τἄλλα, in other respects; οὐδέν, in nothing, not at all; τί; in what, why? τι, in any respect, at all; ταῦτα, in respect to this, therefore. So τοῦτο μέν... τοῦτο δέ (§ 148, N. 4).
Note. Several of these are to be explained by § 160, 1, as
τἄλλα,τί; why?ταῦτα,τοῦτο(withμένandδέ), and sometimesοὐδένandτί. Some are to be explained as cognate accusatives (see § 159, Notes 1 and 2), and some are of doubtful origin.
Accusative of Extent.
§ 161
The accusative may denote extent of time or space. E.g.
Ai σπονδαὶ ἐνιαυτὸν ἔσονται, the truce is to be for a year; ἔμεινε τρεῖς ἡμέρας, he remained three days; ἀπέχει δ᾽ ἡ Πλάταια τῶν Θηβῶν σταδίους ἑβδομήκοντα, and Plataea is seventy stades distant from Thebes.
Note. This accusative with an ordinal number denotes how long since;
τρίτηνἤδηἡμέρανἐπιδεδήμηκεν, this is the third day that he has been in town. A peculiar idiom is found in expressions likeτρίτονἔτοςτουτί(this the third year), i.e. two years ago; asἀπηγγέλθηΦίλιπποςτρίτονἢτέταρτονἔτοςτουτὶἩραῖοντεῖχοςπολιορκῶν, two or three years ago Philip was reported to be besieging Heraion Teichos.
Terminal Accusative (Poetic).
§ 162
In poetry, the accusative without a preposition may denote the place or object towards which motion is directed. E.g.
Μνηστῆρας ἀφίκετο, she came to the suitors. Odyss. Ἀνέβη μέγαν οὐρανὸν Οὔλυμπόν τε. Il. Τὸ κοῖλον Ἄργος βὰς φυγάς, going as an exile to the hollow Argos. Soph.
In prose a preposition would be used.
Accusative after Νή and Μά.
§ 163
The accusative follows the adverbs of swearing νή and μά, by.
An oath introduced by νή is affirmative; one introduced by μά is negative; as νὴ τὸν Δία, yes, by Zeus; μὰ τὸν Δία, no, by
Zeus.
Note. 1. When
μάis preceded byναί, yes, the oath is affirmative; asναί,μὰΔία, yes, by Zeus.
Note. 2.
Μάis sometimes omitted when a negative precedes; asοὔ, τὸν δ᾽Ὄλυμπον, no, by this Olympus.
Two Accusatives with one Verb.
§ 164
Verbs signifying to ask, to demand, to teach, to remind, to clothe or unclothe, to conceal, to deprive, and to divide, may take two object accusatives. E.g.
Ἔάν τίς σε ταῦτα ἐξετάζῃ, if any one shall ask you these questions; μέλλετε τοὺς θεοὺς αἰτεῖν ἀγαθά, you are about to ask blessings of the Gods; τοὺς παῖδας τὴν μουσικὴν διδάσκει, he teaches the boys music; τὴν ξυμμαχίαν ἀναμιμνήσκοντες τοὺς Ἀθηναίους, reminding the Athenians of the alliance; ἐκδύει ἐμὲ τὴν ἐσθῆτα, he strips me of my dress; μή με κρύψῃς τοῦτο, do not conceal this from me; τὴν θεὸν τοὺς στεφάνους σεσυλήκασιν, they have robbed the Goddess of her crowns; τὸ στράτευμα κατένειμε δώδεκα μέρη, he divided the army into twelve parts (he made twelve divisions of the army).
In many cases, as in the third and last examples, one of the accusatives is cognate; see § 159, N. 4.
Note. 1. In poetry some other verbs have this construction; thus
χρόανίζετοἅλμην, he washed the dried spray from his skin; soτιμωρεῖσθαίτινααἷμα, to punish one for blood (shed).
Note. 2. Many verbs of this class sometimes have other constructions. Thus verbs of depriving may take the genitive of a person with an accusative of a thing,
τινόςτι; sometimes the reverse,τινάτινος(neut.). For verbs of reminding, see § 171, 2, N. 3.
Note. 3. The accusative of a thing with some of these verbs is really a cognate accusative; see § 159, N. 4.
§ 165
Verbs signifying to do anything to or to say anything of a person or thing take two accusatives. E.g.
Ταυτί με ποιοῦσιν, they do these things to me; τί μ᾽ εἰργάσω; what didst thou do to me? πλεῖστα κακὰ τὴν πόλιν ποιοῦσιν, they do the most evils to the state. Tauri σὺ τολμᾷς ἡμᾶς λέγειν; dost thou dare to say these things of us? Οὐ φροντιστέον ὅ τι ἐροῦσιν οἱ πολλοὶ ἡμᾶς, we must not consider what the multitude will say of us.
Note. 1. These verbs often take
εὖorκαλῶς, well, orκακῶς, ill, instead of the accusative of a thing;τούτουςεὖποιεῖ, he does them good;ὑμᾶςκακῶςποιεῖ, he does you harm;κακῶςἡμᾶςλέγει, he speaks ill of us. The passive form of these expressions is notεὖ(orκακῶς)ποιεῖςσθαι,εὖ(orκακῶς)λέγεσθαι, to be done well by, to be spoken wellφῇ, &c.; butεὖ(orκακῶς)πάσχειν, to experience good (or evil), andεὖ(orκακῶς)ἀκούειν, bene (male) audire, to hear one’s self called.
Note. 2.
Πράσσω, do, very seldom takes two accusatives in this construction,ποιέωbeing generally used.Εὖπράσσωandκακῶςπράσσωare intransitive, meaning to be well off, to be badly off.
Note. 3. Verbs signifying to do may take the dative of a person; as
ἀγαθόντιποιοῦσιτῇπόλει; they do some good to the state.
§ 166
Verbs signifying to name, to choose or appoint, to make, to consider, and the like, may take a predicate accusative besides the object accusative. E.g.
Τί τὴν πόλιν προσαγορεύεις; what do you call the state? — so καλοῦσί με τοῦτο τὸ ὄνομα, they call me by this name; στρατηγὸν αὐτὸν ἀπέδειξε, he appointed him general; εὐεργέτην τὸν Φίλιππον ἡγοῦντο, they thought Philip a benefactor;πάντων δεσπότην ἑαυτὸν πεποίηκεν, he has made himself master of all.
Note. This is the active construction of which the passive appears in the predicate nominative with passive verbs (§ 136). Like the latter, it includes also predicate adjectives; as
τοὺςσυμμάχουςπροθύμουςποιεῖσθαι, to make the allies eager;τὰςἁμαρτίαςμεγάλαςἦγεν, he considered the faults great.
Note. 2. Many other transitive verbs may take a predicate accusative in apposition with the object accusative; as
ἔλαβετοῦτοδῶρον, he took this as a gift;ἵππουςἄγεινθύματατῷἡλίῳ, to bring horses as offerings to the Sun. Especially an interrogative pronoun may be so used; asτίναςτούτουςὁρῶ; who are these whom I see? (§ 142, 3.)
Note. 3. <A predicate accusative may denote the effect of the action of the verb upon its direct object; as
παιδεύειντινὰσοφόν(orκακόν), to train one (to be) wise (or bad);τοὺςυἱεῖςἱππόταςἐδίδαξεν, he taught his sons to be horsemen. See § 159, N. 3.
Note. 4. In the passive, when the object accusative becomes the subject nominative (§ 197, 1), the predicate accusative (of every kind) becomes a predicate nominative. See § 186, Rem.; and § 137, N. 4.
THE CASES: III. GENITIVE
Note. As the chief use of the accusative is to limit the meaning of a verb, so the chief use of the genitive is to limit the meaning of a noun. When the genitive is used as the object of a verb, it seems to depend on the nominal idea which belongs to the verb: thus
ἐπιθυμῶinvolvesἐπιθυμίαν(as we can sayἐπιθυμῶἐπιθυμίαν, § 159); and inἐπιθυμῶτούτου, I have a desire for this, the nominal idea preponderates over the verbal. The Greek is somewhat arbitrary in deciding when it will allow either to preponderate in the construction, and after some verbs it allows both the accusative and the genitive. In the same general sense the genitive follows verbal adjectives. It has also uses which originally belonged to the ablative; for example, with verbs of separation and to express source. (See Rem. before § 157.):
Genitive after Nouns (Adnominal Genitive).
§ 167
A noun in the genitive may limit the meaning of another noun, to express various relations, most of which are denoted by of or by the possessive case in English. The genitive thus depending on a noun is called adnominal.
The most important of these relations are the following: –
1. POSSESSION: as ἡ τοῦ πατρὸς οἰκία, the father’s house; ἡμῶν ἡ πατρίς, our country. So ἡ τοῦ Διός, the daughter of Zeus; τὰ τῶν θεῶν, the things of the Gods (§ 141, Note 4). The Possessive Genitive.
2. The SUBJECT of an action or feeling: as ἡ τοῦ δήμου εὔνοια, the good-will of the people (i.e. which the people feel). The Subjective Genitive.
3. The OBJECT of an action or feeling: as διὰ τὸ Παυσανίου μῖσος, owing to the hatred of (i.e. felt against) Pausanias; αἱ τοῦ χειμῶνος καρτερήσεις, the endurance of the winter. So τῶν θεῶν ὅρκοι, oaths (sworn) in the name of the Gods (as we say θεοὺς ὀμνύναι, § 158, N. 2). The Objective Genitive.
4. MATERIAL, including that of which anything consists: as βοῶν ἀγέλη, a herd of cattle; ἄλσος ἡμέρων δένδρων, a grove of cultivated trees; κρήνη ἡδέος ὕδατος, a spring of fresh water; δύο χοίνικες ἀλφίτων, two quarts of meal. Genitive of Material.
5. MEASURE, of space, time, or value: as τριῶν ἡμερῶν ὁδός, a journey of three days; ὀκτὼ σταδίων τεῖχος, a wall of eight stades (in length); τριάκοντα ταλάντων οὐσία, an estate of thirty talents; δίκαι πολλῶν ταλάντων, lawsuits of (ie. involving) many talents. Genitive of Measure.
6. THE WHOLE, after nouns denoting a part: as πολλοὶ τῶν ῥητόρων, many of the orators; ἀνὴρ τῶν ἐλευθέρων, a man (i.e. one) of the freemen. The Partitive Genitive. (See also § 168.)
These six classes are not exhaustive; but they will give a general idea of these relations, many of which it is difficult to classify.
Note. Examples like
Ἀθηνῶνπόλις, the city of Athens,Τροίηςπτολίεθρον, the city of Troy, in which the genitive is used instead of apposition, are poetic.
§ 168
The partitive genitive (§ 167, 6) may follow all nouns, pronouns, adjectives. (especially superlatives), participles with the article, and adverbs, which denote a part. E.g.
Οἱ ἀγαθοὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων, the good among the men; ὁ ἥμισυς τοῦ ἀριθμοῦ, the half of the number; ἄνδρα οἶδα τοῦ δήμου, I know a man of the people;τοῖς θρανίταις τῶν ναυτῶν, to the upper benches of the sailors; οὐδεὶς τῶν παίδων, no one of the children; πάντων τῶν ῥητόρων δεινότατος, the most eloquent of all the orators; ὁ βουλόμενος τῶν Ἀθηναίων, any one who pleases of the Athenians; δῖα γυναικῶν, divine among women (Hom.); ποῦ τῆς γῆς; ubi terrarum? where on the earth? τίς τῶν πολιτῶν; who of the citizens? δὶς τῆς ἡμέρας, twice a day; εἰς τοῦτο ἀνοίας, to this pitch of folly; ἐν τούτῳ παρασκευῆς, in this state of preparation; ἃ μὲν διώκει τοῦ ψηφίσματος ταῦτ᾽ ἐστίν, these are the parts of the decree which he prosecutes (lit. what parts of the decree he prosecutes, &c.) So ὀρθότατα ἀνθρώπων λέγεις, thou speakest as the most correct of men (most correctly of men); ὅτε δεινότατος σαυτοῦ ταῦτα ἦσθα, when you were at the height of your power in these matters. See § 142, 2, N. 2.
Note. 1. An adjective or participle generally agrees in gender with a dependent partitive genitive. But sometimes, especially when it is singular, it is neuter, agreeing with
μέρος, part, understood; asτῶνπολεμίωντὸπολύ(forοἱπολλοί), the greater part of the enemy.
Note. 2. A partitive genitive sometimes depends on
τίςorμέροςunderstood; asἔφασανἐπιμιγνύναισφῶντεπρὸςἐκείνουςκαὶἐκείνωνπρὸςἑαυτούς, they said that some of their own men had mixed with them, and some of them with their own men (τινάςbeing understood withσφῶνandἐκείνων). Compare § 169, 2; § 170, 2.
Note. 3. Similar to such phrases as
ποῦγῆς;εἰςτοῦτοἀνοίας, &c., is the use ofἔχωand an adverb with the genitive; asπῶςἔχειςδόξης; in what state of opinion are you?οὕτωτρόπουἔχεις, this is your character (lit. in this state of character);ὡςεἶχετάχους, as fast as he could (lit. in the condition of speed in which he was); soὡςεἶχεποδῶν;εὖἔχεινφρενῶν, to be right in his mind.
Genitive after Verbs.
§ 169
1. Verbs signifying to be, to become, or to belong take a genitive which is equivalent to the possessive or the partitive genitive. E.g.
Ὃ νόμος οὗτος Δράκοντός ἐστιν, this law is Draco’s. Πενίαν φέρειν οὐ παντὸς, ἀλλ᾽ ἀνδρὸς σοφοῦ, to bear poverty is not in the power of every one, but in that of a wise man. Δαρείου γίγνονταὶ δύο παῖδες, two sons are born (belonging) to Darius. Τούτων γενοῦ μοι, become (one) of these for me.
2. Verbs signifying to name, to choose or appoint, to make, to consider, and the like, which generally take two accusatives (§ 166), may take a partitive genitive in place of the predicate accusative. E.g.
Ἐμὲ θὲς τῶν πεπεισμένων, put me down as (one) of those who are persuaded. Τοῦτο τῆς ἡμετέρας ἀμελείας ἄν τις θείη δικαίως, any one might justly consider this to belong to our neglect.
Note. When these verbs become passive, they still retain the genitive; as
Σόλωντῶνἑπτὰσοφιστῶνἐκλήθη, Solon was called
(one) of the Seven Sages.
3. The genitive after verbs sometimes expresses other relations of the adnominal genitive. E.g.
Τὸ τεῖχος σταδίων ἦν ὀκτώ, the wall was (one) of eight stades (in length); ἐπειδὰν ἐτῶν ἢ τις τριάκοντα, when one is thirty years old; – Genitive of Measure. Oi στέφανοι ῥόδων ἦσαν, the crowns were (made) of roses; τὸ τεῖχος πεποίηται λίθου, the wall is built of stone; – Genitive of Material. Οὐ τῶν κακούργων οἶκτος (sc. ἐστίν), there is no pity felt for the evil-doers; – Objective Genitive.
§ 170
1. Any verb may take a genitive if its action affects the object only in part. E.g.
Πέμπει τῶν Λυδῶν, he sends some of the Lydians (but πέμπει τοὺς Λυδούς, he sends the Lydians). Πίνει τοῦ οἴνου. he drinks of the wine. Τῆς γῆς ἔτεμον, they ravaged (some) of the land.
2. This principle applies especially to verbs signifying to share (i.e. to give or take a part) or to enjoy. E.g.
Μετεῖχον τῆς λείας, they shared in the booty; so often μεταποιεῖσθαί τινος, to claim a share of anything (cf. § 171, 1); ἀπολαύομεν τῶν ἀγαθῶν, we enjoy the blessings (i.e. our share of them); οὕτως ὄναιο τούτων, thus mayest thou enjoy these. So οὐ προσήκει μοι τῆς ἀρχῆς, I have no concern in the government; μέτεστί μοι τούτου, I have a share in this (§ 184, 2, N. 1).
Note. Many of these verbs also take an accusative.
Μετέχωand similar verbs may regularly take an accusative likeμέρος, part; asἴσονμετέχειἕκαστοςτοῦπλούτουμέρος, each has an equal share of the wealth (whereμέρουςwould mean that each has only a part of a share). This use ofμέροςshows the nature of the genitive after these verbs.
§ 171
1. The genitive follows verbs signifying to take hold of, to touch, to claim, to aim at, to hit, to attain, to miss, to make trial of, to begin. E.g.
Ἐλάβετο τῆς χειρὸς αὐτοῦ, he took his hand; οὔτε πυρὸς οὔτε ἔρωτος ἑκὼν ἅπτομαι, [willingly touch neither fire nor love; τῆς ξυνέσεως μεταποιοῦνται, they lay claim to sagacity; στοχάζεσθαι τῶν ἀνθρώπων, to aim at the men; τῆς ἀρετῆς ἐφικέσθαι, to attain to virtue;ἔτυχε τῆς δίκης, he met with justice; σφάλλεται τῆς ἐλπίδος, he fails of (attaining) his hope; πειρᾶσθαι τοῦ τείχους, to make an attempt on the wall; οὐ πολέμου ἄρχομεν, we do not begin war.
Note. Verbs of taking hold may have an object accusative, with a genitive of the part taken hold of; as
ἔλαβοντῆςζώνηςτὸνὈρόνταν, they seized Orontas by his girdle.
2. The genitive follows verbs signifying to taste, to smell, to hear, to perceive, to understand, to remember, to forget, to desire, to care for, to spare, to neglect, to admire, to despise. E.g.
Ἐλευθερίης γευσάμενοι, having tasted of freedom (Hdt.); κρομμύων ὀσφραίνομαι, I smell onions; φωνῆς ἀκούειν, to hear a voice; αἰσθάνεσθαι, μεμνῆσθαι, or ἐπιλανθάνεσθαι τούτων, to perceive, remember, or forget these things; συνιέναι ἀλλήλων, to understand one another; τῶν μαθημάτων ἐπιθυμῶ, I long for learning; χρημάτων φείδεσθαι, to be sparing of money; δόξης ἀμελεῖν, to neglect opinion; ἄγαμαι τῆς ἀρετῆς, I admire virtue; καταφρονεῖν τοῦ κινδύνου, to despise danger (cf. § 178, 2, Note).
Note. 1. Verbs of hearing, learning, &c. may take an accusative of the thing heard, &c., and a genitive of the person heard from; as
τούτωντοιούτουςἀκούωλόγους, I hear such sayings from these men;πυθέσθαιτοῦτοὑμῶν, to learn this from you. The genitive here belongs under § 176, 1. A sentence may take the place of the accusative; asτούτωνἄκουετίλέγουσιν, hear from these what they say. See alsoἀποδέχομαι, accept (a statement) from, in the Lexicon.
Note. 2. The impersonals
μέλειandμεταμέλειtake the genitive of a thing with the dative of a person (§ 184, 2, N. 1); asμέλειμοιτούτου, I care for this;μεταμέλεισοιτούτου, thou repentest of this.Προσήκει, it concerns, has the same construction, but the genitive belongs under § 170, 2.
Note. 3. Causative verbs of this class take the accusative of a person and the genitive of a thing; as
μήμ᾽ἀναμνήσῃςκακῶν, do not remind me of evils (i.e. cause me to remember them);τοὺςπαῖδαςγευστέοναἵματος, we must make the children taste blood.
But verbs of reminding also take two accusatives (§ 164).
Remark. Most of the verbs of § 171 may take also the accusative. See the Lexicon. Ὄζω, emit smell (smell of), may take two genitives; as τῆς κεφαλῆς ὄζω μύρου, I emit a smell of perfume (§ 170, 1) from my head.
3. The genitive follows verbs signifying to rule or to command. E.g.
Ἔρως τῶν θεῶν βασιλεύει, Love is king of the Gods; Πολυκράτης Σάμου ἐτυράννει, Polycrates was tyrant of Samos; ὁπλιτῶν καὶ ἱππέων ἐστρατήγει, he was general of infantry and cavalry; ἡγεῖται παντὸς καὶ ἔργου καὶ λόγου, he directs everything that is done and said.
This construction is sometimes connected with that of § 175, 2.
But the genitive here depends on the idea of king or ruler implied in the verb, while there it depends on the idea of comparison (see Remark before § 167).
Note. For other cases after many of these verbs, as the dative after
ἡγέομαιandἀνάσσω, see the Lexicon.
§ 172
1. Verbs signifying fulness and want take the genitive of material (§ 167, 4). E.g.
Χρημάτων εὐπορεῖ, he has abundance of money; οἱ τύραννοι ἐπαίνου οὔποτε σπανίζετε, you tyrants never have a scarcity of praise.
2. Verbs signifying to fill take the accusative of the thing filled and the genitive of material. E.g.
Ὕδατος τὴν κύλικα πληροῦν, to fill the cup with water.
Note. 1.
Δέομαι, I want, besides the ordinary construction (asτούτωνἐδέοντο, they were in want of these), may take a genitive of the person with a cognate accusative of the thing; asδεήσομαιὑμῶνμετρίανδέησιν, I will make of you a moderate request. See § 159, N. 4.
Note. 2. (a)
Δεῖmay take a dative (sometimes in poetry an accusative) of the person besides the genitive; asδεῖμοιτούτου, I need this;οὐπολλοῦπόνουμεδεῖ, I have no need of much labor (cf.οὐδεῖμεἐλθεῖν).
(b) Besides the common phrases πολλοῦ δεῖ, it is far from it, ὀλίγου δεῖ, it wants little of it, we have in Demosthenes οὐδὲ πολλοῦ δεῖ (like παντὸς δεῖ), it wants everything of it (lit. it does not even want much). For ὀλίγου and μικροῦ, almost, see the Lexicon.
Causal Genitive.
§ 173
1. The genitive often denotes a cause, especially after verbs expressing emotions, as admiration, wonder, pity, anger, envy, or revenge. E.g.
Τούτους τῆς τόλμης θαυμάζειν, to admire these for their courage; εὐδαιμονίζω σε τοῦ τρόπου, I congratulate you on your character; τούτους οἰκτείρω τῆς νόσου, I pity these for their disease;τῶν ἀδικημάτων ὀργίζεσθαι αὐτοῖς, to be angry with them for their offences; ζηλοῦντες τὴν πόλιν τῆς Μαραθῶνι μάχης, envying the city for the battle at Marathon; τούτου σοι οὐ φθονήσω, I shall not grudge you this; τούτους τῆς ἁρπαγῆς τιμωρήσασθαι, to take vengeance on these for the robbery. Most of these verbs may take also an object accusative.
Note. 1. The genitive sometimes denotes a purpose or motive (where
ἕνεκαis generally expressed); asτῆςτῶνἙλλήνωνἐλευθερίας, for the liberty of the Greeks (Dem. Cor. § 100). See § 262, 2.
Note. 2. Verbs of disputing take a causal genitive; as
ἀντιποιεῖσθαιτῷβασιλεῖτῆςἀρχῆς, to dispute with the king about his dominion;ΕὔμολποςἠμφισβήτησενἘρεχθεῖτῆςπόλεως, Eumolpus disputed with Erechtheus about the city (i.e. disputed its possession with him).
2. Verbs signifying to accuse, to prosecute, to convict, to acquit, and to condemn take a causal genitive denoting the crime. E.g.
Αἰτιῶμαι αὐτὸν τοῦ φόνου, I accuse him of the murder; ἐγράψατο αὐτὸν παρανόμων, he indicted him for an illegal proposition; διώκει με δώρων, he prosecutes me for bribery (for gifts); Κλέωνα δώρων ἑλόντες καὶ κλοπῆς, having convicted Cleon of bribery and theft; ἔφευγε προδοσίας, he was brought to trial for treachery, but ἀπέφυγε προδοσίας, he was acquitted of treachery; πολλῶν οἱ πατέρες ἡμῶν μηδισμοῦ θάνατον κατέγνωσαν, our fathers condemned many to death for favoring the Persians (for πολλῶν and θάνατον see Note).
Note. Compounds of
κατάof this class commonly take a genitive of the person, which depends on theκατά. They may take also an object accusative denoting the crime or punishment. E.g.
Οὐδεὶς αὐτὸς αὑτοῦ κατηγόρησε πώποτε, no man ever himself accused himself; καταψεύδονταί μου μεγάλα, they tell great falsehoods against me; Φοίβου ἀδικίαν κατηγορεῖν, to charge injustice upon Phoebus; ἐνίων ἔπεισαν ὑμᾶς ἀκρίτων θάνατον καταψηφίσασθαι, they persuaded you to pass (sentence of) death upon some without a trial.
Verbs of condemning may take three cases, as in the last example under § 178, 2.
3. The genitive is sometimes used in exclamations, to give the cause of the astonishment. E.g.
Ὦ Πόσειδον, τῆς τέχνης, O Poseidon, what a trade! Ὦ Ζεῦ βασιλεῦ, τῆς λεπτότητος τῶν φρενῶν! O King Zeus! what subtlety of mind!
Genitive of Separation, of Comparison, of Source.
§ 174
The genitive may denote that from which anything is separated or distinguished.
On this principle the genitive follows verbs denoting to remove, to restrain, to release, to abandon, to deprive, and the like. E.g.
Ἡ νῆσος οὐ πολὺ διέχει τῆς ἠπείρου, the island is not far distant from the main-land; ἐπιστήμη χωριζομένη ἀρετῆς, knowledge separated from virtue; λῦσόν με δεσμῶν, release me from chains; ἐπέσχον τῆς τειχήσεως, they ceased from building the wall; πόσων ἀπεστέρησθε; of how much have you been deprived? ἔπαυσαν αὐτὸν τῆς στρατηγίας, they deposed him from his command; οὐ παύεσθε τῆς μοχθηρίας, you do not cease from your rascality. So εἶπον (αὐτῷ) τοῦ κήρυκος μὴ λείπεσθαι, they told him not to be left behind the herald (i.e. to follow close upon him); 9 ἐπιστολὴ, ἣν οὗτος ἔγραψεν ἀπολειφθεὶς ἡμῶν, the letter which this man wrote without our knowledge (lit. separated from us).
For the accusative after verbs of depriving, see § 164.
§ 175.
1. The comparative degree takes the genitive when ἤ, than, is omitted. E.g.
Κρείττων ἐστὶ τούτων, he is better than these; νέοις τὸ σιγᾶν κρεῖττόν ἐστι τοῦ λαλεῖν, for youth silence is better than prating; πονηρία θᾶττον θανάτου τρέχει, wickedness runs faster than death.
Note. 1. All adjectives and adverbs which imply a comparison may take a genitive: as
ἕτεροιτούτων, others than these;ὕστεροιτῆςμάχης, too late for (later than) the battle;τῇὑστεραίᾳτῆςμάχης, on the day after the battle. Soτριπλάσιονἡμῶν, thrice as much as we.
Note. 2. After
πλέον(πλεῖν), more, orἔλασσον, less,ἤis occasionally omitted without affecting the case; asπέμψωὄρνϊςἐπ᾽αὐτὸν,πλεῖνἑξακοσίουςτὸνἀριθμόν, I will send birds against him, more than six hundred in number (§ 160). Aristoph.
2. The genitive follows verbs signifying to surpass, to be inferior, and all others which imply comparison. E.g.
Ἄνθρωπος ξυνέσει ὑπερέχει τῶν ἄλλων, man surpasses the others in sagacity; τοῦ πλήθους περιγίγνεσθαι, to be superior to the multitude; ὑστερίζειν τῶν καιρῶν, to be too late for the opportunities. So τῶν ἐχθρῶν νικᾶσθαι (or ἡσσᾶσθαι), to be overcome by one’s enemies; but these two verbs take also the genitive with ὑπό, and the dative.
So τῶν ἐχθρῶν κρατεῖν, to prevail over one’s enemies, and τῆς θαλάσσης ἄρχειν, to be master of the sea. Compare the examples under § 171, 3.
§ 176
1. The genitive sometimes denotes the source. E.g.
Τοῦτο ἔτυχόν σου; I obtained this from you; τοῦτο ἔμαθεν ὑμῶν, he learned this from you. Add the examples under § 171, 2, N. 1.
2. In poetry the genitive occasionally denotes the agent after passive verbs, or is used like the instrumental dative (§ 188). E.g.
Ἐν Ἀΐδα δὴ κεῖσαι, σᾶς ἀλόχου σφαγεὶς Αἰγίσθου τε, thou liest now in Hades, slain by thy wife and Aegisthus. Eur. Πρῆσαι πυρὸς δηΐοιο θύρετρα, to burn the gates with destructive fire. Il. These constructions would not be allowed in prose.
Genitive after Compound Verbs.
§ 177
The genitive often depends on a preposition included in a compound verb. E.g.
Πρόκειται τῆς Ἀττικῆς ὄρη μεγάλα, high mountains lie before Attica; τῶν ὑμετέρων δικαίων προΐστασθαι, to stand in defence of your rights; ὑπερεφάνησαν τοῦ λόφου, they appeared above the hill; οὕτως ὑμῶν ὑπεραλγῶ, I grieve so for you; ἐπιβάντες τοῦ τείχους, having mounted the wall; ἀποτρέπει με τούτου, it turns me from this.
For the genitive after certain compounds of κατά, see § 173, 2,
Note. See also § 193.
Genitive of Price or Value.
§ 178
The genitive may denote the price or value of a thing. E.g.
Δόξα χρημάτων οὐκ ὠνητή (sc. ἐστίν), glory is not to be bought with money; πόσου διδάσκει; for what price does he teach? μισθοῦ νόμους εἰσφέρει, he proposes laws for a bribe; ὁ δοῦλος πέντε μνῶν τιμᾶται, the slave is valued at five minas. So τιμᾶται δ᾽ οὖν μοι ὁ ἀνὴρ θανάτου, so the man estimates my punishment at death (i.e. proposes death as my punishment). Plat. So also Σφοδρίαν ὑπῆγον θανάτου, they impeached Sphodrias on a capital charge (cf. § 178, 2).
Note. The genitive depending on
ἄξιος, worth, worthy, and its compounds, or onἀξιόω, think worthy, is the genitive of price or value; asἄξιόςἐστιθανάτου, he is worthy of death;Θεμιστοκλέατῶνμεγίστωνἠξίωσαν, they thought Themistocles worthy of the highest honors. So sometimesἄτιμοςandἀτιμάζωtake the genitive. (See § 180, 1.)
Genitive of Time and Place.
§ 179
1. The genitive may denote the time within which anything takes place. E.g.
Πέρσαι οὐχ ἥξουσι δέκα ἐτῶν, the Persians will not come within ten years. Τῆς νυκτὸς ἐγένετο, it happened within the night (but τὴν νύκτα means during the whole night). So δραχμὴν ἐλάμβανε τῆς ἡμέρας, he received a drachma a day (each day).
2. A similar genitive of the place within which is found in poetry. E.g.
Ἦ οὐκ Ἄργεος ἦεν Ἀχαιικοῦ; was he not in Achaean Argos? Odyss. So in the Homeric πεδίοιο θέειν, to run on the plain (i.e. within its limits), and similar expressions. So ἀριστερῆς χειρός, on the left hand, even in Hdt.
Genitive with Adjectives.
§ 180
The objective genitive follows many verbal adjectives.
1. These adjectives are chiefly kindred (in meaning or derivation) to verbs which take the genitive. E.g.
Μέτοχος σοφίας, partaking of wisdom (§ 170, 2). Ἐπήβολος ἐπιστήμης, having attained to knowledge; ἔμπειρος κακῶν, experienced in evils; τοῦ ἀρίστου στοχαστικός, aiming at the best (§ 171, 1). Κατήκοος τῶν γονέων, obedient (lit. hearkening) to his parents; ἐπιστήμων τῶν δικαίων, understanding his rights; ἐπιμελὴς ἀγαθῶν, ἀμελὴς κακῶν, caring for the good, neglectful of the bad; φειδωλοὶ χρημάτων, sparing of money (§ 171, 2). Ἐγκρατὴς ἑαυτοῦ, being master of himself; ἀρχικὸς ἀνδρῶν, fit to rule men (§ 171, 3). Μεστὸς κακῶν, full of evils; ἔρημοι συμμάχων, destitute of allies; ἡ ψυχὴ γυμνὴ τοῦ σώματος, the soul stript of the body; καθαρὸς φόνου, free from the stain of murder (§ 172, 1). Ἔνοχος δειλίας, chargeable with cowardice (§ 173, 2). Διάφορος τῶν ἄλλων, distinguished from the others (§ 174). Ἄξιος πολλῶν, worth much (§ 178, Note).
Note. 1. Especially, adjectives of this class compounded with alpha privative (§ 131, 4, a) take the genitive; as
ἄγευστοςκακῶν, without a taste of evils;ἀμνήμωντῶνκινδύνων, forgetful of the dangers;ἀπαθὴςκακῶν, without suffering ills;ἀκρατὴςγλώσσης, without power over his tongue.
Note. 2. Sometimes these compounds take a genitive of kindred meaning, which depends on the idea of separation implied in them; as
ἄπαιςἀρρένωνπαίδων, childless (in respect) of male children;ἄτιμοςπάσηςτιμῆς, destitute of all honor;ἀδωρότατοςχρημάτων, most free from taking bribes.
2. Some are kindred to verbs which take the accusative. E.g.
Πόλεως ἀνατρεπτικός, subversive of the state; πρακτικὸς τῶν καλῶν, capable of doing noble deeds; φιλομαθὴς πάσης ἀληθείας, fond of learning all truth.
§ 181
The possessive genitive sometimes follows adjectives denoting possession or the opposite. E.g.
Οἰκεῖα τῶν βασιλευόντων, belonging to the kings; ἱερὸς ὁ χῶρος τῆς Ἀρτέμιδος, the place is sacred to Artemis; κοινὸν ἁπάντων, common to all; δημοκρατίας ἀλλότρια, things not belonging to democracy.
For the dative after such adjectives, which with some of them is more common than the genitive, see § 185.
Note. Some adjectives of place, like
ἐναντίος, opposite, may take the genitive instead of the regular dative (§ 185), but chiefly in poetry; asἐναντίοιἔστανἈχαιῶν, they stood opposite the Achaeans. Hom.
Genitive with Adverbs.
§ 182
1. The genitive follows adverbs derived from adjectives which take the genitive. E.g.
Οἱ ἐμπείρως αὐτοῦ ἔχοντες, those who are acquainted with him; ἀναξίως τῆς πόλεως, in a manner unworthy of the state; ἐμάχοντο ἀξίως λόγου, they fought in a manner worthy of mention.
2. The genitive follows many adverbs of place. E.g.
Εἴσω τοῦ ἐρύματος, within the fortress; ἔξω τοῦ τείχους, outside of the wall; ἐκτὸς τῶν ὅρων, without the boundaries; χωρὶς τοῦ σώματος, apart from the body; μεταξὺ σοφίας καὶ ἀμαθίας, between wisdom and ignorance; πέραν τοῦ ποταμοῦ, beyond the river; πρόσθεν τοῦ στρατοπέδου, in front of the camp; ἀμφοτέρωθεν τῆς ὁδοῦ, on both sides of the road; εὐθὺ τῆς Φασήλιδος, straight to Phasélis.
Such adverbs, besides those given above, are chiefly ἐντός, within; δίχα, apart from; ἐγγύς, ἄγχι, πέλας, and πλησίον, near; πόρρω (πρόσω), far from; ὄπισθεν and κατόπιν, behind; and a few others of similar meaning. The genitive after most of them can be explained as a partitive genitive or as a genitive of separation; that after εὐθύ resembles that after verbs of aiming at (§ 171, 1).
Λάθρᾳ and κρύφα, without the knowledge of, sometimes take the genitive.
Note.
Πλήν, except,ἄχριandμέχρι, until,ἄνευandἄτερ, without,ἕνεκα(οὕνεκα), on account of, andμεταξύ, between, take the genitive like prepositions. For these and ordinary prepositions with the genitive, see § 191.
Genitive Absolute.
§ 183
A noun and a participle not connected with the main construction of the sentence may stand by themselves in the genitive. This is called the genitive absolute. E.g.
Ταῦτ᾽ ἐπράχθη Κόνωνος στρατηγοῦντος, this was done when Conon was general. Οὐδὲν τῶν δεόντων ποιούντων ὑμῶν κακῶς τὰ πράγματα ἔχει, affairs are in a bad state while you do nothing which you ought to do. Θεῶν διδόντων οὐκ ἂν ἐκφύγοι κακά, if the Gods should grant (it to be so), he could not escape evils. Οντος ψεύδους ἔστιν ἀπάτη, when there is falsehood, there is deceit. Ἂς
For the various relations denoted by the genitive absolute, see §§ 277, 278.