Parallel Greek and Latin Grammar
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SCHEME FOR DIVISION OF THE SYNTAX AMONG FORMS.
LATIN.
ENGLISH.
Ι. β.
GREEK.
LATIN.
ΙΙ. γ.
ΙΙ. β.
LATIN.
ΙΙΙ. γ.
ΙΙΙ. β.
III. a.
GREEK.
ΙΙΙ. γ.
ΙΙΙ. β.
III. a.
LATIN.
IV. γ.
IV. β.
IV. a.
GREEK.
IV. γ.
IV. β.
IV. a.
LATIN.
V. γ.
V. β.
V. a.
GREEK.
V. γ.
V. β.
V. a.
VI.
- Figures of Speech, 520-550.
- 1. Attraction, 551-558.
- 2. Sense-Construction, 559-564.
- 3. Note on Cases, 565-580.
- 4. Note on Indicative, Imperative, Conjunctive, 581-590.
- 5. Note on Infinitive and Participle, 591-599.
- 6. Note on Gerund and Gerundive; and οὐ μή, 600.
- Summarise the whole, 1-600.
PART I.
SYNTAX.
Accidence deals with the different forms of words; Syntax deals with the different uses of words, showing how words are employed, arranged and constructed with one another (Greek, syntassō, I arrange together). Syntax therefore deals with Sentences.
Sentences.
A Sentence is a complete thought expressed in language (Latin, sententia, a thought). Sentences are either Simple or Compound.
A Simple Sentence expresses one single thought, as, he went to Athens
.
A Compound Sentence expresses one principal thought and one or more dependent thoughts, as, he went to Athens, that he might see Socrates
. That part of the sentence which contains the leading thought is called the Main or Principal Sentence; that part which contains the dependent thought is called the Dependent or Subordinate Clause. We can always distinguish between them by seeing which will stand alone. Thus, that he might see Socrates
makes no sense by itself, and is therefore the Dependent Clause; he went to Athens
will stand alone: it is therefore the Main Sentence.
If two Main Sentences or two Dependent Clauses are linked together they are called Coordinate. Thus, he went to Athens, and he stayed there
are two Coordinate Main Sentences;
that he might see Socrates, and that he might converse with him
are two Coordinate Dependent Clauses.
The Particle which connects the Subordinate Clause to the Main Sentence or which joins together two Coordinate Clauses (e.g. sup., that,
and
) is called a Conjunction (§ 27). The Conjunction and
is also called the Copula
.
Subject, Predicate and Connexion.
In a complete thought or sentence there are always at least two ideas, which are coupled together: i.e.,
-
(1) The Subject: the person or thing spoken about.
The Subject must be a Substantive, as,
Socrates
; or a Substantival word or phrase, such as a Substantive Pronoun,he
; an Adjective or Participle used Substantivally,a Greek,
the dying
; a Verb Noun Infinitive,to flee
; or even an entire Clause,the fact that this is true
.
-
(2) The Predicate: that which is said (predico, -are, I state) about the Subject. The Predicate must be—
-
(a) An Adjective, as,
wise
; or a Pronoun, Participle, or Substantive used Adjectivally, as,his,
educated,
a philosopher
.We require here some word to connect the Predicate with the Subject, and to supply the connexion some part of the verb
to be
is generally used. Thus—
Obs. The verbSocrates (subject) was (connexion) wise (predicate).
to be
so used is called the Copula because it couples two ideas together. (Note, therefore, that the wordcopula
is used in two senses, of the Conjunctionand,
and of the verbto be
.) -
(b) A Verb, e.g.,
speak
. Here the connexion is contained in the Predicate itself, and no connecting word is necessary. Thus—Socrates (subject) spoke (predicate, including connexion).
-
(a) An Adjective, as,
Note 1. With the Predicative Adjective the copula to be
is often omitted in statements; e.g., noble (is) the deed
. (The Verb to be,
as expressing existence, e.g., there is,
must not be omitted.)
Note 2.—With both the Predicative Adjective and the Predicative Verb the Personal Pronoun as subject is often omitted, if unemphatic. In English this omission is almost confined to the Imperative: be (thou) wise!
speak (thou)!
. In Greek and Latin, owing to their use of inflexions, the omission can occur freely, without loss of clearness, in other Moods, e.g., (he) was wise,
(he) may speak
.
Observe, therefore, that a complete Sentence, in its simplest shape, may consist of three words, or two, or even one; and may, with the omission of Pronoun or Copula, assume the following forms:—
- Three words: 1. He is happy.
- Two words: 2. He speaks.
- 3. Happy (is) he. [Copula omitted.]
- 4. Be (thou) happy. [Pronoun omitted.]
- One word: 5. Speak (thou). [Subject, Predicate and Copula being all contained in one.]
Complements.
On the other hand, the Subject, Predicate and Copula may each have other words added to them to fill out their sense. Thus: Many verbs, as, I desire,
require the addition of another word to complete their meaning—I desire success,
I fear to die
. Other verbs, e.g., I consider,
require the addition not merely of one word, but of a second word in agreement with the first—I consider Socrates wise
. In such a Sentence, I
is the Subject; while the words consider-Socrates-wise,
taken together, form the Predicate.
Beside the addition of such necessary words, any Subject, Predicate, or Copula may have a word added to it to amplify
its meaning, as, the noble-Socrates undoubtedly-was very-wise
. And the added word may itself be qualified by the addition of another word, as, the exceedingly-noble-Socrates,
etc. In such a sentence, the-exceedingly-noble-Socrates
becomes the Subject, undoubtedly-was
becomes the Copula, very-wise
the Predicate.
These added words, necessary or otherwise, are called Complements because they complete
the sense. Complements are of three kinds:—
1. Substantival Complements.
Substantives, or words used as such (§ 4), are added in the oblique cases to certain Verbs to complete their meaning. Such a Substantive is called the Object of the Verb—the Direct Object if it is in the Accusative; the Indirect Object if it is in the Dative. Thus, Socrates desired wisdom
(Direct Object); Socrates yielded to the Thirty Tyrants
(Indirect Object).
Substantival Complements are sometimes found with Adjectives and Substantives, as, desirous of death,
obedience to the laws
. Such complements are also called Objective.
2. Adjectival Complements.
(a) Adjectives, or words used as such (§ 4), are added to Substantives to complete their meaning, as, the philosophic Socrates
. An Adjective so used is called an Attribute or Epithet (that which is put on
to the Substantive).
When a Substantive is thus used attributively, e.g., Socrates, the philosopher,
it is said to stand in Apposition to the Substantive it qualifies.
(b) Many Verbs have an Adjective, referring to the Subject or to the Object, to complete their meaning. Such Adjectives are called Secondary Predicates, if they refer to the Subject; Tertiary Predicates, if they refer to the Object: to distinguish them from the simpler Predicates with the Verb-Copula to be,
which are called Primary.
These Predicates are necessary complements to Copulative
and Factitive Verbs (§§ 21, 22), e.g., Socrates was considered wise
(Secondary); They considered Socrates wise
(Tertiary). But they may also be involved in the construction of other Verbs: thus—
- Primary Predicate :
The water was hot
. - Secondary Predicate :
The water was brought in hot
. - Tertiary Predicate :
They brought in the water hot
.
(Observe that, in all its uses as a Predicate, the Adjective gives fresh information about the Subject: the water is hot
; as an Attribute, it assumes that such information is already known: the hot water
.)
3. Adverbial Complements.
An Adverb or Adverbial phrase may be added to a Verb or Adjective to complete its meaning. Thus, in the truly-great act with-prudence,
truly
is an Adverbial Complement qualifying the Adjective great
; with-prudence,
i.e. prudently," is an Adverbial Complement qualifying the verb act
.
Adverbial Complements qualify the word they refer to in respect of Time, Place, Circumstance, Manner, or Degree. Thus, On-the-next-day Pompey remained quietly in-camp with-all-his-forces
: Pompey
is the Subject, remained
is the Verb-Predicate, all the rest are Adverbial Complements of the Verb remained
.
Note. The Complement may, like the Subject (§ 4), be not a mere word, but an entire Clause; and such Clauses will fall under one of the three headings of Complements just given above. Thus
- (1) Substantival :
Socrates desired that-he-should-be-wise
; - (2) Adjectival:
Socrates, who-was-a-philosopher
; - (3)
the truly great act so-that-they-are-always-prudent
.
In the second of these, which is a Relative Clause, the word to which the Relative refers is called the Antecedent, because, as a rule, it immediately goes before
(antecedo) the Relative. Thus, Socrates
is the Antecedent of who
.
1. The Parts of Speech.
There are eight Parts of Speech, which affect or are affected by the Syntax of a Sentence in various ways:—
1. Substantives
names of persons, places, things, as, Cæsar,
Athens,
honour
.
A substantive may form the Subject or Object of the verb, or it may be used Adverbially: as, Socrates spoke,
he loved Socrates,
he walked with Socrates
.
A substantive may, like an Adjective, form an Attribute or Predicate: as, Socrates, the philosopher
(Apposition, § 11), Socrates was a philosopher
.
A substantive may be either Concrete, expressing something which we can perceive (see, hear, etc.) with the five senses, as, a hero
; or Abstract, expressing something which we can conceive only with the mind, as, heroism
.
A substantive which includes several Persons or things is called A Noun of Multitude, as, the army
. Names of persons and places are called Proper Names: Cæsar,
Athens
.
3. Pronouns
stand for a Substantive or Adjective, as, he,
his
; which,
what
. They are of five kinds:—
- (a) Personal:
I,
thou,
he
. (Intensive,self
; Reflexive,himself
; Reciprocal,each other
; Possessive,his
.) - (b) Demonstrative:
this,
that,
the other
. - (c) Indefinite:
anyone,
any,
someone,
some
. - (d) Interrogative:
who?
which?
. - (e) Relative:
who,
which
. (On the Antecedent to the Relative, see § 15.)
The plain Personal Pronouns, he,
his,
etc., are omitted if unemphatic.
(All, except the Personal, have Adverbs: thus,
anyhow,
how?
as
.)
4. Verbs
express an action or state, as, I smite,
I remain
. Verbs are—
- (a) Transitive: so called because their action
passes over
(transeo) to something else. These take a Direct Object in the Accusative and may also take an Indirect Object in the Dative:I gave a-book to-him
. - (b) Intransitive: so called because their action does not thus pass on: e.g.,
I submit
. —Intransitive Verbs cannot take a Direct Object, but they can sometimes take an Indirect Object:I submit to him
. Verbs which cannot take even an Indirect Object are sometimes called Neuter verbs.
Observe also the following kinds of Verbs:—
Indeterminate Verbs: (so called because they determine nothing by themselves) e.g., I wish,
I try,
I am accustomed,
require an Infinitive to complete their sense. This Infinitive is called a Prolative Infinitive, because it carries on
(profero) the meaning of the Verb: e.g., I wish to depart
.
Factitive Verbs, i,e., verbs of (1) making,
(2) saying,
(3) thinking,
require not only a Direct Object in the Accusative, but also an Adjective or Substantive in the same case: as, the Romans made Cicero consul
.
Copulative Verbs, e.g., I seem,
I become,
etc., and the Verb-Copula I am,
take the same case after them as before them, as, Cicero became consul
. — Factitive Verbs become, in the Passive, Copulative: as, Cicero was made consul
.
(On Factitive and Copulative Verbs see further Primary, Secondary, Tertiary Predicate, § 12.)
Note 1.— The Infinitive is not only a Verb, but also a Substantive: as, I desire to-die
(= I desire death)—Object;
to-die is pleasant
— Subject. And so with other Substantival uses (§ 16).
5. Adverbs
qualify Verbs, Adjectives, and other Adverbs: as, I walk slowly,
truly noble,
almost rightly
. They are classified according to their meaning as, (a) Modal, he acted well
; (b) Local, he lives here
; (c) Temporal, then he fled
.
not,
indeed,
whether.
6. Prepositions
words prefixed (prepono) to other words, have two uses:—
- (a) As prefixed to a Substantive in the Oblique Cases, they define further the relation of that Substantive to the rest of the Sentence, as,
I stood over him
. - (b) As compounded with a Verb (Substantive, Adjective, or Adverb), and making one word with it, they qualify its meaning, as,
he over-stated the truth
(an over-statement
); and sometimes affect the construction that it takes, e.g.,they overran the country,
where the Intransitive Verbran
becomes Transitive by the addition of the Prepositionover
.
(Many Prepositions were originally Adverbs, and some retain an Adverbial force, e.g., how much is over?
.)
7. Conjunctions
connect words, phrases, sentences. They are of two kinds:—
- (a) Coordinate Conjunctions,
and,
but,
etc., which couple similar words, phrases or sentences. - (b) Subordinate Conjunctions,
that,
if,
etc., which join the Subordinate Clause to the Main Sentence.
(The Coordinate Conjunction and
is also called the copula,
§ 3.)
These eight Parts of Speech are also divided into three classes:—
- (i.) Nouns (viz., (1) Substantives, (2) Adjectives, (3) Pronouns—admitting of Declension).
- (ii.) Verbs (admitting of Conjugation).
- (iii.) Particles ((5) Adverbs, (6) Prepositions, (7) Conjunctions, (8) Interjections—admitting no Inflexion).
Nounis used particularly of the Substantive.
Of these, the first two, the Nouns and Verbs, both affect and are affected by the Syntax of a Sentence; the Particles (except the Prepositions) have little effect on the grammar of a Sentence, and mainly supplement the sense.
II. Principal Sentences.
Principal Sentences are of three kinds:—
- (1) Direct Statement: e.g.,
he has succeeded
. - (2) Direct Command, Wish, and Exhortation:
succeed thou!
oh, that he may succeed!
let us succeed!
. - (3) Direct Question: e.g.,
has he succeeded?
.
has he succeeded!.
(The term Exhortation is confined to the First Person, Sing. and Plur.: let us succeed!
.)
III. Subordinate Clauses.
Subordinate or Complementary Clauses are, like Complementary words (§§ 9-12), of three kinds:—
1. Substantival Clauses
these correspond to the three forms of Principal Sentence:—
- (a) Indirect Statement:
he mentioned that he had succeeded
. - (b) Indirect Command or Wish:
we pray Heaven that he may succeed
. - (c) Indirect Question:
you ask whether he has succeeded
.
In these instances the Substantival Clause forms the Object of the Main Verb. It may also, with Impersonal Verbs and Phrases, form the Subject, that-he-may-succeed is our desire
.
As Subject, the Clause is often anticipated
in English by the Pronoun it
: it is our desire that he may succeed
.
The Substantival Clause may also stand in Apposition to a Neuter Pronoun, e.g., we only desire this, that he may succeed
; or as a Cognate Accusative (§ 232), we exhorted him to succeed
.
(Indirect Statements and Questions are not always dependent on words of actual statement or enquiry. Thus, it is certain that he did this
is an Indirect Statement; they told us,
or we did not know, who did this
is an Indirect Question: the Direct forms being he did this,
who did this?
.)
2. Adverbial Clauses
express—
- (a) Purpose (in order that):
he came to Athens in order that he might see Socrates
. - (b) Consequence (so that):
he fought so well that he could not be resisted
. - (c) Condition (if):
if you are good, you will be happy
. - (d) Concession (although, even if):
although he had failed, he tried again
. - (e) Cause (because, since):
he spoke well, because he was an Athenian
. - (f) Manner, Comparison (as, as if, than):
as you sow, so will you reap
. - (g) Time (when, before, after, since, till):
when day dawned, the Gauls attacked the camp
. - (h) Place (where, whither, whence):
he remained where I left him
.
3. Adjectival Clauses
are only of one kind, viz.—
Relative Clauses (who, which): the friend in whom I trusted
.
AGREEMENT AND GOVERNMENT.
Note. The Antecedent.
The word to which a Relative Clause refers is called the Antecedent (§ 15), e.g., "the friend". Even an Adverbial Clause may have an Adverbial Antecedent, as, "he remained there, where I had left him".
The Antecedent to a Relative is often omitted if a Personal Pronoun, as, "who was the thane, lives yet" (Shakespeare).
But observe that the insertion of an Antecedent will often convert an Indirect Question into a Relative Clause. These two Clauses are specially hard to distinguish. Thus:—
"I asked him who had done this": Indirect Question (Conjunctive Mood, § 360).
"I asked him the man who had done this": Relative Clause (Indicative Mood, § 459).
Obs. The three Clauses—Substantival, Adverbial, Relative—may be tested by substitution. Thus:—
(1) "He mentioned that-he-had-succeeded," i.e., his success: Substantival.
(2) "He fought so-well-that-he-could-not-be-resisted," i.e., irresistibly: Adverbial.
(3) "The friend in-whom-I-trusted," i.e., my trusty friend : Adjectival.
The hardest to test in this way is the Adverbial Clause. If neither a Substantive nor an Adjective will make sense, the Clause is Adverbial.
Agreement and Government.
The Subject, Predicate, Copula, and Complement, whether these be expressed by one word or an entire Clause, stand in a certain relation to each other. This relation is called Construction; and Construction is of two kinds, Agreement and Government.
A word is said to agree with another word if its inflexions conform to it. Thus, in the Sentence "the man runs," the Verb-Predicate "runs" agrees with the Subject "man," because both are Singular. If we said "the man run," the Verb would not agree with its Subject.
A word is said to govern another word if it requires a certain inflexion in that word. Thus we say "I saw him," because the Verb "see" is Transitive and requires a Direct Object in the Accusative. If we said "I saw he," a law of Government would be violated.
So with Clauses. If we said "he comes that he might see," instead of "that he may see," we should violate a law of Agreement. If we said "he compelled us that we might go," instead of "to go," we should be violating a law of Government.
The laws of Government, along with the general usage of words and clauses, are given below in II. The Parts of Speech; III. The Syntax of the Simple Sentence; and The Syntax of the Compound Sentence.
The laws of Agreement of Clauses, called Sequence, are given in § 343. The laws of Agreement of words, called the Concords (concordia, agreement), are as follows :—
I. THE CONCORDS.
AGREEMENT.
The Four Concords.
1. The Concord of the Verb.
"The Verb agrees with its Subject in Gender, Number and Case."
Tu pulsas, ego vapulo tantum.
JUV.You beat, I am only beaten.
2. The Concord of the Adjective.
"The Adjective agrees with its Substantive in Gender, Number and Case."
Verae amicitiae sempiternae sunt.
CIC.True friendships are eternal.
3. The Concord of the Substantive.
"The Substantive agrees in Case with the Substantive to which it stands in Apposition (§ 11) or as Predicate."
Procas, rex Albanorum, duos filios, Numitorem et Amulium, habuit.
LIV.Procas, King of the Albans, had two sons, Numitor and Amulius.
4. The Concord of the Relative.
"The Relative agrees with its Antecedent (§ 15) in Gender and Number." (In Case, it depends for construction on its own Clause.)
Quis est hic homo, quem ante aedes video?
PLAUT.Who is this man, whom I see before the house?
The Composite Subject.
Where there are several Subjects to one Verb or Predicate, they may be treated in two different ways:—
A. together:
They may be taken together as one Subject, with the Verb or Adjective in agreement:
Castor et Pollux ex equis pugnare visi sunt.
Castor and Pollux were seen to fight from horses.
If they differ in Person, the First Person is preferred to the Second, the Second to the Third :
Si tu et Tullia valetis, ego et Cicero valemus.
CIC.If you and Tullia are well, Cicero and I are well.
(We can always find the Person by seeing what we should substitute for the several subjects—"we," "you," or "they ".)
If they differ in Gender, (a) the Masculine is preferred, if there is one; or (b) they are grouped as Neuter things :
(a)
Rex regiaque classis una profecti.
LIV.The king and the royal fleet started together.
(b)
Secundae res, honores, imperia, victoriae fortuita sunt.
CIC.Success, office, command, victory, are all things of chance.
B. separately :
Less often they are taken separately, the Predicate agreeing with the nearest Subject, and being understood with the rest:
Orgetorigis filia et unus e filiis captus est.
CAES.The daughter of Orgetorix and one of his sons was captured.
Notes on the Concords.
The verb "to be" as Copula is often omitted :
Nihil bonum, nisi quod honestum.
CIC.Nothing is good, except what is honourable.
As forming part of an Auxiliary Tense, it is often omitted not merely in the Indicative, but also in the Infinitive:
Postquam exempta fames epulis mensaeque remotae.
VIRG.After their hunger was appeased by the banquet and the viands were removed.
Emissam hiemem sensit Neptunus.
VIRG.Neptune felt that the storm had been let loose.
As the "Verb of existence" it cannot be omitted :
Seges est ubi Troja fuit.
OV.There is now corn where Troy once stood.
The Personal Pronouns are omitted unless they are Emphatic:
fugiunt, they fly ;
pulchra est, she is beautiful;
erras, you are wrong.
The Personal Pronoun may be thus also omitted where a Substantive stands in Apposition to it.
Hannibal peto pacem.
LIV.I, Hannibal, seek for peace.
So, as Antecedent to a Relative (cf. Shakspeare, "who was the thane, lives yet"; qui s'excuse, s'accuse).
Bis dat, qui cito dat.
(He) who gives readily, gives twice.
A Noun of Multitude may be treated as Masculine Plural:
Pars per agros dilapsi, pars urbes petunt finitimas.
LIV.Part scattered over the fields, part made for the neighbouring cities.
The "Neuter of the Thing" should be observed :
Triste lupus stabulis.
VIRG.The wolf is a sad thing for the folds.
Urbem fecisti quod prius orbis erat.
PROP.Thou hast made into a city what was once a world.
The Relative is usually attracted to the Gender and Number of a Predicate Noun:
Thebae, quod Boeotiae caput est.
LIV.Thebes, which is the Capital of Bœotia.
So with Factitive Verbs:
Ii sempiterni ignes quas stellas dicimus.
CIC.Those eternal fires which we call stars.
(See further "Attraction" and "Sense-Construction," § 551.)
The Agreement of Pronouns should be noticed, especially of "this" and "that" used as Predicates, and of the English "it," referring to a previous Substantive :
Hic amor, haec patria est.
VIRG.This is my love, and this my country.
Ubi est liber? Perdidi eum.
Where is the book? I have lost it.
I. THE CONCORDS.
AGREEMENT.
The Four Concords.
1. The Concord of the Verb.
"The Verb agrees with its Subject in Gender, Number and Case."
οἴχεται πατήρ, γελῶσι δ᾽ ἐχθροί.
SOPH.My father is dead, and mine enemies laugh.
2. The Concord of the Adjective.
"The Adjective agrees with its Substantive in Gender, Number and Case."
φθείρουσιν ἤθη χρήσθ᾽ ὁμιλίαι κακαί.
Evil companionships corrupt good manners.
3. The Concord of the Substantive.
"The Substantive agrees in Case with the Substantive to which it stands in Apposition (§ 11) or as Predicate."
Ἑλλήνων ἀρχηγὸς Παυσανίας.
THUC.Pausanias, general of the Greeks.
Κύρον σατράπην ἐποιήσεν.
XEN.He appointed Cyrus as Satrap.
4. The Concord of the Relative.
"The Relative agrees with its Antecedent (§ 15) in Gender and Number." (In Case, it depends for construction on its own Clause.)
φεῦ δεξιὰ χείρ, ἧς σὺ πόλλ᾽ ἐλαμβάνου.
ΕUR.Alas, right hand, from which thou didst receive much.
The Composite Subject.
Where there are several Subjects to one Verb or Predicate, they may be treated in two different ways:—
A. together:
They may be taken together as one Subject, with the Verb or Adjective in agreement:
ὁ Σωκράτης καὶ ὁ Πλάτων σοφοὶ ἦσαν.
Socrates and Plato were wise.
If they differ in Person, the First Person is preferred to the Second, the Second to the Third :
ἐγὼ καὶ οἱ ἄλλοι πρέσβεις περιήλθομεν.
DEM.The other ambassadors and I went round.
(We can always find the Person by seeing what we should substitute for the several subjects—"we," "you," or "they ".)
If they differ in Gender, (a) the Masculine is preferred, if there is one; or (b) they are grouped as Neuter things :
(α)
ἡ τύχη καὶ ὁ Φίλιππος ἦσαν τῶν ἔργων κύριοι.
ÆSCHIN.Chance and Philip were responsible for what happened.
(β)
ἦν ἡ ἀγορὰ καὶ τὸ πρυτανεῖον Παρίῳ λίθῳ ἠσκημένα.
HDT.The market-place and the town-hall were decorated with marble.
B. separately :
Less often they are taken separately, the Predicate agreeing with the nearest Subject, and being understood with the rest:
σύ τε Ἕλλην εἰ καὶ ἡμεῖς.
XΕΝ.You are Greek and so are we.
Notes on the Concords.
Neuter Plurals are usually regarded in the lump and followed by a Singular Verb :
διὰ τὰς γυναῖκας πάντα τὰ κακὰ γίγνεται.
EUR.All evils happen through women.
But living people take, as a rule, a Plural Verb:
τὰ τέλη τὸν Βρασίδαν ἐξέπεμψαν.
THUC.The authorities sent out Brasidas.
The Dual. Strict agreement is found chiefly where the Subject is one word. Otherwise the Verb is Plural.
τὼ ἀδέλφω ἄμφω ἄπαιδε ἐτελευτησάτην.
ISAEUS.The two brothers both died childless.
The Verb "to be," as Copula, is often omitted, as in Latin, but not with Auxiliary Tenses.
As "the Verb of existence" it must not be omitted:
οὐκέτ᾽ ἔστι Τροία.
EUR.Troy is no more.
(As the verb of existence, εἰμί retains its accent.)
The Personal Pronouns are omitted as in Latin.
The Personal Pronoun may be thus also omitted where a Substantive stands in Apposition to it.
Θεμιστοκλῆς ἥκω παράσε.
THUC.I, Themistocles, am come to thee.
So, as Antecedent to a Relative (cf. Shakspeare, "who was the thane, lives yet"; qui s'excuse, s'accuse).
ὃν οἱ Θεοὶ φιλοῦσιν, ἀποθνήσκει νέος.
(He) whom the gods love dies young.
A Noun of Multitude may be treated as Masculine Plural:
μέρος τι ἀνθρώπων οὐχ ἡγοῦνται θεούς.
PLAT.Some portion of mankind do not believe in the gods.
The "Neuter of the Thing" should be observed :
καλὸν ἡ ἀλήθεια καὶ μόνιμον.
PLAT.Truth is a beautiful and abiding thing.
τοῦτό γε αὐτό, ἡ ἀδικία.
PLAT.This very thing, injustice. (Apposition.)
The Relative is regularly attracted from the Accusative to the Genitive or Dative of its Antecedent. The Article is here usually omitted and the Noun placed last.
ἀμαθέστατοί ἐστε ὧν ἐγὼ οἶδα Ἑλλήνων.
THUC.You are the most ignorant of all the Greeks I know.
(This attraction must not take place from the Nominative.)
(See further "Attraction" and "Sense-Construction," § 551.)
The Agreement of Pronouns should be noticed, especially of "this" and "that" used as Predicates, and of the English "it," referring to a previous Substantive :
ἐκεῖνός ἐστιν ἔλεγχος μέγιστος.
LYS.That is a very great proof.
ποῦ ἔστιν ἡ βίβλος; ὀλώλεκα αὐτήν.
Where is the book? I have lost it.
THE PARTS OF SPEECH.
There are eight parts of speech: 1. Substantives, 2. Adjectives, 3. Pronouns, 4. Verbs, 5. Adverbs, 6. Prepositions, 7. Conjunctions and Particles, 8. Interjections.
Of these, the first three bear the common name of "Nouns," being sometimes called respectively "Noun-Substantives," "Noun-Adjectives" and "Pronouns" (§ 29).
1. Substantives.
The Singular is sometimes used for the Plural, especially with names of nations and in military phrases:
E.g., Romanus, the Romans (or the Roman commander).
The Plural is sometimes used for the Singular, especially in poetry:
clypeus, dona parentis.
VIRG.A shield, his father's gift.
(In Prose many such instances are only apparent : E.g., castra, a camp; lit. its "bastions".)
Often the Plural implies separate manifestations of the Singular Noun :
E.g., religio, religion; religiones, religious observances.
Abstract Nouns (§ 16) are often used for Concrete; the names of deities for the things they patronise :
E.g., genus, a son; Mars, war. (Cf. "a relation,” i.e. one related.)
Sometimes Substantives are used for Adjectives (but such phrases as "a China cup," "a hat-box," would be impossible):
bellator equus.
VIRG.A war-horse.
2. Adjectives.
Adjectives are often used for Substantives, the gender showing whether a man, woman or thing is meant :
Bonos boni diligunt.
CIC.The good love the good.
Neuter Adjectives in the Singular so used are often equivalent to Abstract Nouns :
Omne tulit punctum, qui miscuit utile dulci.
HOR.He has won every vote, who has combined instruction with amusement.
The Adjective with the Substantive (Epithet) (§11):
Two Epithets are not used so often of one Noun without a Copula as in English:
E.g., boni et honesti viri, good, honest men.
(But multus need have no Copula if the other Epithet and its Substantive form one idea.)
Note. Any, some, more, none are often expressed by quid, aliquid, plus, nihil with the Genitive:
Ne quid detrimenti respublica capiat.
CIC.That the State may not suffer any harm.
N.B. In phrases of Time and Place, "the beginning of," "the top of," etc., the Adjective must agree:
Viz., with summus, medius, imus, primus, ultimus :
Primâ luce summus mons a Labieno tenebatur.
CAES.At dawn of day the top of the mountain was held by Labienus.
(Distinguish mons summus, a very high mountain, § 90.)
The Adjective in connexion with the Verb (Predicate) :
Beside the simple (Primary) Predicate with the Verb "to be," the Predicate is sometimes involved in the sentence (a Secondary or Tertiary Predicate, § 12): cf. in English "he wears his hair long".
Latin marks this by the position of the Adjective (§90):
Roma patrem patriae Ciceronem libera dixit.
JUV.(Secondary.) Rome was free when she named Cicero the Father of his country.
Note the following :—
Primus feminam servavit.
He was the first to save the woman.
Feminam servavit primam.
The woman was the first person he saved.
Primum servavit feminam.
The first thing he did was to save the woman.
Adjectives are often used Adverbially: cf. in English "come quick," "like ghosts that darkling roam":
Socrates laetus venenum hausit.
SEN.Socrates readily drank the poison.
Comparatives.
After Comparatives two constructions are possible :
(a) A plain Ablative (see §263):
Neminem Lycurgo utiliorem Sparta genuit.
VAL. MAX.Sparta produced no more useful citizen than Lycurgus.
(b) quam, "than," with the same Case after it as before it :
Nulli flebilior quam tibi, Vergili.
HOR.By none to be more lamented, Virgil, than by thee.
(With the Nominative or Accusative, the first is more usual, though both are possible; with any other Case, the second is necessary for clearness.)
Before Numerals the Particle "than" is usually omitted after Adverbs meaning "more" or "less":
Romani paullo plus sescenti ceciderunt.
LIV.Rather more than six hundred Romans fell.
Two Adjectives or Adverbs compared with each other are as a rule both put in the Comparative :
Libentius quam verius.
CIC.With more zeal than honesty.
The Comparative is sometimes used absolutely in the sense of “rather,” “too,” “somewhat”—"comparatively speaking":
In verbis nimius, et in compositione longior.
QUINT.Too verbose and, in his periods, somewhat lengthy.
Obs. Comparatives are usually qualified, not by an ordinary Adverb, but by the Instrumental Case (§ 267):
Multo major, much bigger.
Some freer idioms are found with the Comparative, e.g. :
Opinione celerius, sooner than could be expected.
Superlatives.
A Superlative, like a Comparative, may be used either absolutely, or in relation to another word :
1. very: absolutely—of degree:
Ego sum miserior quam tu, quae es miserrima.
CIC.I am more wretched than you, who are most wretched.
2. the most: usually with a Genitive:
Indus, qui est omnium fluminum maximus.
CIC.The Indus, which is the largest of all rivers.
Observe quisque with a Superlative, usually in the Singular and with a Singular Verb—"all the best," etc.:
Optimum quidque rarissimum est.
CIC.All the best things are most rare.
A Superlative is often used in a Relative Clause, sometimes where we should leave it in the Main Sentence :
Noctu de servis suis quem habuit fidelissimum ad regem misit.
NEP.He sent to the king by night the most trusty slave he had.
1. Substantives.
The Singular is sometimes used for the Plural, especially with names of nations and in military phrases:
E.g., ἡ ἵππος, the cavalry, the horse (N.B. the Gender).
The Plural is sometimes used for the Singular, especially in poetry:
χρυσός, δῶρα θεοῦ.
ΗΟΜ.Gold, the gift of the god.
(In Prose many such instances are only apparent : E.g., δώματα, a house; lit. "rooms".)
Often the Plural implies separate manifestations of the Singular Noun :
E.g., κρέας, meat; κρέα, pieces of meat.
Abstract Nouns (§ 16) are often used for Concrete; the names of deities for the things they patronise :
E.g., ὁμιλία, companions. Ἥφαιστος, fire.
Sometimes Substantives are used for Adjectives (but such phrases as "a China cup," "a hat-box," would be impossible):
Ἑλλάδα γλῶσσαν.
HDT.The Greek language.
2. Adjectives.
Adjectives are often used for Substantives, the gender showing whether a man, woman or thing is meant :
E.g., ἀγαθός τις, a good man; but still more often with the article, ὁ ἀγαθός, the good man.
Neuter Adjectives in the Singular so used are often equivalent to Abstract Nouns :
οἶδεν τό γ᾽ αἰσχρόν, κανόνι τοῦ καλοῦ μαθών.
EUR.He knoweth evil, having learnt it by the standard of good.
The Adjective with the Substantive (Epithet) (§ 11) :
Two Epithets are not used so often of one Noun without a Copula as in English:
E.g., καλοί τε κἀγαθοὶ πολιταί, good, honest citizens.
Ν.Β.-With πολύς a Copula must be used: πολλὰ καὶ καλὰ ἔργα, many noble acts.
Note. -ἥμισυς agrees in Gender and Number with the Substantive, but the latter is in the Genitive:
αἱ ἡμίσειαι τῶν νεῶν ἀπέπλευσαν.
THUC.Half the ships sailed away.
N.B. In phrases of Time and Place, "the beginning of," "the top of," etc., the Adjective must agree:
Viz., with ἄκρος, μέσος, πρῶτος, ὕστατος :
E.g., πεδίον ἐπ᾿ ἄκρον, to the edge of the plain.
(Note the article in μέση ἡ πόλις, the middle of the city; ἡ μέση πόλις, the middle city of three, § 102.)
The Adjective in connexion with the Verb (Predicate):
Beside the simple (Primary) Predicate with the Verb "to be," the Predicate is sometimes involved in the sentence (a Secondary or Tertiary Predicate, § 12): cf. in English "he wears his hair long".
Greek marks this by the position of the Article (§ 95):
οὐ γὰρ βάναυσον τὴν τέχνην ἐκτησάμην.
SOPH.No vulgar art was this that I acquired. (Tertiary.)
(So, often with ἔχω.)
Note the following :—
πρῶτος τὴν γυναῖκα ἔσωσεν.
He was the first to save the woman.
πρώτην τὴν γυναῖκα ἔσωσεν.
The woman was the first person he saved.
πρῶτον τὴν γυναῖκα ἔσωσεν.
The first thing he did was to save the woman.
Adjectives are often used Adverbially: cf. in English "come quick," "like ghosts that darkling roam":
παρὰ δὲ Μαντίνειαν ἔτι σκοταῖος παρῆλθεν.
XEN.He passed Mantinea while it was still night.
Comparatives.
After Comparatives two constructions are possible :
(a) A plain Genitive (see § 263):
ὦ παῖ, γένοιο πατρὸς εὐτυχέστερος.
SOPH.My son, may you be more fortunate than your sire.
(b) ἤ, “than," with the same Case after it as before it:
οὐκ ἐλάσσονος ἢ πεντακοσίων ταλάντων.
THỤC.It amounted in value to not less than 500 talents.
(With the Nominative or Accusative, the first is more usual, though both are possible; with any other Case, the second is necessary for clearness.)
Before Numerals the Particle "than" is usually omitted after Adverbs meaning "more" or "less":
ἀπέθανον ὀλίγῳ ἐλάσσους πεντήκοντα.
THUC.There fell rather less than fifty men.
Two Adjectives or Adverbs compared with each other are as a rule both put in the Comparative :
μανικώτεροι ἢ ἀνδρειότεροι.
PLAT.With more frenzy than courage ("the courage of despair").
The Comparative is sometimes used absolutely in the sense of “ rather,” “ too,” “ somewhat”—"comparatively speaking":
Μαιανδρίῳ δὲ τυράννῳ ἦν ἀδελφὸς ὑπομαργότερος.
HDT.Maeandrius the tyrant had a brother who was just a little mad.
Obs. Comparatives are usually qualified, not by an ordinary Adverb, but by the Instrumental Case (§ 267):
πολλῷ μείζων, much bigger.
Some freer idioms are found with the Comparative, e.g. :
ἐλπίδος κρεῖσσον, better than one could expect.
Superlatives.
A Superlative, like a Comparative, may be used either absolutely, or in relation to another word :
1. very: absolutely—of degree:
ἦν γὰρ Θεμιστοκλῆς δι᾽ ἐλαχίστης βούλης κράτιστος γνώμων.
THUC.For Themistocles was very ready in forming plans on very little thought.
2. the most: usually with a Genitive:
ἐπεδείκνυ τῶν ἵππων τοὺς εὐφυεστάτους.
ΧEN.He proceeded to point out the finest of the horses.
Observe that, even in this sense, the Article is omitted if the Superlative is Predicate (§ 93):
Περσῶν πολὺ κάλλιστος ὁ ἐμὸς πατήρ.
ΧΕΝ.My father was by far the most handsome of the Persians.
A Superlative is often used in a Relative Clause, sometimes where we should leave it in the Main Sentence :
θυμοῦ δι᾽ ὀργῆς ἥτις ἀγριωτάτη.
SOPH.Be wroth with the fiercest anger thou dost know.
N.B. Quam with a Superlative, "as much as possible" :
E.g., quam optimus, the best man in the world (§ 455).
So with a Superlative Adverb:
quam celerrime, with all speed.
The Superlative may be strengthened either by ordinary Adverbs, or, like the Comparative, by the Instrumental :
Longe or multo optimus, far the best.
(Note the phrase, ut qui maxime, "most of all," lit. "as who does it most".)
Numerals.
The order in Compound Numerals resembles English: (a) seventeen; (b) twenty-four or four and twenty; (c) six hundred and thirty-five. This applies to both Cardinals and Ordinals : thus—
(a) From 13 to 19, the smaller precedes without et: Septendecim, septimus decimus.
(b) From 21 to 99, either (1) the larger precedes without et, or (2) the smaller precedes with et: (1) Viginti quattuor, vicesimus quartus; (2) Quattuor et viginti, quartus et vicesimus.
(c) With three or more figures, the largest, as a rule, precedes, with or without et : Sescenti (et) triginta (et) quinque.
(Exceptions occur; but one rule is absolute: Above 20, the smaller must not precede without a Copula.)
(a) The Cardinals.
Round numbers (expressed, as in English, by Adverbs and Prepositions, "about," "up to ") may be treated as one phrase :
Ad trecentos occisi sunt.
Quite 300 men were slain.
Note. Mille is an Adjective, milia a Substantive:
Mille greges illi.
OV.He had a thousand flocks.
Quattuor milia hominum Capitolium occupavere.
LIV.Four thousand men seized the Capitol.
But if smaller numbers are added, the phrase becomes adjectival :
Tria millia et trecenti homines, 3,300 men.
(b) The Ordinals.
The Ordinals are used in expressions of time :
Octavus annus est ex quo Britanniam vicistis.
TAC.It is eight years since you conquered Britain.
Note the use of Ordinals with quisque :
Tertio quoque verbo excitabatur.
CIC.He became excited at every other word.
(Observe alter, second (not secundus); unus et vicesimus, 21st (not primus).)
(c) Other Numerals.
Distributives: how many each or at a time:
Militibus quini et viceni denarii dati sunt.
LIV.Twenty-five denarii were given to each soldier.
Note. Distributives are used with Plural Nouns, but the plural of unus is retained :
Una castra jam facta ex binis videbantur.
CAES.One camp now seemed to have been formed from two.
Distributives are used in multiplication: bis quini, twice five (not bis quinque).
Multiplicatives: e.g., duplex, double (cf. geminus).
Obs. The Distributives and Multiplicatives are often used in poetry for Cardinals :
Centenas manus, an hundred hands; duplices palmas, his two palms; geminas acies, the two eyes.
The want of a Definite Article in Latin.
A. The Article is ignored in Latin:
Latin has no Definite Article. Thus, e.g., pugna may mean either (1) a battle or (2) the battle; boni can either be (1) an Adjective qualifying a Noun, "good (citizens)," or (2) a Substantive, "the good".— Note also Neuters like honestum, "morality,"; and Participles like fugientes, "the fugitives".
So with the idea of Possession: e.g., manu tenet, he holds in his hand, lit. the hand.— Observe also such phrases as:
Pompeii copiae plures erant quam Caesaris.
The forces of Pompey were more in number than those of Cæsar.
(The only approximation to a Definite Article in Latin lies in the use of ille, and this usually implies some idea of fame: e.g., Socrates ille, the famous Socrates; illud Homeri, that (well-known) saying of Homer.)
B. Ways of supplying the want of an Article in Latin.
(1) In Adjectival phrases:
(a) By enclosing the Adjectival phrase:
E.g., Magna ad Cannas pugna, the great battle of Cannæ. Caesaris erga me amor, Cæsar's love for me.
So with the aid of a Participle :
Pugna ad Cannas facta, the battle of Cannæ.
(Ν.Β. "Magna Cannis pugna" would be impossible.)
(b) By a Relative Clause :
E.g., Qui olim vivebant, the men of old.
(2) In Substantival phrases:
(a) By quod with the Indicative:
E.g., Quod vales, valde me delectat. Your being well delights me.
(b) By a Participial Phrase:
E.g., Caesar occisus, the death of Cæsar.
(c) By the Infinitive and Gerund:
E.g., Dulce est mori, to die is pleasant;
the Genitive, Dative and Ablative, and the Accusative after a Preposition being supplied by the Gerund : moriendi, moriendo, ad moriendum.
(3) In the distinction of Noun and Predicate:
(a) By a Relative Clause ; contrast the English in :
Qui boni sunt, ii sunt beati. The good are happy.
Nihil bonum nisi quod honestum. Virtue is the only good thing.
(b) By pro with the Ablative, loco with the Genitive, etc., after Factitive Verbs:
Omnes homines pro inimicis habebat. He accounted all men his personal enemies.
Observe the omission of the Verb "I am able” in ὡς with a Superlative, "as much as possible":
So with a Superlative Adverb:
E.g., ὡς τάχιστα, with all speed (§ 455) (lit. as he most quickly could).
The Superlative may be strengthened either by ordinary Adverbs, or, like the Comparative, by the Instrumental :
πολύ or πολλῷ ἄριστος, far the best.
(Note the phrase, ἐν τοῖς πρῶτοι, the very first—originally ἐν τοῖς πρώτοις, among the first.)
Numerals.
The order in Compound Numerals resembles English: (a) seventeen; (b) twenty-four or four and twenty; (c) six hundred and thirty-five. This applies to both Cardinals and Ordinals : thus—
(a) From 13 to 19, the smaller precedes with καί: ἑπτακαίδεκα, ἑπτακαιδέκατος.
(b) From 21 to 99, either (1) the larger precedes without καί, or (2) the smaller precedes with καί: (1) εἴκοσι τέσσαρες, εἰκοστὸς τέταρτος. (2) τέσσαρες καὶ εἴκοσι, τέταρτος καὶ εἰκοστός.
(c) With three or more numbers, the largest, as a rule, precedes with καί: ἑξακόσιοι καὶ τριάκοντα καὶ πέντε.
(Exceptions occur; but one rule is absolute: Above 20, the smaller must not precede without a Copula.)
(a) The Cardinals.
Round numbers (expressed, as in English, by Adverbs and Prepositions, "about," "up to ") may be treated as one phrase :
εἰς τριακοσίους ἀπώλοντο.
Quite 300 men were slain.
Note the Article of round numbers (cf. "the fifties"):
ἦν δὲ, ὅτε ἐτελεύτα, ἀμφὶ τὰ πεντήκοντα ἔτη.
ΧΕΝ.He was about fifty when he died.
So τὰ δύο μέρη, two thirds ("the usual two parts"). Cardinals in -ος may be used in the Singular:
ἀσπὶς μυρία.
XEN.10,000 foot (see § 53).
Distinguish μύριοι, 10,000; μυρίοι, an indefinite number.
(b) The Ordinals.
The Ordinals are used in expressions of time :
μετὰ τὴν ἐν Ποτιδαίᾳ μάχην μηνὶ ἕκτῳ.
THUC.Six months after the battle of Potidaea.
Note the use of Ordinals with αὐτός :
ἦρχε Δωριεύς τρίτος αὐτός.
THUC.Dorieus was in command with two colleagues.
(Observe the "Temporal Ordinals," δευτεραῖος, on the second day, etc.)
(c) Other Numerals.
Distributives do not exist in Greek. The idea of Distribution is expressed by ἕκαστος or by a Preposition, e.g., κατά with the Accusative:
κατὰ τὸν ὁπλίτην ἕκαστον δύο μναῖ.
THUC.Two minae per man.
Multiplicatives: how many fold: διπλούς, etc. (δισσός, double, is half-multiplicative).
Proportionals: how many times as big as: διπλάσιος, etc.
ὄρνις τριπλασία Κλεωνύμου.
AR.A bird three times as big as Cleonymus.
(Comparative Gen., § 263.)
Obs.—The Multiplicatives are often used in poetry for Cardinals: e.g.,
διπλοῖ ᾿Ατρείδαι or δισσοὺς ᾿Ατρείδας. SOPH. The two Atridae.
THE ARTICLE.
The Article was originally (1) a Demonstrative Pronoun: which came to be used as (2) a Relative Pronoun and (3) the Definite Article.
(So in English, “I bought that book," "the book that I bought," "I bought the ( = that) book". --Similarly the Definite Article in French, "le," in Italian, "lo," in Spanish, “ el,” are all derived from the Latin Demonstrative “ille".)
Of the Demonstrative use a few instances survive in Attic Greek, ὁ δέ, but he; οἱ μὲν οἱ δὲ, some—others. (Note also ἢ δ᾽ ὅς, said he, ős being an older form of ὁ.)
And the Relative use is not rare in Attic Tragedy :
διπλῇ μάστιγι τὴν ᾿Αρης φιλεῖ.
ÆSCH.With the double scourge which Ares loves.
But the chief use is that of the Definite Article.
"The Article encircles a thing, so to speak, and separates it from all other things. Thus in 'the good man': 'the' distinguishes 'good man' from all other men. In this way it may mark either (1) particular things or (2) general classes:
(1) The Definite Article
denotes what is well known or has been just mentioned or is otherwise particularised :
τῶν ἔπτα σοφώτατος ἦν Σόλων.
PLAT.Solon was the wisest of the Seven Sages.
ὅτῳ ταῦτα δοκεῖ, ἀράτω τὴν χεῖρα.
ΧΕΝ.Whoever approves of this, let him hold up his hand.
Note. It has often a mild Possessive force :
(Cf. French: Je porte dans la main, I carry in my hand.)
Obs. With Proper Names the Article must be used with names of countries, ἡ Ἑλλάς, Greece (such words being really Adjectives, § 96); with other names the custom varies: Σωκράτης or ὁ Σωκράτης.
(2) The "Generic Article"
denotes a class (genus):
ὁ παῖς πάντων θηρίων δυσμεταχειρότατον.
PLAT.A boy is of all creatures the most difficult to manage.
Obs. So often with Abstract Nouns: e.g., ἡ δικαιοσύνη, justice (cf. French, l'honneur, honour).
The Article as a Noun-Maker.
1. The Article may turn most words into Substantives : e.g., οἱ πάλαι, the men of old, οἱ φεύγοντες, the fugitives, τὸ θνήσκειν, death, τὸ σύμφερον, expediency.
(c) By the position of the Predicate—in the case of Secondary and Tertiary Predicates:
Roma patrem patriae Ciceronem libera dixit.
JUV.Rome was free when she called Cicero the father of his country.
So distinguish with summus, medius, imus, etc.:
Summus mons, the top of the mountain. Mons summus, the highest mountain.
Media via, the middle of the road. Via media, the middle road of three.
viz., when used as Predicates, these Adjectives usually precede the Noun; when used as Attributes, they usually follow it (§ 95).
The Order of Words.
The natural order of words in a Clause is: (1) Subject, (2) Direct Object, (3) Indirect Object and Adverbial Complements, (4) Verb:
Cicero librum Tulliae offerebat.
Cicero offered Tullia a book.
Emphasis. If any word is emphasised, it is put out of order—especially first or last, since these are the emphatic places. Thus :
(a)
Librum Cicero Tulliae offerebat.
It was a book Cicero offered Tullia.(b)
Tulliae Cicero librum offerebat.
It was to Tullia Cicero offered a book.(c)
Offerebat Cicero librum Tulliae.
It was only an offer that he made, etc.(d)
Librum Tulliae offerebat Cicero.
It was Cicero who offered.Attributes:—
(1) Adjectives usually follow their Noun: librum egregium, a fine book. So, too, Nouns in Apposition: librum Iliada, the book the Iliad.
(2) Genitives usually precede the Noun: Homeri librum. So, too, the Pronoun hic and monosyllabic Pronouns of number and Adjectives of quantity: e.g., hunc librum, tot homines, multi viri.
(3) Prepositional Phrases and cases governed by Participles or Adjectives are enclosed; e.g., librum de Bello Trojano scriptum, a book written about the Trojan War; librum Iliadi simillimum, a book like the Iliad. But where two separate Attributives, viz., a Genitive and Adjective, or a Prepositional Phrase and an Adjective, occur together, the Adjective comes first: e.g., egregium de Bello Trojano librum, a fine book on the Trojan War; egregium boni Homeri librum, the fine book of the good Homer.
Obs. Attributes also may be emphasized by alteration in their position, especially by separation from their Nouns: egregium Cicero librum Tulliae offerebat, it was a fine one, that book which Cicero offered, etc.
Note 1. Similar words are usually put together: honesti cum honestate omnia agunt, noble men act nobly in all things. So ipse and quisque usually stand next to se, suus: ipse sibi nocuit, he harmed himself.
Note 2. Sum as Copula usually comes between the Noun and Predicate; as the Verb of existence, it usually comes first: homo est miser, the man is wretched; est homo miser, there is a wretched man.
Note 3.—A Monosyllable, e.g., se, is usually put next to another monosyllable, or before a word beginning with a Vowel, where it may be elided.
Note 4.—A word referring to the previous sentence is usually put first in its own sentence. This is especially so with words like is or tum.
Order of Clauses.
1. Relative Clauses are usually in the middle of the Main Sentence following, like Adjectives, the Noun they refer to :
Romulus, qui rex Romanorum erat, tempestate sublatus est.
Romulus, who was king of the Romans, was carried off by a storm.
Note 1. A Relative Clause is often picked up by a Demonstrative Pronoun: qui boni sunt, ii sunt beati, those who are good, etc.; and is often enclosed between an Attribute and a Noun: omnes quae sunt in Attica civitates, all the states which are in Attica.
Note 2.—When qui, quae, quod = et ille, etc., the Relative Clause may stand last : quod etiam accidit, and this proved true.
Obs. Superlatives are often enclosed in a Relative Clause, where we leave them in the Main : quem fidelissimum habuit, the truest friend he had.
The Relative must stand first in its own sentence: quorum ob mortem, owing to the death of whom.
2. Substantival Clauses—Indirect Statement, Command, Question—usually come after the Main Sentence. So almost invariably Consecutive ut:
Romulus suis imperavit ut Sabinos oppugnarent.
Romulus ordered his men to attack the Sabines.
3. Adverbial Clauses—Final, Conditional, Causal, Concessive, Comparative, Modal, Local, Temporal—usually come before the Main Sentence, because they precede it in time or thought and lead up to it :
Si hoc facies, poenas dabis.
If you do this, you will suffer for it.
Especially, Clauses, like words, referring to what has preceded must come first.
This is particularly the case with Temporal Clauses:
Quod ubi vidit, abiit.
When he saw this, he departed.Obs. 1.—A Substantive common to both Clauses is usually put first in the Main Clause. Contrast the English in:
Caesar, ubi rediit, castra movit.
When Caesar returned, he struck camp.Obs. 2.—Clauses, like words, are emphasised by being put out of their place. But always avoid accumulating verbs at the end, e.g., erat, sublatus est; oppugnarent, imperavit. This may be avoided by altering the position of the Verb in the sub-Clause, or bringing down some word to accompany the Verb of the Main Sentence.
THE PRONOUNS.
1. The Personal Pronouns.
As there is no Personal Pronoun of the Third Person, the Demonstratives are used instead :
Viz., ille, if emphatic; is, if unemphatic.
The Personal Pronouns are expressed in the Nominative, if emphatic (§ 47):
Ego reges ejeci, vos tyrannos introducitis.
CIC.I expelled kings, you are introducing tyrants.
Note.—Mei, tui, nostri, vestri are Objective; nostrum, vestrum Subjective.
The order of the Pronouns is usually the reverse of English, the First Person coming first :
Hence Cardinal Wolsey's "ego et rex meus," my King and I, was grammatically correct.
Remark. Use of the Persons.
The First Person Plural may, as in English, be used for the First Person Singular; but not the Second Plural for the Second Singular :
De quo supra mentionem fecimus.
CIC.Of which I made mention above.
Instances of the Second Plural for the Second Singular are only apparent:
Vestras, Eure, domos.
VIRG.The home of you winds, O Eurus.
The First and Third Person Plural and Second Singular may all be used of general statements, as in English :
E.g., putes, one would think; ut perhibent, as they say.
The Intensive Pronouns.
Ipse, self, was originally a strengthened form of is, that man, he: viz., is-pse; but it is not always connected with the Third Person.
Ipse may be used in three ways:
(a) alone, in the Oblique Cases, of the Third Person only: ipsum vidi, the man himself I saw.
(b) Alone, in the Nominative, of any Person: ipse vidi, I myself saw; so ipse vidit, etc.
(c) With a Substantive: e.g., ipse vir, the man himself.
Note the phrase, ipsissima verba, the exact words.
Idem, the same: originally is-dem. Observe:
Ego vir fortis, idemque philosophus.
CIC.I am a brave man, and also a philosopher.
The Reflexive Pronouns.
The Personal Pronouns me, te, etc., may be used Reflexively:
Quo te rapis?
VIRG.Whither are you betaking yourself?
Both these and se may be strengthened by ipse:
Omne animal se ipsum diligit.
CIC.Every animal loves itself (or se ipse).
The Third Person Reflexive.
Se and suus must always be used instead of is, ejus, in reference to the Subject of their own Clause (Direct Reflexive), and are generally used in reference to the Subject of the Main Clause (Indirect Reflexive).
(1) Direct Reflexive: Eng. "himself":
Fur se telo defendit.
CIC.The thief defends himself with a weapon.
(2) Indirect Reflexive: Eng. "him":
Pausanias servum oravit, ne se proderet.
ΝΕΡ.Pausanias implored the slave not to betray him.
(On se as the Subject of the Infinitive in Oratio Obliqua see § 351.)
But for clearness the Personal Pronoun is sometimes used for the Indirect Reflexive.
ARTICLE AS NOUN-MAKER.
2. The Article may turn most words into Attributives : e.g., ἡ ἄγαν ἐλευθερία, excessive freedom.
So with longer phrases, either Substantival or Adjectival:
τὸ τοῦ Σόλωνος, τὸ μηδένα εἶναι τῶν ζώντων ὄλβιον.
HDT.That saying of Solon's, that-no-one-living-is-happy.
μέμνησθε τῆς ἐν Σαλαμῖνι πρὸς Πέρσην ναυμαχίας.
PLAT.You remember the at-Salamis-against-the-Persians sea-fight.
(The Neuter Singular τό is sometimes equivalent to inverted commas:
τὸ δ᾽ ὑμεῖς ὅταν εἴπω, τὴν πόλιν λέγω.
DEM.When I say "you" I mean the state.)
The Article with Subject and Predicate.
The Subject takes the Article, the Predicate does not:
νὺξ ἡ ἡμέρα ἐγένετο.
HDT.Day became night.
Note. So the Object of Factitive Verbs is distinguished from the Predicate:
ὅστις καλέσειε κάρδοπον τὴν καρδόπην.
AR.Whoever should call a cardopé (a tub) a cardopos.
The Article with Attributive and Predicate.
(a) With Attributives, e.g., the good man :
1. ὁ ἀγαθὸς ἀνήρ, the good man.
2. ὁ ἀνὴρ, ὁ ἀγαθός, the man—the good one.
3. ἀνὴρ ὁ ἀγαθός, the good man.
(b) With Predicates, e.g., the man is good :
1. ὁ ἀνὴρ ἀγαθός, the man is good.
2. ἀγαθὸς ὁ ἀνήρ, the man is good.
Of these, the first in each, corresponding to the English order, "the good man," "the man (is) good," is the most common: the others are used for emphasis or convenience.
Especially (a) 2. is used with long Attributives :
οἱ στρατιῶται οἱ ἐκ τοῦ πολέμου πεφευγότες.
The soldiers who had fled from the war.
(The order must not be ὁ ἀγαθὸς ὁ ἀνήρ, because ἀνήρ adds nothing to ἀγαθός.)
Obs. 1. The above applies also to the Tertiary Predicate (§12):
οὐ γὰρ βάναυσον τὴν τέχνην ἐκτησάμην.
SOPH.Not vulgar is this art that I acquired.
Obs. 2.—With Geographical Phrases the Proper name is usually treated as the Attributive. Contrast the English idiom:
ὁ Εὐφράτης ποταμός or ὁ ποταμὸς ὁ Εὐφράτης. The river Euphrates.
Note. Genitives are exceptional:
1. ἡ τοῦ πατρὸς οἰκία, my father's house.
2. ἡ οἰκία τοῦ πατρός, the house of my father.
3. ἡ οἰκία ἡ τοῦ πατρός, the house—my father's.
4. τοῦ πατρὸς ἡ οἰκία, my father's house.
The first two, corresponding to the English order, are the more common; the last two the more emphatic.
Observe the order with a Genitive and an Epithet:
τὸ τῆς πόλεως μακρὸν τεῖχος, the long wall of the city.
Obs. 1. Personal Pronouns come outside (2 and 4), Reflexives inside (1) : E.g., ὁ πατὴρ μου, my father, or μου ὁ πατήρ, MY father. ὁ ἐμαυτοῦ πατήρ, my own father.
Obs. 2. Partitive Genitives come outside (2 and 4): E.g., bad citizens, οἱ κακοὶ τῶν πολιτῶν, or τῶν πολιτῶν οἱ κακοί.
The Article with Pronominal Adjectives and with πᾶς, ὅλος, μέσος, ἄκρος.
(Those marked * often have no Article; with the rest the Article is necessary in prose, in poetry there is some licence.)
1. The Predicative Position is used with οὗτος, ὅδε, ἐκεῖνος ; ἄμφω, ἀμφότερος ; ἑκάτερος, ἕκαστος * : E.g., οὗτος ὁ ἀνήρ, or ὁ ἀνὴρ οὗτος, this man.
Note. Hence observe :
αὕτη ἐστὶν ἀνδρὸς ἀρετή.
PLAT.This is the virtue of a man (not "this virtue").
2. The Attributive Position is used with τοιοῦτος *, τοιόσδε *, τοσοῦτος *, τοσόσδε*, τηλικοῦτος *; ἕτερος *, ἄλλος *; ἐμός, σός, ἡμέτερος, ὑμέτερος, σφέτερος : e.g., ὁ ἐμὸς πατήρ (ὁ πατήρ μου, sup.), my father.
Obs. 1. τοιοῦτος, etc., only have the Article of something just referred to (§ 84) :
τῆς τοιαύτης γνώμης.
DEM.Of such an opinion as has just been touched upon.
Obs. 2. –ἕτερος, ἄλλος differ in meaning with and without the Article : ἕτερος ἀνήρ, another man; ὁ ἕτερος ἀνήρ, the other man. ἄλλοι, others, alii; οἱ ἄλλοι, the rest, ceteri.
3. Both Predicative and Attributive Positions are used with αὐτός, but in a different sense: αὐτὸς ὁ ἀνήρ, or ὁ ἀνὴρ αὐτός, the man himself. ὁ αὐτὸς ἀνήρ, or ἀνὴρ ὁ αὐτός, the same man.
So with μέσος, ἄκρος, ἔσχατος (see § 58): μέση ἡ πόλις, the middle of the city. ἡ μέση πόλις, the middle city of three.
With πᾶς* and ὅλος * the difference is hard to detect : πᾶσα ἡ πόλις, all the city; ἡ πᾶσα πόλις, the whole city. (But πᾶσα πόλις, every city.)
Note. With Proper Names αὐτός, self, οὗτος and ἐκεῖνος may be used without the Article: αὐτός Μένων. ΧΕΝ. Menon himself. So especially with the deictic (δείκνυμι, I point) οὑτοσί: Τίμων οὑτοσί. Timon here.
THE PRONOUNS.
1. The Personal Pronouns.
As there is no Personal Pronoun of the Third Person, the Demonstratives are used instead :
Viz., οὗτος, ἐκεῖνος, emphatic; αὐτόν (§108) or ὁ δέ, unemphatic.
The Personal Pronouns are expressed in the Nominative, if emphatic (§ 47):
ἢ γὰρ σὺ κεῖνος;
SOPH.What, art thou he?
Note.—ἐμέ, ἐμοῦ, ἐμοί are more emphatic than με, μου, μοι.
The order of the Pronouns is usually the reverse of English, the First Person coming first :
ἐγὼ καὶ οἱ ἄλλοι πρεσβεῖς περιήλθομεν.
DEM.The other envoys and I went round.
Remark. Use of the Persons.
The First Person Plural may, as in English, be used for the First Person Singular; but not the Second Plural for the Second Singular :
τοῦτο πειρασόμεθα διηγήσασθαι.
XEN.This I will endeavour to describe.
The Masculine is usual here, even of a woman :
πεσούμεθ᾽, εἰ χρή, πατρὶ τιμωρουμένοι.
SOPH.I (Electra) will fall, if need be, avenging my father.
The First and Third Person Plural and Second Singular may all be used of general statements, as in English :
Ε.g., φαίης ἄν, one would suppose; ὥς φασιν, as they say.
The Intensive Pronouns.
αὐτός has three meanings :
(1) him, her, them, only in the Oblique Cases; and even so it must not stand first: εἶδον αὐτόν, I saw him.
(2) self, alone, or with a Substantive:
(a) alone, in the Oblique Cases, when it comes first; of the Third Person only: αὐτὸν εἶδον, the man himself I saw.
(b) Alone, in the Nominative, of any Person: εἶδον αὐτός, I myself saw; so εἶδεν αὐτός.
(c) If it comes before or after an Article and Substantive: ὁ ἀνὴρ αὐτός or αὐτὸς ὁ ἀνήρ, the man himself (§ 101).
(3) The same: when it immediately follows the Article: ὁ αὐτὸς ἀνήρ, the same man (see § 101).
(Cf. "the self-same man"; SHAK., "the self man ".)
The Reflexive Pronouns.
The Personal Pronouns cannot be used Reflexively, except in the phrase, μοι δοκῶ, I seem to myself.
The compounds of αὐτός, ἐμαυτόν, etc., must be used:
τὸ “ γνῶθι σαυτόν” πανταχοῦ ᾿στὶ χρήσιμον.
ΜEN.The adage "know thyself" is always useful.
The Third Person Reflexive.
ἑαυτὸν, σφὰς αὐτούς, σφέτερος αὐτῶν, ἑαυτῶν are used mainly of the Direct Reflexive, but may for emphasis be used in the Indirect; οἱ and σφᾶς are only, σφέτερος mainly, Indirect :
(1) Direct Reflexive: Eng. "himself":
ὡς πᾶς τις αὑτὸν τοῦ πέλας μᾶλλον φιλεῖ.
How everyone loves himself more than his neighbour!
(2) Indirect Reflexive: Eng. "him":
ἔφη εἶναι ἀνδράποδον οἱ ἐπὶ Λαυρίῳ.
ANDOK.He stated that he had a slave at Laurium.
(On the Subject of Oratio Obliqua see § 351.)
But for clearness the Personal Pronoun is sometimes used for the Indirect Reflexive.
REFLEXIVE PRONOUNS.
"His own": the Possessive of the Reflexive Pronoun is often used not of the Subject, but of the prominent word:
Hannibalem sui cives e civitate egerunt.
CIC.His own citizens expelled Hannibal from the state.
Note. Se and suus are specially frequent in connexion with ipse and quisque :
Junius necem sibi ipse conscivit.
CIC.Junius inflicted death on himself.
The Third Person Reflexive may, in general statements, be used for the First or Second.
Quisque suos patimur manes.
VIRG.We suffer each his own ghostly punishment.
The Reciprocal Pronoun.
The Reflexive Pronoun "selves" is often used in a Reciprocal sense—"each other":
Inter se amant, they love each other (ils s'aiment entre eux, ils s'entr'aiment).
Or alius alium may be used:
Alius alii subsidium ferunt.
CIC.They bring help to each other.
(There is no proper Reciprocal Pronoun in Latin.)
The Possessive Pronoun.
For the Possessive of the Third Person, when this is not Reflexive, the Genitive of the Demonstrative is used:
Viz. ejus, his, eorum, their :
Chilius te rogat, et ego ejus rogatu.
CIC.Chilius asks you, and I at his request.
Obs. 1. Possessives of all kinds are often strengthened by ipsius, agreeing with the Genitive implied :
E.g., Meâ ipsius culpa, through my own fault (mei ipsius).
Obs. 2. The Possessive is omitted if unemphatic:
E.g., Manum tollit, he raises his hand.
2. The Demonstrative Pronouns.
Hic sometimes means the latter, ille the former :
Romulum Numa excepit; hic pace, ille bello melior fuit.
LIV.To Romulus succeeded Numa; the latter excelled in peace, the former in war.
Hic-ille often means one-another:
Hi pacem, illi bellum volunt. Some desire peace, others war.
Ille expresses fame, iste contempt:
Xenophon ille, the well-known Xenophon.
Stoicus iste, that wretched Stoic.
Hic is often used of the First Person: hâc dextrâ, with this right hand of mine. (Hic homo, HOR. = ego.)
Is has no real demonstrative force: it refers to some person or thing named in the context: "he," "him".
Note. Is is the regular antecedent to qui, but hic or ille may be used for emphasis. See inf., § 142.
Observe the Neuter Singular of Demonstratives as referring to a Substantival Clause:
Hoc spectans, ut-. With this object in view, that-.
3. The Indefinite Pronouns.
Quis, anyone (Adj. qui, § 137), cannot come first. It is used in "if" Clauses with si, nisi, num, ne, and with quo and quanto in Comparative Clauses:
Si mala condiderit in quem quis carmina, jus est.
HOR.If anyone should have composed scurrilous verses against anyone, there is always a remedy at law.
Ecquis, anyone (Adj. ecqui), in Interrogative Clauses.
Quisquam, anyone, ullus, any (§137), are used in Negative and Quasi-Negative Clauses, viz., with vix, aegre, questions expecting the answer "no,” and Comparative Adjectives:
Nec amet quemquam nec ametur ab ullo.
JUV.Let him not love anyone nor be loved by anyone.
(Quisquam, like quis, may be used with si, but is stronger; it always implies a negative: Sapiens, si quisquam. CIC. Wise, if ANYONE is, sc. nemo erat sapientior.)
Aliquis, someone (Adj. aliqui, §137), chiefly in Positive Clauses:
E.g., Dicat aliquis, someone might say. (Si vis esse aliquis (JUV.), if you wish to be somebody.)
Quispiam, someone, closely resembles aliquis.
Quidam, a certain man, one :
Accurrit quidam notus mihi nomine tantum.
HOR.A certain man runs up, known to me only by name.
Quidam often qualifies a word, expressing contempt or admiration:
Divina quaedam memoria rerum.
CIC.A simply superhuman memory.
Note, also, quivis, quilibet, ANYONE (qui-vis, "who you like," qui libet, "who it pleases you"), anyone you like:
Non cuivis homini contingit adire Corinthum.
HOR.It does not fall to everyone to go to Corinth.
Nescio quis, some one or other, "I do not know who”:
Nescio quid meditans nugarum.
HOR.Composing some trifle or other.
Nonnulli, some, “not-none,” viz., a good number.
Sunt qui, some, “there are who" (usually with Subj., § 464).
Alter, one, another; the one, the other of two:
(1)
Altera ex duabus legionibus signa sustulit.
CAES. One of the two legions moved off.(2)
Alteram ille amat sororem, ego alteram.
PLAUT. He loves one of the two sisters, I the other.(Alteruter, one or the other of two:
Video necesse esse alterutrum.
CIC. I see that one of the two is necessary.)Alius, another, of several (N.B.—one "alius" cannot mean "one") :
(1)
Non alia ante Romana pugna atrocior fuit.
LIV. No other Roman battle before was more bloody.(2) Alius alius, one-other (in one or in two sentences) :
Aliud est maledicere, aliud accusare.
CIC.It is one thing to abuse, another to accuse.
Illi alias aliud iisdem de rebus judicant.
CIC.They hold different views on the same subjects at different times.
Ceteri, the other, the rest :
Spectaculum uni Crasso jucundum, ceteris non item.
CIC.A sight pleasing just to Crassus, not so to the rest.
Quisque, each of several, used only with (1) Reflexives, (2) Ordinals (§ 78), (3) Superlatives (§ 71), (4) Relatives. (Otherwise omnes must be used) :
Suo cuique judicio utendum est.
CIC.Everyone must use his own judgment.
Uterque, each of two, takes the Genitive of Pronouns, with Substantives it agrees in Case: Uterque nostrum, each of us, utrâque manu, with each hand.
Ambo, both, regarded as a pair: whereas uterque means both of two things regarded separately.
Note. The Adverbs correspond in form to the Pronouns :
Si quando peccaveris, ne unquam celaveris.
If ever you sin, never conceal it.
(Distinguish ne semper celaveris, do not conceal it for ever.)
4. The Interrogative Pronouns.
"When" Interrogative must be expressed by quando, not by cum:
O rus, quando te aspiciam?
HOR.O country, when shall I behold thee.
Note. The same Pronouns are used in Direct and Indirect Interrogation.
Obs. The forms quis, quid (both Indefinite and Interrogative), aliquis, aliquid, are usually Substantival: qui, quod, aliqui, aliquod are always Adjectival: quis? who? qui deus? what god? aliquid mali, some evil; aliquod numen, some deity; si quid, if anything; si quod bellum, if any war.
(Quis and aliquis, however, are frequently Adjectival, especially in Poetry: Quis color? VIRG. What colour? Aliquis error. VIRG. Some guile.
Note aliquis with Adjectives: Aliquid novum. CIC. Some new thing.
Quisquam is often an Adjective, esp. in the Nom. and Acc.; ullus is sometimes a Substantive, but mainly in the Gen., Dat. and Abl.)
REFLEXIVE PRONOUNS.
"His own": the Possessive of the Reflexive Pronoun is often used not of the Subject, but of the prominent word:
᾿Αλκιβιάδην οἱ ἑαυτοῦ πολῖται ἐξέβαλον ἐκ τῆς πόλεως.
His own citizens ejected Alcibiades from the state.
Note.—αὑτόν, αὑτοῦ are specially frequent in connexion with αὐτός and ἕκαστος :
καταλέλυκε τὴν αὐτὸς αὐτοῦ δυναστείαν.
ÆSCHIN.He has destroyed his own power.
The Third Person Reflexive may, in general statements, be used for the First or Second.
οὐδὲ γὰρ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ σύ γε ψυχὴν ὁρᾷς.
XEN.For you do not see your own soul.
The Reciprocal Pronoun.
The Reflexive Pronoun "selves" is often used in a Reciprocal sense—"each other":
βούλεσθε περιΐοντες αὑτῶν πυνθάνεσθαι;
DEM.Do you wish to go about and ask each other?
Or the "Reciprocal” ἀλλήλους may be used:
ἐσφενδονᾶτο χωρὶς ἀλλήλων μέλη.
EUR.His limbs were whirled apart from one another.
(ἀλλήλους is contracted from ἄλλοι-ἄλλους, alii-alios.)
The Possessive Pronoun.
For the Possessive of the Third Person, when this is not Reflexive, the Genitive of the Demonstrative is used:
Viz., αὐτοῦ, his, αὐτῶν, their (for the position see § 98):
ἀπέκτειναν οἱ Κερκυραῖοι τὸν παῖδα αὐτοῦ.
The Corcyræans put his son to death.
Obs. 1. As Plural Reflexives, ἡμέτερος αὐτῶν, ὑμέτερος αὐτῶν, our own, your own, are preferred to ἡμῶν αὐτῶν, ὑμῶν αὐτῶν; but ἑαυτῶν, their own, is more common than σφέτερος αὐτῶν.
Obs. 2. The Article is used for an unemphatic Possessive :
Ε.g., ἀράτω τὴν χεῖρα, let him raise his hand (§ 85).
2. The Demonstrative Pronouns.
οὗτος, τοιοῦτος often refer to what has preceded, ὅδε, τοιόσδε to what follows:
τὸ δὲ οὐκ ἔστι τοιοῦτον, ἀλλὰ τοιόνδε μᾶλλον.
PLAT.It is not as you have said, but, rather, as follows.
Observe ὁ δέ, and he; οἱ μὲν—οἱ δὲ, some—others (§ 81):
ἡδοναί εἰσιν, αἱ μὲν ἀγαθαί, αἱ δὲ κακαί.
PLAT.Some pleasures are good, others evil.
ἐκεῖνος expresses fame, οὗτος contempt:
Καλλίστρατος ἐκεῖνος. The famous Callistratus. πατήρ οὗτος σός. That fine father of yours. (§ 103.)
ὅδε is frequent in tragedy of the First Person: τῇδε χερί, with this right hand of mine. So ὅδ᾽ ἀνήρ = ἐγώ.
(αὐτόν has no real demonstrative force: it refers to some person or thing named in the context: "him".)
Note.—οὗτος is the regular antecedent to ὅς, but ὅδε is used for emphasis. ἐκεῖνος is rarely so used (αὐτόν never).
Observe the Neuter Singular of Demonstratives as referring to a Substantival Clause:
τοῦτο γιγνώσκων, ὅτι—. Realising this, that—.
3. The Indefinite Pronouns.
τις, anyone, someone, a certain one, is enclitic, viz., it cannot come first, but leans back (ἐγκλίνει) on the previous word. It is both an Adj. and a Subs., and has three main uses :
(1) "anyone": e.g., in "if" Clauses, εἴ τις, if anyone; or in questions, ἆρα τις ἦλθε; did anyone go? (Distinguish τίς with an accent: τίς ἦλθεν; who came?)
(Obs. In Negative Clauses "anyone" must be translated οὐδείς, or, in commands, μηδείς : οὐ φιλεῖ οὐδένα, he does not love anyone; μὴ φιλείτω μηδένα, let him not love anyone : see Negative, § 490.)
Notice the phrase, without a Verb: ἀγαθός, εἴ τις ἄλλος, good, if anyone ever was.
τις is here often attracted in case:
εἴπερ τινὸς, σθένοντος ἐν πλούτῳ Φρυγῶν.
SOPH.Mighty, if anyone ever was, in the wealth of the Phrygians, sc. εἴπερ τις ἔσθενεν.
(2) someone, in Positive Clauses:
E.g., λέγοι τις ἄν, someone might say.
Note.—αὐχῶ τις εἶναι, I boast to be a great man; παθεῖν τι, to suffer something bad.
(3) A certain man, one :
Θερσίτης τις ἦν.
SOPH.There was a certain Thersites.
τις often qualifies a word, expressing contempt or admiration:
Σκύλλαν τινά. ÆSCH. A kind of Scylla, a very Scylla.
δυσμαθής τις. PLAT. A dull sort of fellow.
Note, also, πᾶς τις, ANYONE, everyone, quilibet; so also ὁστισοῦν, ὅστις δή, ὅστις δήποτε, anyone you like :
οὐ παντί τινι ἔξεστι πολιτεύεσθαι.
It is not everyone who can take part in government.
οὐκ οἶδ᾽ ὅστις, someone or other, οὐκ οἶδ᾽ ὅπως, somehow or other.
ὁ, ἡ, τὸ δεῖνα, so and so (Gen. τοῦ δεινός, or τοῦ δεῖνα) :
ὁ δεῖνα τοῦ δεῖνος τὸν δεῖνα εἰσαγγέλλει.
DEM.So and so, son of so and so, impeaches so and so.
ἔστιν οἵ, some (§ 464); or as one word, ἔνιοι, some.
ἕτερος, one, another, of two; ὁ ἕτερος, the one, the other :
(1)
Βάττος ὁ ἕτερος τῶν στρατηγῶν ἦλθεν.
ΤHUC. Battus, one of the two generals, departed.(2)
ἢ θάτερον δεῖ δυστυχεῖν ἢ θάτερον.
EUR. Either the one must suffer or the other.(Sometimes ὁ ἕτερος = alteruter:
δυοῖν ἀγαθοῖν τοῦ ἑτέρου τεύξεσθαι.
THUC. To get one or the other of two good things.)ἄλλος, other, of several (N.B. one ἄλλος cannot mean "one"):
(1)
θνήσκω· σὲ δ᾽ ἄλλη τις γυνὴ κεκτήσεται.
EUR. I die: and some other woman shall possess thee.(2) ἄλλος—ἄλλος, one—other (if in two phrases, μέν—δέ) :
ἄλλον μὲν χλαίνης ἐρύων, ἄλλον δὲ χιτῶνος.
Ηοм.Plucking one by the cloak, another by the coat.
ἄλλος ἄλλο λέγει.
ΧΕΝ.One man says one thing, one another.
οἱ ἄλλοι, the others, the rest, ceteri. Note the phrase τά τε ἄλλα καί, especially, lit. "both the other things and"; so ἄλλως τε καί, especially.
ἕκαστος, each of several, is not limited in its use like quisque; but, like quisque, is often used with Reflexives, with which it is often imbedded in a Substantive:
κατῆλθον ἅπαντες εἰς τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ἕκαστος πόλιν.
They returned every man to his own city.
ἑκάτερος, each of two, both, takes usually the Genitive of Pronouns; with Substantives it usually agrees in case: ἑκάτερος ὑμῶν, each of you, but ἐφ' ἑκατέρῳ τῷ κέρᾳ, on each wing.
ἄμφω, ἀμφότερος, both, regarded as a pair: ἄμφω τὼ χεῖρε, both hands. (On the Article with ἑκάτερος and ἄμφω, see § 99.)
Note. The Adverbs correspond in form to the Pronouns :
ἐάν ποτε ἁμάρτῃς, μὴ κρύπτε μηδέποτε.
If you ever sin, never conceal it.
(Distinguish μὴ ἀεὶ κρύπτε, do not conceal it for ever,)
4. The Interrogative Pronouns.
If a question is echoed, Indirect Pronouns are used :
σὺ δ᾽ εἰ τίς ἀνδρῶν; Ὅστις εἶμ᾿ ἐγώ; Μέτων.
ΑR."Who on earth are you?" "Who am I? Meton."
ποῖος is often used contemptuously:
οἱ πρέσβεις οἱ παρὰ βασιλέως. ποίου βασιλέως;
AR.“The ambassadors from the king.” “King indeed!"
Obs. 1. The forms ὅστις, ὅπου, ὁποῖος, etc., have two uses: (1) Indirect Interrogative, (2) Indefinite Relative :
(1) ἐρωτῶ ὅστις ἐστίν. I ask who he is.
(2) ὅστις ἂν ᾖ, ἁμαρτάνει. Whoever he is, he is wrong.
πόσος means (1) how large, (2) how many (so τοσοῦτος and ὅσος).
Obs. 2. Note the Article with ποῖος, πόσος, τοιοῦτος, τοσοῦτος, to pick up a previous word:
οἶμαι σε ὁμολογήσειν τὸ τοιόνδε. τὸ ποῖον;
PLAT.I think you will concede this. What?
Obs. 3.—Rarely the Relative ὅς seems to be used Interrogatively for ὅστις, chiefly in Herodotus. See § 167.
5. The Relative Pronouns.
The Relative and its Antecedent.
1. In the full form of expression, the Substantive appears both in the Main and in the Relative Clause:
Erant itinera duo, quibus itineribus exire possent.
Cæs.There were two routes, by which they might go forth.
(This, though common in Latin, is rare in Greek, except for clearness in long sentences.)
2. More often the Substantive precedes (hence "Antecedent") in the Main Clause, and is understood in the other:
Animum rege, qui, nisi paret, imperat.
HOR.Rule the temper, which, unless it obeys, commands.
3. Sometimes the Substantive appears only in the Relative Clause, especially if this comes first :
Quam quisque norit artem, in hac se exerceat.
CIC.Let every one practise himself in the art he knows.
4. Often there is a Substantive in neither Clause, even the Demonstrative (or Personal) Pronoun being omitted :
Quem Deus vult perdere, prius dementat.
Whom God wishes to ruin, (him) he first makes mad.
Obs. 1. A neuter Relative may have as Antecedent an entire Clause: e.g.,
Quod etiam accidit,
which also came to pass.
Obs. 2.—A Relative is often equivalent to a Demonstrative and Copula: e.g., "which" = "and this" (e.g., last instance) :
Notice especially this use with an Adverb added:
Quod ubi accidit,
and when this came to pass.
Remark. A second Relative is not usually, as in English, coupled to a first. If the Cases are different, a Demonstrative is substituted; but a Nominative is often simply omitted :
Omnes tum fere, qui nec extra urbem vixerant nec eos aliqua barbaries infuscaverat, recte loquebantur.
CIC.Almost all, who had not lived outside the city, or whom some provincialism had not spoiled, spoke correctly.
Correlation.
A Relative and its Demonstrative Pronoun must correspond in form. Each is called the Correlative of the other to which it corresponds. Thus:
Qui must be used with is (hic, ille, or idem, §124):
Is minime eget, qui minimum cupit.
Рив. SYR.He wants for least, who desires least.
So qualis with talis, quantus with tantus, quot with tot :
Qualis erat mater, filia talis erit.
Ov.Such as the mother was, will the daughter be.
So with the Adverbs, tam—quam, ita—ut :
Tam ego ante fui liber quam gnatus tuus.
PLAUT.I was once as free as your son.
With all these also, the Demonstrative Pronoun may be omitted:
Non sum qualis eram.
HOR.I am not what I was.
THE VERB.
The Voices.
The Active Voice (ago, I act) is used when the Subject is considered as the Agent of the Action; the Passive Voice (patior, I suffer) when he is considered as acted upon, as the Patient of the Action.
Note. With the Passive Voice the Subject is often not only the Patient, but the Agent: e.g., fertur, he goes (lit., carries himself); viz., the Passive is often like a Greek Middle.
(See § 157, Reflexive use of the Passive Voice in Latin.)
Deponents are "Verbs Passive in form, Active in meaning." They are so called from depono, I lay aside, as having laid aside the Active form. They are really Middles.
1. The Active Voice.
Transitive and Intransitive (§ 19).
Some Verbs are, as in English, used both Transitively and Intransitively: e.g.,
Trans., Cedo aliquid, I yield up a thing.
Intrans., Cedo alicui, I yield to some one.
But this is not so common as in English, and must be regarded with caution; e.g., the word "increase":
Aqua dolorem augebat, the flood increased their misery.
Aqua crescebat, the flood increased.
Obs. This should be especially noticed in the Verbs I change, I turn, I roll, I move, all of which, if Intransitive in sense, should be rendered by the Passive Voice (§ 157): e.g., Fortuna mutatur, fortune changes. Vertitur aestus, the tide turns. Volvuntur anni, the years roll on. Hostes moventur, the enemy move.
Or the same sense may be given with the Reflexive Pronoun: Loco se movet, he moves from the place.
(But see next note.)
Occasionally Transitive Verbs are used Intransitively, chiefly through the omission of the Reflexive Pronoun or some familiar word: e.g.,
Bene habet, it is well; cf. sic se res habet.
Solvere (sc. funem), to loose, i.e., set sail.
Sometimes Intransitive Verbs are used Transitively, on the "analogy" (§ 521) of some similar Verb: this is especially the case with Verbs of feeling :
Corydon ardebat Alexim.
VIRG.Corydon loved Alexis.
(Sc. amabat.)
2. The Passive Voice.
The Passive Construction.
The Object of the Active Verb becomes the Subject of the Passive, the Subject becomes the Agent.
The Agent is expressed by a with the Ablative:
Thus "Numa gave laws" becomes:
Leges a Numa datae sunt,
laws were given by Numa.
From the living agent distinguish the Instrument (§ 266), expressed without a preposition :
Extemplo Aeneae solvuntur frigore membra.
VIRG.Forthwith Æneas' limbs are loosed by cold.
Factitive Verbs (make, say, think) become, in the Passive, Copulative (§ 22):
Thus "the people made Clodius tribune" becomes:
Clodius a plebe tribunus creatus est.
Clodius was made tribune by the people.
Verbs which govern two Accusatives in the Active (§ 237) retain the Accusative of the Thing in the Passive:
Thus "he asked me my opinion" becomes :
Rogatus sum ab illo sententiam.
I was asked my opinion by him.
Note.— Intransitive Verbs must be used impersonally in the Passive:
(a) The Dative of the Active is retained:
Mihi ab istis noceri non potest.
CIC.I cannot be harmed by them.
(b) A Neuter Verb (§ 19) is used absolutely:
Acriter utrinque pugnatum est.
CAES.The battle was keenly contested on both sides.
Impersonal Construction.
This Impersonal Passive with Neuter Verbs is very common in Latin Prose. It may be translated either by a Substantive (sup. "the battle") or by the Active (e.g., "they fought").
The phrase is a vague one, and the Agent, therefore, is rarely expressed.
On the other hand, the Personal use is preferred in Oratio Obliqua with Verbs of "saying":
Hannibal ad urbem contendere dicebatur.
It was said that Hannibal was marching on the city.
(The Personal use is here almost invariable, except with the Perfect of narror, nuntior, trador.)
Quasi-Passive Verbs.
For the Passive of one Verb the Active of another Verb is sometimes used:
E.g., Facio, I make, fio, I am made.
(But "fit ab aliquo" is not usual.)
5. The Relative Pronouns.
The Relative and its Antecedent.
1. In the full form of expression, the Substantive appears both in the Main and in the Relative Clause:
(This, though common in Latin, is rare in Greek, except for clearness in long sentences.)
2. More often the Substantive precedes (hence "Antecedent") in the Main Clause, and is understood in the other:
ἔστιν δίκης ὀφθαλμός, ὃς τὰ πάνθ' ὁρᾷ.
ΜENANDER.There is an eye of justice which sees everything.
3. Sometimes the Substantive appears only in the Relative Clause, especially if this comes first :
ἣν γὰρ κατ᾿ οἴκους ἔλιπε παρθένον, ταύτῃ γέγηθε.
EUR.For he rejoices in the maiden whom he left at home.
4. Often there is a Substantive in neither Clause, even the Demonstrative (or Personal) Pronoun being omitted :
ὃν οἱ θεοὶ φιλοῦσιν, ἀποθνήσκει νέος.
ΜΕNANDER.(He) whom the gods love, dies young.
Obs. 1. A neuter Relative may have as Antecedent an entire Clause: e.g.,
ὁ μὴ γένοιτο,
which may heaven forbid.
Obs. 2.—A Relative is often equivalent to a Demonstrative and Copula: e.g., "which" = "and this" (e.g., last instance) :
(This is not so common in Greek as in Latin, and is never complicated by the addition of Adverbs.)
Remark. A second Relative is not usually, as in English, coupled to a first. If the Cases are different, a Demonstrative is substituted; but a Nominative is often simply omitted :
ἣν ὅδε ᾿Αφροδίτην μὲν λέγεσθαί φησι, τὸ δὲ ἀληθέστατον αὐτῆς ὄνομα Ἡδονὴν εἶναι.
PLAT.Who is called Aphrodite, though her truest name, so this man asserts, is Pleasure.
Correlation.
A Relative and its Demonstrative Pronoun must correspond in form. Each is called the Correlative of the other to which it corresponds. Thus:
ὅς must be used with οὗτος (ὅδε or ἐκεῖνος) :
οὐκ ἔστιν ἅνηρ οὗτος ὃς θανεῖν ἐρᾷ.
That man does not exist who longs to die.
So οἷος with τοιοῦτος, ὅσος with τοσοῦτος :
οὔτι τόσος γε ὅσος Τελαμώνιος Αἴας.
Ном.He is nowise as big as Ajax, son of Telamon.
So with the Adverbs, οὕτως—ὡς (or ὥσπερ) :
ἔστιν γὰρ οὕτως ὥσπερ οὗτος ἐννέπει.
SOPH.For it is so even as he says.
With all these also, the Demonstrative Pronoun may be omitted:
φωνὴ ὅση σκυλάκος.
A voice as loud as a whelp's.
THE VERB.
The Voices.
The Active Voice (ἄγω, I act) is used when the Subject is considered as the Agent of the Action; the Passive Voice (πάσχω, I suffer) when he is considered as acted upon, as the Patient of the Action.
The Middle Voice is so called as standing “mid-way" between the Active and Passive, and sharing the character of both—the Subject here does something on or for himself—is both the Agent and the Patient of the Action.
Deponents are "Verbs Passive in form, Active in meaning." They are so called from depono, I lay aside, as having laid aside the Active form. They are really Middles.
1. The Active Voice.
Transitive and Intransitive (§ 19).
Some Verbs are, as in English, used both Transitively and Intransitively: e.g.,
Transitive, εἴκω τι, I yield up a thing.
Intransitive, εἴκω τινι, I yield to some one.
But this is not so common as in English, and must be regarded with caution; e.g., the word "increase":
ἡ πλημμυρὶς ηὔξησε τὸ πάθος, the flood increased their misery.
ἡ πλημμυρὶς ηὐξήθη (Middle), the flood increased.
Obs. The same Verb may have some Tenses Transitive, others Intransitive: N.B.—ἵστημι, I place; ἕστηκα, I stand :
Trans., Pres. ἵστημι, Impf. ἵστην, Fut. στήσω, Wk. Aor. ἔστησα.
Intrans., Str. Aor. ἔστην, Perf. ἕστηκα, Plupf. εἱστήκη.
Especially, where a Verb has both a Strong and Weak Perfect, a Strong and Weak Aorist, the Strong forms are often Transitive, the Weak Intransitive: e.g., πέπεικα, I have persuaded; πέποιθα, I trust. ἔβην, I went; ἔβησα, I made to go.
Occasionally Transitive Verbs are used Intransitively, chiefly through the omission of the Reflexive Pronoun or some familiar word: e.g.,
ἔχω with Adverbs: οὕτως ἔχει, it is so (sic se res habet). (§ 212.)
αἴρειν (sc. ἄγκυραν), to weigh (i.e., the anchor).
Sometimes Intransitive Verbs are used Transitively, on the "analogy" (§ 521) of some similar Verb: this is especially the case with Verbs of feeling :
οὐδένα πώποτε κίνδυνον ἐξέστησαν.
DEM.They never yet shirked any danger (sc. ὑπέφυγον).
2. The Passive Voice.
The Passive Construction.
The Object of the Active Verb becomes the Subject of the Passive, the Subject becomes the Agent.
The Agent is expressed by ὑπό with the Genitive:
Thus "Hippias gave laws" becomes:
νόμοι ὑφ᾽ Ἱππίου ἐτέθησαν,
laws were given by Hippias.
From the living agent distinguish the Instrument (§ 266), expressed without a preposition :
χρηστὸς πονηροῖς οὐ τιτρώσκεται λόγοις.
A good man is not wounded by bad words.
Factitive Verbs (make, say, think) become, in the Passive, Copulative (§ 22):
Thus "the Athenians made Pericles general" becomes :
Περικλῆς στρατηγὸς ἀπεδείχθη ὑπ᾿ ᾿Αθηναίων.
Pericles was appointed general by the Athenians.
Verbs which govern two Accusatives in the Active (§ 237) retain the Accusative of the Thing in the Passive:
Thus "they asked Cyrus for money" becomes :
Κῦρος χρήματα ᾐτήθη ὑπ᾿ αὐτῶν.
Cyrus was asked for money by them.
Note. Even Verbs governing the Genitive or Dative may be thus used personally in the Passive :
πένης λέγων τἀληθὲς οὐ πιστεύεται.
A poor man speaking the truth is not believed.
(Neuter Verbs are rarely used in the Passive, except with Neuter expressions and in the Participle: οὐδὲν ἀσεβεῖται, no harm is committed; τὰ κινδυνευθέντα, the risks that were run.)
Impersonal Construction.
Obs. The Personal and Impersonal Passive is used in Greek only with Transitive Verbs and then mainly with the Perfect and Pluperfect.
The Agent, if expressed, is in the Dative (§ 288):
ἠμέληται περὶ τῶν τοιούτων τῷ νομοθέτῃ.
There has been some neglect on the part of the lawgiver, etc.
On the other hand, the Personal use is preferred in Oratio Obliqua with Verbs of "saying":
ὁ ᾿Ασσύριος εἰς τὴν χώραν ἐμβάλλειν ἀγγέλλεται.
ΧΕΝ.It is announced that the Assyrian is invading the country.
(But the Personal use is not so necessary as in Latin, except with the Adjectives φανερός and δῆλος, § 198.)
Quasi-Passive Verbs.
And ὑπό with the Genitive may be used of the Agent:
ὑπὸ τοῦ παιδὸς ἀπέθανεν,
he was killed by his son.
The Passive as Middle.
The Passive Voice is often used Reflexively:
(1) Direct Reflexive: action performed on oneself:
Fertur moriturus in hostes.
VIRG.He dashes into the foemen to his death.
(2) Indirect Reflexive: action performed for oneself :
Virgines longam indutae vestem canentes ibant.
LIV.Virgins clad in long robes proceeded singing.
Note. Observe that in the first instance, fertur = se fert, Direct Object; in the second, indutae implies "sibi induunt," they put on themselves, Indirect Object.
The first, or Direct, use is very common in Latin, lavor, I wash myself, exercemur, we exercise ourselves, colliguntur, they assemble; the second, or Indirect, use is in Prose almost confined to the Passive Participles of Verbs "to put on," "to put off".
In Poetry it is often used otherwise:
Oculos horrendâ in virgine fixus.
VIRG.Fixing his eyes upon the dreadful maid.
Inutile ferrum cingitur.
VIRG.He girds on the useless steel.
(Virgil is specially fond of these "Greek Middles," as they are called.)
Deponents.
Many Deponents, being in reality Direct Reflexives, take some case other than the Accusative: e.g.,
Utor gladio, I employ myself with a sword.
Reminiscor ejus, I remind myself of him.
Several Verbs are half-deponent, viz., Active in the Present, Deponent in some other tense :
Especially in the Perfect: gaudeo, gavisus sum.
Note. Coeptus sum is usual with a Passive Infinitive, but in a Past sense (coepi being Present) :
Bello premi sunt coepti.
ΝΕΡ.They began to be oppressed by the war.
Deponents and Middles admit of a Passive sense in some tenses:
Especially in the Past Participle and the Gerundive: comitor, I accompany; comitatus, accompanied; vereor, I fear; verendus, terrible.
But this cannot be assumed of any verb or tense: thus, beside verendus, terrible, we have veritus, fearing. So amplexus always means embracing.
Note 1. A few are both Active and Passive: e.g., meritus, deserving or deserved.
Note 2.—Even Deponents governing the Ablative (less often the Genitive) may be Passive in these parts: utendus, to be used (so obliviscendus, oblitus, VIRG.).
Obs. Throughout, the Gerundive of Deponents is more Passive than the Participle.
THE MOODS.
The Moods express the "mode" or manner in which a thing is regarded—the "mood" of the speaker.
The Indicative.
The Indicative regards a thing as a fact (indico, -are, I state or indicate). It is used:
(a) In Main Clauses: Here it expresses either (1) a Direct Statement (§ 329), or (2) a Direct Question (§ 335).
Observe the difference between the English and the Latin idiom in Melius est, it "would be" better.
(b) In Subordinate Clauses: The Indicative is used in all sub-clauses which are of a purely descriptive character.
The following require special notice:
(1) The use of the Perfects Indicative of indefinite frequency, with quum, ubi, qui, etc. (§ 419).
(2) The occasional use of dum with the Present Indicative, even when subordinate to Oratio Obliqua (§ 424).
(3) The use of the Indicative generally in sub-clauses of Oratio Obliqua, when these represent a parenthetic remark of the author.
In all these the Indicative expresses a fact, viz., as contrasted with a purpose or consequence.
The Imperative.
The Imperative (impero, I command) is used only in Main Clauses, to express a Direct Command.
Note. The forms in -to, both Second and Third Person, are used only in legal and poetic phrases, and in treaties:
Nec foedera sunto.
VIRG.Let there be no truce between them.
The Conjunctive.
While the Indicative regards a thing as a fact, the Conjunctive regards it as a conception.
The term “Conjunctive" refers to the use of the mood in a Subordinate Sentence, as something "conjoined" to the Main Sentence; the term "Subjunctive" expresses the subordinate character of that Conjunction.
In Latin the term “Conjunctive" is generally used merely as an alternative name for the Subjunctive.
In all its uses the Subjunctive may be either "Primary" or "Historic," according to the Tenses used (§ 344).
(a) In Main Clauses:
(1) Jussive: Exhortation (First Person) and wishes (all three persons). Note also ne dixeris, do not speak—a command.
(2) Potential : e.g., dicat aliquis, someone might say.
(3) Deliberative: e.g., Quid agamus? What are we to do?
(b) In Subordinate Clauses:
(1) Final, including Verbs of fearing, entreating, striving; final dum, qui, quominus, etc. Consecutive, including accidit ut, Consecutive qui, quin, etc.
(The Subj. with quum is perhaps half-oblique, § 171.)
(2) Hypothetic: of conditions implying doubt (§ 398).
Si possit, adsit, he would be here to-morrow, if he could; si posset, adesset, he would be here now, if he could (but he can't).
(3) Oblique Quotation : Indirect Questions.
Rogo quid feceris. I ask what you have done.
Similarly the Subjunctive is used in clauses subordinate to the Infinitive of Oratio Obliqua, or to another Subjunctive (§473). Both of these come under the head of Oblique.
This includes Clauses which are "virtually Oblique" (§ 476), e.g., "they praised him because (they said) he was good".
Note.— Deliberative Questions retain, of course, when Indirect, the Subjunctive, which was used in the Direct.
The Infinitive.
The Infinitive is so called as being without limitation (finis) in point of Number and Person.
The Infinitive is a Verbal Noun, viz., a Verb and a Noun. As a Verb it has Tenses and Voices, may have a Subject and an Object, and can be qualified by an Adverb; as a Noun it is Neuter in Gender, and may itself play the part of Subject, Object, etc., of a Sentence; e.g.,
Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori.
HOR.To die for one's country is sweet and noble (Subject).
Errare, nescire, decipi et malum et turpe ducimus.
CIC.To err, to be ignorant, to be deceived, we deem both an evil and a disgrace (Object).
Observe, however, that in English (1) the Infinitive is often represented by a participle in -ing, e.g., "dying for one's country," etc.; (2) the Infinitive is often anticipated by "it": "it is noble to die," etc.
Note. It is mainly as a Nominative or Accusative that the plain Infinitive can, as a rule, be used.
For other uses, viz., as Genitive, Dative, and Ablative, or after a Preposition, the Gerund takes its place; and in certain idioms the Supine is used.
The Infinitive "supplements" in some way the action of the Main Verb. It has two main uses :
1. The Prolative Infinitive carries on (profero) the meaning of Indeterminate Verbs—verbs incomplete in themselves (§ 20):
Possunt, quia posse videntur.
VIRG.They have the power, because they seem to have it.
(With Impersonal Verbs (e.g., "it behoves us to-stay") the Infinitive is Nominative; with Transitive Verbs (e.g., "I dare to-speak") it is Direct Accusative; with Intransitive Verbs (e.g., "I seem to-see"), or with Transitive Verbs which take another Object (e.g., "I teach him to-ride"), it is Cognate Accusative. The Infinitive of Oratio Obliqua is an instance of this last.)
Obs. The Prolative Infinitive is not so common in Latin as in English: e.g., many Verbs (e.g., command, advise, beg) take ut with Subjunctive (§ 355).
(This is sometimes called the Supplementary Infinitive, because it supplements, or fills in, the sense.)
2. The Epexegetic Infinitive.
The Epexegetic or "Explanatory" Infinitive is used after Verbs, otherwise complete in themselves, to express the bearing of an action. It may be regarded as an extension of the Cognate Accusative.
Its use is chiefly poetic, and occurs mainly with Verbs of going, sending, giving :
Venatrix, dederatque comam diffundere ventis.
VIRG.A huntress, and she had given her hair to the breezes to dishevel.
(More often, the Supine in -um or the Gerundive takes the place of the Epexegetic Infinitive in Latin. Thus, diffundere would probably appear in Prose as diffundendam.)
The Middle Voice.
The Middle Voice has two main uses:
(1) Direct Reflexive: action performed on oneself:
οἱ Ἕλληνες τὸ πάλαι ἐτράποντο πρὸς ληστείαν.
THUC.The Greeks turned (themselves) of old to brigandage.
(2) Indirect Reflexive: action performed for oneself :
τὸ δυστυχὲς γὰρ ηὑγένει᾽ ἀμύνεται.
EUR.For courage wards off misfortune from (viz., for) itself.
From the latter, the Middle comes to be used: e.g.,
(a) Of responsibility for an act (the "Causal Middle '') : διδάσκομαι τὸν υἱον, I get my son taught.
(b) Of a mental, as contrasted with a physical, act: αἱρέω, I take, αἱροῦμαι, I choose.
(c) In a special, rather than a literal sense: σπένδω, I pour libations, σπένδομαι, I make a truce.
Obs. The Reflexive Middle, both Direct and Indirect, is, like the Reflexive Pronoun, sometimes used as Reciprocal :
MIDDLE VOICE AND DEPONENTS.
ὠθοῦνται ὥσπερ ύες.
THEOC.They hustle like swine.
διαλεγόμεθα, we converse together.
(The Direct use is less common than the Indirect: ἔλουσεν ἑαυτήν, she washed herself, not ἐλούσατο; but λευκὸν χρόα ἐλούσατο. EUR. She washed her white skin.)
Deponents.
Many Deponents, being in reality Direct Reflexives, take some case other than the Accusative: e.g.,
χρῶμαι ξίφει, I employ myself with a sword.
μέμνημαι αὐτοῦ, I remind myself of him.
Several Verbs are half-deponent, viz., Active in the Present, Deponent in some other tense :
Especially in the Future: ἀκούω, ἀκούσομαι.
On the other hand, the Present is sometimes Deponent, other tenses Active: ἁλίσκομαι, I am caught; but Aor. ἑάλων, Perf. ἑάλωκα. Note, too, the Strong Perfects ὄλωλα, πέποιθα, from ὄλλυμαι, πείθομαι (Middles).
Deponents and Middles admit of a Passive sense in some tenses:
Especially in the Weak Aorist Passive and Perfect Passive: e.g., ᾑρέθη, (1) he was taken, (2) he was chosen; εἴργασται, (1) he has done, (2) it has been done.
Note.— Middle and Passive Tenses.
The Present, Imperfect and Perfect may be either Middle or Passive, but not the Future or Aorist:
(a) The Aorist Middle is never Passive; but the Aorist Passive is often Middle: e.g., "I took part in politics" is either ἐπολιτευσάμην or ἐπολιτεύθην.
(b) The Future Middle is Passive only in a few verbs, τιμήσομαι, στυγήσομαι, οἰκήσομαι, στερήσομαι, ὠφελήσομαι.
I shall be loosed, λυθήσομαι, not λύσομαι.
THE MOODS.
The Moods express the "mode" or manner in which a thing is regarded—the "mood" of the speaker.
The Indicative.
The Indicative regards a thing as a fact (indico, -are, I state or indicate). It is used:
(a) In Main Clauses: Here it expresses either (1) a Direct Statement (§ 329), or (2) a Direct Question (§ 335).
Note. The Past Indicative with ἄν expresses a potential "would" or "should” (§ 218).
Note χρή, it would be better.
(b) In Subordinate Clauses: The Indicative is used in all sub-clauses which are of a purely descriptive character.
The following require special notice:
(1) The Future Indicative of Purpose with ὡς, ὅπως, ὅστις (§ 462).
(2) The Past Indicative with ἵνα (or ὡς) and εἰ, to express a Purpose or Hypothesis which is unfulfilled (§ 386).
(3) The Indicative generally with φοβοῦμαι μή, of a fear which amounts to a belief (§ 372).
(4) The Indicative of Indirect Speech with ὅτι, or of Indirect Questions, in primary time or in the vivid past (§ 353).
In all these the Indicative expresses a fact, viz., what is definite, as contrasted with what is indefinite.
The Imperative.
The Imperative (impero, I command) is used only in Main Clauses, to express a Direct Command.
Note.—οἶσθ' οὖν ὁ δρᾶσον, you know what you ought to do, lit., do you know that which, τοῦτο ὅ (you ought to do). So οἶσθ' ὡς ποίησον (lit., do, you know how). (§ 137.)
The Conjunctive.
While the Indicative regards a thing as a fact, the Conjunctive regards it as a conception.
In Greek the term "Conjunctive" is generally used to include the Subjunctive and "Optative" (opto, I wish).
The Subjunctive and Optative are, so to speak, the "major" and "minor keys" of the same mood.
(a) In Main Clauses:
(1) Jussive: Subj., Exhortation (1st Pers.). Note also μὴ λέξῃς. Optative, Wishes (First, Second and Third Persons).
(2) Potential: Optative with ἄν: λέγοι ἄν τις.
(3) Deliberative: Subj., τί πράττωμεν;
(b) In Subordinate Clauses:
(1) Final: Subjunctive (including Verbs of Fearing). Optative in Historic time. βαίνει ἵνα ἴδῃ. He goes to see. ἔβη ἵνα ἴδοι. He went to see.
(2) Hypothetic Indefinite : ἄν with Subjunct. (Prim.). Plain Optative (Hist.).
This includes εἰ, ὅστις, ἐπειδή, ἕως, πρίν, ἐάν, ἐπειδάν, ὅταν.
(Such Clauses may have also a Future sense.)
(3) Oblique Quotation: Indirect speech with ὅτι, and Indirect Questions: historic.
Similarly the Optative is used in clauses subordinate to Historic Oratio Obliqua of all kinds (ὅτι, Infinitive, or Participle), or to another Optative (§ 473).
This includes Clauses which are "virtually Oblique" (§ 476), e.g., "they praised him because (they said) he was good".
Note. In Indirect Deliberative Questions the Subjunctive is retained, or, in historic time, turned into the Optative.
The Infinitive.
The Infinitive is so called as being without limitation (finis) in point of Number and Person.
The Infinitive is a Verbal Noun, viz., a Verb and a Noun. As a Verb it has Tenses and Voices, may have a Subject and an Object, and can be qualified by an Adverb; as a Noun it is Neuter in Gender, and may itself play the part of Subject, Object, etc., of a Sentence; e.g.,
εἷς οἰωνὸς ἄριστος ἀμύνεσθαι περὶ πάτρης.
Ηom.To fight for one's country is the one best omen (Subject).
οὐχ αἱ τρίχες ποιοῦσιν αἱ λευκαὶ φρονεῖν.
White hairs do not make wisdom (Object).
(To the Infinitive so used as Subject or Object τό is often prefixed.)
Cf. in English : "For not to have been dipped in Lethé's stream Could save the son of Thetis from to die."
Observe, however, that in English (1) the Infinitive is often represented by a participle in -ing, e.g., "dying for one's country," etc.; (2) the Infinitive is often anticipated by "it": "it is noble to die," etc.
Note. It is mainly as a Nominative or Accusative that the plain Infinitive can, as a rule, be used.
But this may be extended by the Addition of the Article; when the Infinitive can be declined throughout: τὸ λύειν, τοῦ λύειν, τῷ λύειν.
The Infinitive "supplements" in some way the action of the Main Verb. It has two main uses :
1. The Prolative Infinitive carries on (profero) the meaning of Indeterminate Verbs—verbs incomplete in themselves (§ 20):
τόλμησον ὀρθῶς φρονεῖν.
AESCH.Dare to be right-minded (sapere aude—Hor.).
(With Impersonal Verbs (e.g., "it behoves us to-stay") the Infinitive is Nominative; with Transitive Verbs (e.g., "I dare to-speak") it is Direct Accusative; with Intransitive Verbs (e.g., "I seem to-see"), or with Transitive Verbs which take another Object (e.g., "I teach him to-ride"), it is Cognate Accusative. The Infinitive of Oratio Obliqua is an instance of this last.)
Obs. The Prolative Infinitive in Greek is much wider than in Latin, corresponding roughly to the English use, and including, e.g., verbs of commanding and the like (§ 355).
(This is sometimes called the Supplementary Infinitive, because it supplements, or fills in, the sense.)
2. The Epexegetic Infinitive.
The Epexegetic or "Explanatory" Infinitive is used after Verbs, otherwise complete in themselves, to express the bearing of an action. It may be regarded as an extension of the Cognate Accusative.
It is more common in poetry than in prose, and occurs mainly with Verbs of going, sending, giving, appointing :
᾿Αργεῖ᾽ ὀνείδη καὶ Φρυγῶν ἐπαινέσεις ἀνέμοις φέρεσθαι παραδίδωμι.
EUR.The taunts of Argives, the praises of Phrygians I give to the winds to sweep away.
Under this head come the Infinitives after ὥστε, ἐφ᾽ ᾧτε and πρίν.
The Absolute Infinitive.
The Infinitive is used absolutely in certain constructions, dependent on some verb understood.
The Exclamatory Infinitive
depends on some Verb, e.g., of speaking, understood: its Subject is therefore in the Accusative :—
Te nunc, mea Terentia, sic vexari, sic jacere!
CIC.To think of your now being so troubled, so prostrated, Terentia!
So often in the form of a half-question :
Mene incepto desistere victam?
VIRG.Am I to desist from my enterprise defeated?
(The Infinitive of Rhetorical Questions in Oratio Obliqua is similar to this last (§ 485).)
The Historic Infinitive
depends on some such Verb as began; its Subject is therefore Nominative. Only the Present Infinitive is so used. It is frequent in sharp narrative in prose.
Tum pius Aeneas humeris abscindere vestem.
VIRG.Then duteous Aeneas rent his cloak from his shoulders.
The Infinitive with Substantives and Adjectives.
A Prolative Infinitive is sometimes used with Substantives and Adjectives, on the analogy of that with verbs. The chief ideas so expressed are those of desire, fitness, custom, and their opposites:
Virginibus Tyriis mos est gestare pharetram.
VIRG.It is the custom of Tyrian maidens to bear the quiver.
Soli cantare periti Arcades.
VIRG.The Arcadians alone are skilled to sing.
In Latin, this use is chiefly poetic.
The Subject and Predicate of the Infinitive.
(1) The "Accusative and Infinitive".
The Subject of the Infinitive is usually Accusative, and the Predicate, where there is one, is in agreement :
Galbam et Africanum doctos fuisse traditum est.
CIC.It has been recorded that Galba and Africanus were learned.
(2) The "Nominative and Infinitive".
If the Subject of a Prolative Infinitive is the Subject also of the main Verb, the Predicate is usually Nominative:
Socrates parens philosophiae jure dici potest.
CIC.Socrates may rightly be called the father of philosophy.
(Where the Subject is mentioned afresh, the Accusative is used:
Sapientem civem me et esse et numerari volo.
CIC.I wish both to be and to be considered a wise citizen.
But simply, Sapiens civis esse volo.)
(3) The Infinitive after "Dative Verbs".
If a Verb governs an Object in the Dative and an Infinitive, the Predicate is often Dative:
Licet esse beatis.
HOR.It is allowed (to them) to be happy.
Mediocribus esse poetis Non homines, non di, non concessere columnae.
HOR.Nor men, nor gods, nor publishers have ever allowed poets to be mediocre.
But in such cases the Predicate is as often drawn into the usual Accusative of an Infinitival Clause:
Est mihi supplicii causa, fuisse piam.
OV.It is to me a ground for punishment, that I have been true.
(With Participles used Adverbially the Accusative is often the more logical construction. Thus, "It seemed good to them, sailing out of the harbour, to engage the enemy": to use the Dative here would mean that their decision was only formed after they had left the harbour.
Placuit eis portu egressos cum hostibus pugnare.
)The Supine.
The Supine in -um is the Accusative, that in -u the Ablative (or Dative = ui) of a Verbal Noun, Fourth Declension.
(1) The Supine in -um expresses Purpose, chiefly after Verbs of coming, going, and sending:
Spectatum veniunt, veniunt spectentur ut ipsae.
OV.They come to see, and to be seen themselves.
(Probably Cognate Accusative.)
(2) The Supine in -u is used in an explanatory sense with Adjectives such as facilis, and with fas, nefas :
Nec visu facilis nec dictu adfabilis ulli.
VIRG.Not easy for anyone to look on or address.
Note. The Future Infinitive Passive is really a use of the Supine in -um. Thus:
Dixit urbem captum iri. He said that it was being gone to capture the city.
The Gerund and Gerundive.
The Gerund is a Substantive and Active, the Gerundive an Adjective and Passive. They have two uses:
(a) The Gerund and Gerundive express verbal action. Here the Gerund supplies the Cases wanting to the Infinitive:
Et propter vitam vivendi perdere causas.
JUV.And for the sake of life, to lose all that makes life worth living.
The Accusative is used only with a Preposition:
Mores puerorum se inter ludendum detegunt.
QUINT.The character of boys reveals itself in their play.
The Gerundive, however, is preferred to the Gerund with Transitive Verbs (except in the Genitive Plural, to avoid the sound of a double -orum):
In voluptate spernenda virtus vel maxime cernitur.
CIC.Virtue is most specially seen in despising pleasure.
Ν.Β. The Gerund and Gerundive have no subject expressed.
(As the Gerundive is Passive, it can be used only with Verbs governing a direct Accusative. Thus: Ferocia ad non parendum senatui. LIV. Fierceness in not obeying the senate (not senatum).
Utendus, potiundus, fruendus are exceptional.)
(b) The Gerund and Gerundive express obligation. Here the Gerundive is with Transitive Verbs not merely optional, but necessary: Eundum est, we must go (Gerund); but Delenda est Carthago. CATO. Carthage must be destroyed (Gerundive).
Obs. The Agent (1) is usually Dative (§ 287); but (2) with Verbs governing the Dative, a with the Ablative is used for clearness :
(1)
Caesari omnia uno tempore erant agenda.
CAES. Caesar had to do everything at the same time.(2)
Civibus est a vobis consulendum.
CIC. You must consult for the good of the citizens.Note 1.— The Gerundive is used with do, curo, loco :
Caesar pontem in Arare faciendum curat.
CAES.Cæsar has a bridge made over the Arar.
Note 2.— The Gerundive sometimes expresses possibility:
Votaque pro domina vix numeranda facit.
TIB.— Vows that can scarce be numbered.
The Participle.
The Participle is so called as "participating" in the character both of a Verb and Adjective. Its uses are threefold: (1) Adjectival, e.g., "the dead man"; (2) Adverbial, e.g., "hearing this, he was wroth"; (3) Supplementary, e.g., "I saw him running".
1. The Participle as Adjective.
The Participle may qualify a Noun like an Epithet. It here often resembles a Relative Clause.
Timotheus a patre acceptam gloriam multis auxit virtutibus.
ΝΕΡ.Timotheus increased by many virtues the glory which he had inherited from his father.
From its use as Simple Predicate with the Verb "to be" come the Periphrastic Tenses, § 211. It may also, like an Adjective, be used as a Tertiary Predicate, especially with the Verb "to have"; or as a Substantive (§ 55).
Obs. "Those flying" must not be translated "illi fugientes," but "illi qui fugiunt" or fugientes.
2. The Participle as Adverb.
The Participle—sometimes with a Particle—may express the meaning of an Adverbial Sentence: e.g.,
Time (on the Tenses see § 216):
Plato scribens est mortuus.
CIC.Plato died while he was writing.
Cause (sometimes with ut, utpote, tanquam) :
Probro respersus est, tanquam scyphum furatus.
TAC.He was disgraced for having stolen a goblet.
Purpose (Future Participle, sometimes with tanquam):
Galli venerunt legionem Romanam oppugnaturi.
LIV.The Gauls came to attack the Roman legion.
The Absolute Infinitive.
The Infinitive is used absolutely in certain constructions, dependent on some verb understood.
The Exclamatory Infinitive
depends on some Verb, e.g., of speaking, understood: its Subject is therefore in the Accusative :—
τοῦτον δὲ ὑβρίζειν, ἀναπνεῖν δέ.
DEM.To think of his waxing insolent, and recovering spirit!
The Infinitive of Wishes and Commands:
after, e.g., δότε, understood; Subject, Accusative:
θεοὶ πολῖται, μή με δουλείας τυχεῖν.
ÆSCH.Gods of my country, grant that I fall not into slavery.
(This is common in Letters, Laws, and Treaties, after κελεύει, ἔδοξε, understood.)
The Parenthetic Infinitive:
often with ὡς, e.g., ὡς εἰπεῖν, so to speak; also ὀλίγου δεῖν, almost, ἐμοὶ δοκεῖν, apparently.
(While the other Absolute Infinitives are Prolative in character, the Parenthetic Infinitive is Epexegetic.)
N.B. The Historic Infinitive is not used in Greek.
The Infinitive with Substantives and Adjectives.
A Prolative Infinitive is sometimes used with Substantives and Adjectives, on the analogy of that with verbs. The chief ideas so expressed are those of desire, fitness, custom, and their opposites:
δοκεῖ οὐχ ὥρα εἶναι καθεύδειν.
XEN.It does not seem to be a fit hour for sleeping.
Θεμιστοκλεᾶ, ἱκανώτατον εἰπεῖν καὶ γνῶναι καὶ πρᾶξαι.
LYS.Themistocles, a man most clever at speaking, deciding, acting.
In Greek, this use is common both in prose and poetry.
The Subject and Predicate of the Infinitive.
(1) The "Accusative and Infinitive".
The Subject of the Infinitive is usually Accusative, and the Predicate, where there is one, is in agreement :
τί δὴ κρίνεις Τέλλον εἶναι ὀλβιώτατον;
HDT.Why do you consider that Tellus is the happiest of mankind?
(2) The "Nominative and Infinitive".
If the Subject of a Prolative Infinitive is the Subject also of the main Verb, the Predicate is usually Nominative:
οὐ γὰρ δοκεῖν ἄριστος ἀλλ᾽ εἶναι θέλει.
ÆSCH.For he wishes not to appear, but to be most noble.
N.B. This applies in Greek to all Infinitival uses:
κεκράτηκε Φίλιππος τῷ πρότερος πρὸς τοῖς πράγμασι γίγνεσθαι.
DEM.Philip has prevailed by always being on the scene first.
This is called "Nominative Attraction".
(3) The Infinitive after "Dative Verbs".
If a Verb governs an Object in the Dative and an Infinitive, the Predicate is often Dative:
εὐδαίμοσιν ὑμῖν ἔξεστι γενέσθαι.
DEM.It is allowed to you to be happy.
So with the Genitive:
ἐδέοντο Κύρου ὡς προθυμοτάτου γίγνεσθαι.
ΧΕN.They begged Cyrus to be as zealous as possible.
(This applies also to the Participle, e.g., after αἰσθάνομαι.)
But in such cases the Predicate is as often drawn into the usual Accusative of an Infinitival Clause:
ἐνόμιζον αὐτοῖς προσήκειν ἀγαθοὺς εἶναι.
LYS.They thought it was fitting for them to be good.
(With Participles used Adverbially the Accusative is often the more logical construction. Thus, "It seemed good to them, sailing out of the harbour, to engage the enemy': to use the Dative here would mean that their decision was only formed after they had left the harbour.
ἔδοξεν αὐτοῖς τοῦ λιμένος ἐκπλεύσαντας μάχεσθαι τοῖς πολεμίοις.
)Note 1. Further uses of the Epexegetic Infinitive.
The Infinitive was originally the Dative of a Feminine Noun (-αι = ῃ), expressing the Indirect Object. Hence—
(1) The occasional use, in Poetry, of the Epexegetic Infinitive to express Purpose after Verbs of coming and going :
μανθάνειν γὰρ ἥκομεν.
SOPH.For we are come to learn.
So, often in Homer, βῆ δὲ θέειν, he set off running (to run).
(2) The use of the Epexegetic Infinitive in a quasi-passive sense with Substantives and Adjectives: μεῖζον ἢ φέρειν, too great to bear (i.e., to be borne, for one to bear it); θαῦμα ἰδέσθαι, a wonder to behold (i.e., to be beheld); δεινὸς ἰδεῖν, terrible to see (i.e., to be seen), from which distinguish carefully δεινὸς ἰδεῖν, clever at seeing (§ 177).
(The term "Epexegetic" is often confined to this quasi-passive use.)
Note 2.— The Infinitive with the Article.
The Article τό may be prefixed to the Infinitive in any of the above uses of the Nominative and Accusative: e.g.,
τὸ δρᾶν οὐκ ἠθέλησαν.
SOPH.They did not wish to do it.
Its addition makes other Cases also possible :
ἠπείγοντο πρὸς τὸν ποταμὸν τοῦ πιεῖν ἐπιθυμίᾳ.
THỤC.They hastened towards the river in eagerness to drink.
So with a Preposition :
ἐν τῷ φρονεῖν ἥδιστος βίος.
SOPH.The most pleasing life lies in being wise.
Obs. 1. This prefixing of the Article makes possible long Infinitival Sentences with a separate Subject:
τὸ Πελοποννησίους αὐτοῖς μὴ βοηθῆσαι παρέσχεν ὑμῖν Σαμίων κόλασιν.
THUC.The fact that the Peloponnesians did not help them enabled you to chastise the Samians.
(See on the "Noun-Making" Article, § 90.)
Obs. 2. The Genitive of the Infinitive, with or without ἕνεκα, often expresses purpose :
τὸ δὲ ληστικὸν Μίνως καθῄρει ἐκ τῆς θαλάσσης τοῦ τὰς προσόδους μᾶλλον ἰέναι αὐτῷ.
THUC.Minos proceeded to sweep piracy from the seas, that his revenue might reach him more easily.
The Verbal Adjectives
(1) In -τέος, -τέον express obligation: -τέος of Transitive, -τέον usually of Intransitive Verbs: ἰτέον ἐστίν, we must go (or ἰτέα ἐστίν, Neuter Plural) :
οὐ γὰρ πρὸ τῆς ἀληθείας τιμητέος ἀνήρ.
PLAT.For a man must not be accounted before truth.
Obs. The Agent (1) is Dative (§ 289), even with Verbs governing the Dative; but (2) often an Accusative, as if after δεῖ, is used:
(1)
βοηθητέον ἐστὶ τοῖς πράγμασιν ὑμῖν.
DEM. You must support your interests.(2)
ποίαν ὁδόν νὼ τρεπτέον καὶ πρὸς τίνα;
AR. What way and to whom must we turn?Note.— -τέον is often used of Transitive Verbs:
καταστατέον ἄρχοντα τῆς πόλεως.
PLAT.We must appoint a ruler of our city.
(2) Verbal Adjectives in -τος and -τον express possibility :
ἆρα γρυκτόν ἐστιν ἡμῖν;
AR.Can we grunt?
δυσλύτοις χαλκεύμασιν.
AESCH.Bonds hard to loose.
The Participle.
The Participle is so called as "participating" in the character both of a Verb and Adjective. Its uses are threefold: (1) Adjectival, e.g., "the dead man"; (2) Adverbial, e.g., "hearing this, he was wroth"; (3) Supplementary, e.g., "I saw him running".
1. The Participle as Adjective.
The Participle may qualify a Noun like an Epithet. It here often resembles a Relative Clause.
The Definite Article is usual here: e.g., οἱ καθεστηκότες νόμοι, the established laws; τῶν καθεστηκότων νόμων τις (not καθεστηκὼς νόμος τις), an established law.
From its use as Simple Predicate with the Verb "to be" come the Periphrastic Tenses, § 211. It may also, like an Adjective, be used as a Tertiary Predicate, especially with the Verb "to have"; or as a Substantive (§ 55).
Obs. "Those flying" must not be translated ἐκεῖνοι οἱ φεύγοντες, but ἐκεῖνοι οἱ φεύγουσιν or simply οἱ φεύγοντες.
2. The Participle as Adverb.
The Participle—sometimes with a Particle—may express the meaning of an Adverbial Sentence: e.g.,
Time (to the Present ἅμα or μεταξύ may be added) :
Νεκὼς μεταξὺ ὀρύσσων ἐπαύσατο.
HDT.Necho stopped in the middle of digging the canal.
Cause (often with ὡς or ἅτε) :
ὁ δὲ Κῦρος, ἅτε παῖς ὤν, ἥδετο τῇ στολῇ.
ΧEN.Cyrus, being a child, was delighted with the robe.
Purpose (Future Participle, often with ὡς or the Article) :
συλλαμβάνει Κύρον, ὡς ἀποκτενῶν.
ΧEN.He arrests Cyrus, with the intention of putting him to death.
PARTICIPLE.
Condition:
Si latet ars prodest; affert deprensa pudorem.
OV.If art be concealed, it profits; if detected, it brings shame.
So Means, Concession (with quamvis), Comparison (quasi), etc.
It is also often used to express Attendant Circumstances or Manner, as a mere Adverb: e.g.,
Rhenus per fines Trevirorum citatus fertur.
CAES.The Rhine flows rapidly through the territory of the Treviri.
Note. The Participle Absolute is so called as apparently standing apart from the Main Sentence: it is really a Case usage.
The "Ablative Absolute" (a Noun and Participle in the Ablative) is an Ablative of Accompaniment (§ 272):
Regibus exactis consules creati sunt.
LIV.The kings having been expelled, consuls were elected.
(Instead of a Participle, a Second Noun in the Ablative is often added:
Nil desperandum Teucro duce et auspice Teucro.
HOR.We must not despair under Teucer's leadership and auspices.
Obs. An Adverbial Participle and a Verb are often used where we use two Coordinate Verbs and a Copula:
Torquatus Gallum caesum torque spoliavit.
LIV.Torquatus slew the Gaul and despoiled him of his necklace.
3. The Supplementary Participle
completes the meaning of certain verbs, like the Supplementary Infinitive (§ 174), with which it sometimes alternates.
This use is rare in Latin, except after Verbs of seeing, hearing, announcing, finding, representing :
Parvam te roscida mala vidi cum matre legentem.
VIRG.I saw thee, a little girl, plucking dewy apples with thy mother.
Pons in Hibero prope effectus nuntiabatur.
CAES.The bridge over the Ebro was reported as almost finished.
Observe also the following, in which the Participle and Substantive are equivalent to a Substantive and Genitive, or to an entire Clause:
Occisus Caesar pessimum facinus videbatur.
TAC.The murder of Caesar seemed a vile crime.
Ante urbem conditam condendamve.
LIV.Before the city was built or was a-building.
Remark. The Past Participle Active.
The want of this may be supplied in several ways:
(1) With a Deponent, translate literally: haec locutus abiit, having so said he departed.
(2) With a Transitive Verb, turn into the Passive: his factis abiit, having so done he departed.
(3) With an Intransitive Verb, cum with Subjunctive must be used: cum venisset abiit, having come he departed.
In (2) the Ablative Absolute must not be used if the Participle can be attached to the Subject or Object:
Graeci Trojam captam incenderunt, the Greeks having captured Troy burnt it (not "Troja captâ eam incenderunt '').
(The want of a Present Participle Passive can be strictly supplied by cum with Subjunctive; but often the Past Participle is loosely used: e.g., being attacked, "quum oppugnaretur," or, often, "oppugnatus".)
The Tenses.
The force of the Tenses cannot be properly realised unless it is understood that they represent not merely the time of an action, but also its character. Thus in Past time we have (1) "he wrote," mere action; (2) "he was writing," incomplete action; (3) "he had written," complete action. And action may be represented in the same ways also in Present and Future time. In a full Tense system there should therefore be 3 × 3 = 9 distinct forms. But, owing to vacancies, some of the Tense-forms have to fulfil a double duty.
Thus, both in Greek and Latin, the Present and Future have to express both mere action and incomplete action.
In Latin also the Perfect expresses both complete action in Present time—the “Perfect Proper"; and mere action in Past time—the "Aoristic Perfect".
Present Time.
Mere Action. he writes, scribit
Incomplete Action. he is writing, scribit
Complete Action. he has written, scripsit
Past Time.
Mere Action. he wrote, scripsit
Incomplete Action. he was writing, scribebat
Complete Action. he had written, scripserat
Future Time.
Mere Action. he will write, scribet
Incomplete Action. he will be writing, scribet
Complete Action. he will have written, scripserit
The Present Tense.
(1) Mere action in Present time, he writes, (2) Incomplete action in Present time, he is writing.
The "Historic Present" is often used in narrative for a Past tense, as in English: e.g.,
Devolat et supra caput adstitit.
VIRG.She flies down and hovered o'er her head.
The Present is used where we use a Perfect, with words like "for a long time," of an action continuing up to the Present: cf. French, "On cherche cet homme depuis quelques mois" :
Jampridem cupio Alexandriam visere.
CIC.I have long wished to visit Alexandria.
Sometimes the Present has a half-future or deliberative force —" present intention, future action":
Circumeo castra. CAES. I am going round the camp.
En, quid ago? VIRG. Lo, what am I to do?
The Imperfect Tense.
The Imperfect represents Incomplete action in Past time: he was writing.
This action is often in relation to some other act: "he was writing, when I came".
The Imperfect often represents a continued act, as contrasted with a momentary act; and then it is not always to be recognised by "-ing":
Aequi se in oppida receperunt murisque se tenebant.
LIV.The Æqui retreated into their towns and remained within the walls.
The Imperfect also expresses habitual or repeated action in past time:
Carthagine quotannis bini reges creabantur.
NEP.At Carthage two kings used to be created annually.
The Imperfect sometimes expresses action proposed : "he began to," "he tried to," "he proceeded to":
Altera sententia Hannibalem revocabat.
LIV.One of the two proposals was for recalling Hannibal.
(1) The Perfect Proper (with "have") expresses an act completed in Present time: “he has written”.
Very often the previous act is forgotten and only the present state, which results from it, is remembered: e.g.,
Mortuus est, he is dead.
Hence the so-called "Perfects with Present meaning": e.g.,
Novi, I know (lit., I have learnt).
Sometimes the Perfect even goes further, and expresses what has been but is no more: e.g.,
Fuimus Troes.
VIRG.We Trojans are no more.
(2) The Aoristic Perfect (without "have") expresses, without qualification, the mere action of the Verb in Past time: as, he wrote; e.g.,
Libertatem et consulatum L. Brutus instituit.
TAC.L. Brutus inaugurated liberty and the consulship.
PARTICIPLE.
Condition (Negative μή, § 491):
οὐκ ἂν δύναιο, μὴ καμὼν, εὐδαιμονεῖν.
EUR.You could not be happy, if you did not work.
So Means, Concession (with καίπερ, § 440), Comparison (with ὡς), etc.
It is also often used to express Attendant Circumstances or Manner, as a mere Adverb: e.g.,
τί μαθών, τί παθών, lit., learning what? suffering what?
τί μαθόντες ἐμαρτυρεῖτε;
DEM.Why did you give evidence?
Note. The Participle Absolute is so called as apparently standing apart from the Main Sentence: it is really a Case usage.
(1) The "Genitive Absolute" (a Noun and Participle in the Genitive) is a Genitive of Origin (§ 264):
ταῦτ᾽ ἐπράχθη Κόνωνος στρατηγοῦντος.
ISOCR.These things were done when Conon was general.
(2) The Accusative Absolute is an Adverbial Accusative (§ 233), confined mainly to a few impersonals, ἐξόν, δέον, παρόν :
ἀδελφοκτόνος, οὐδὲν δέον, γέγονα.
HDT.I have slain my brother when there was no need.
Obs. An Adverbial Participle and a Verb are often used where we use two Coordinate Verbs and a Copula:
θέλεις τι μεῖζον ἢ κατακτεῖναι μ᾽ ἑλών;
SOPH.Dost thou wish more than to take and slay me?
3. The Supplementary Participle
completes the meaning of certain verbs, like the Supplementary Infinitive (§ 174), with which it sometimes alternates.
(α) χαίρω, rejoice; ἄχθομαι, grieve; αἰσχύνομαι *, ashamed:
χαίρω γε διαλεγόμενος τοῖς σφόδρα πρεσβύταις.
PLAT.I rejoice to converse with the very old.
(b) ἄρχομαι, begin; παύομαι *, cease; διατελέω, continue :
παῦσαι λέγουσα. EUR. Cease to speak. (γελῶντας ἔχθρους παύσομεν. SOPH. We will stop our enemies from laughing.)
(c) τυγχάνω, happen; φθάνω, anticipate; λανθάνω, escape notice:
ἔτυχον ἐν τῇ ἀγορᾶ ὁπλῖται καθεύδοντες.
THUC.Hoplites happened to be sleeping in the market-place.
(d) Verbs of knowing and perceiving, and some others : ὁράω, μανθάνω*, οἶδα*, μέμνημαι*, φαίνομαι*, ἀγγέλλω, φανερός εἰμί, δῆλος εἰμί, etc. (see Indirect Speech, § 350):
δῆλος ἦν Κῦρος σπεύδων.
ΧΕΝ.It was clear Cyrus was in a hurry.
Remark.— The Supplementary Infinitive and Participle.
The Verbs marked * may take also an Infinitive, but in a different sense: e.g.,
(α) αἰσχύνομαι ποιῶν, I am ashamed (of) doing (something which I am doing); αἰσχύνομαι ποιεῖν, I am ashamed to do (something which I am not doing).
(β) παύομαι πράττων, I desist from doing (something I have been doing some time); παύομαι πράττειν, almost I abstain from the act—I give up the idea of it.
(d) φαίνομαι ἀδικῶν, I am clearly guilty; φαίνομαι ἀδικεῖν, I appear to be guilty.
οἶδα ἀληθεύων, I know I am telling the truth; οἶδα ἀληθεύειν, I know how to tell the truth.
So μανθάνω, μέμνημαι, ἐπιλανθάνομαι with Infinitive, I learn, remember, forget how to do a thing; while ἀγγέλλω with the Infinitive often expresses a command.
The Tenses.
The force of the Tenses cannot be properly realised unless it is understood that they represent not merely the time of an action, but also its character. Thus in Past time we have (1) "he wrote," mere action; (2) "he was writing," incomplete action; (3) "he had written," complete action. And action may be represented in the same ways also in Present and Future time. In a full Tense system there should therefore be 3 × 3 = 9 distinct forms. But, owing to vacancies, some of the Tense-forms have to fulfil a double duty.
Thus, both in Greek and Latin, the Present and Future have to express both mere action and incomplete action.
In Greek the Latin Perfect is represented by two distinct forms, the Perfect and the Aorist. On the other hand, the Future Perfect is rare in Greek.
Present Time.
Mere Action. γράφει
Incomplete Action. γράφει
Complete Action. γέγραφε
Past Time.
Mere Action. ἔγραψε
Incomplete Action. ἔγραφε
Complete Action. ἐγεγράφει
Future Time.
Mere Action. γράψει
Incomplete Action. γράψει
Complete Action. [γεγραφὼς ἔσται]
The Present Tense.
(1) Mere action in Present time, he writes, (2) Incomplete action in Present time, he is writing.
The "Historic Present" is often used in narrative for a Past tense, as in English: e.g.,
Δαρείου καὶ Παρυσάτιδος γίγνονται παῖδες δύο.
ΧΕN.Darius and Parysatis had two sons.
The Present is used where we use a Perfect, with words like "for a long time," of an action continuing up to the Present :
ἐπὶ τῷ Δήμῳ ξυνόμνυτον πάλαι.
AR.You two have been plotting against Demus a long time.
Sometimes the Present has a half-future or deliberative force —" present intention, future action":
Ν.Β.—εἶμι, I am going, viz., I shall go.
πῶς λέγομεν; PLAT. How are we to put it?
The Imperfect Tense.
The Imperfect represents Incomplete action in Past time: he was writing.
This action is often in relation to some other act: "he was writing, when I came".
The Imperfect often represents a continued act, as contrasted with a momentary act; and then it is not always to be recognised by "-ing":
συνέπεμψεν αὐτῇ στρατιώτας οὓς Μένων εἶχε.
ΧΕΝ.He sent with her the soldiers which Menon had.
The Imperfect also expresses habitual or repeated action in past time:
Σωκράτης, ὥσπερ ἐγίγνωσκεν, οὕτως ἔλεγεν.
ΧΕΝ.Socrates used to speak as he thought.
The Imperfect sometimes expresses action proposed : "he began to," "he tried to," "he proceeded to":
ἃ ἐπράττετο οὐκ ἐγένετο.
THUC.The attempt did not succeed.
So ἐδίδουν, I offered; ἔπειθον, I strove to persuade.
The Perfect, as distinct from the Aorist,
expresses an act completed in Present time: “he has written”.
Very often the previous act is forgotten and only the present state, which results from it, is remembered: e.g.,
τέθνηκε, he is dead.
Hence the so-called "Perfects with Present meaning": e.g.,
οἶδα, I know (lit., I have learnt).
Sometimes the Perfect even goes further, and expresses what has been but is no more: e.g.,
εἴρηκα, I have finished speaking.
The Aorist (ἀ-ὁρίζω, undefined)
expresses, without qualification, the mere action of the Verb in Past time: as, he wrote; e.g.,
Θουκυδίδης ᾿Αθηναῖος ξυνέγραψε τὸν πόλεμον.
THỤC.Thucydides the Athenian wrote the history of the war.
PERFECT AND AORIST TENSES.
It expresses apparently an instantaneous act in Present time—really an act just past, when mentioned :
Terra tremit, fugere ferae.
VIRG.The earth trembles, the wild beasts are gone (or "have gone").
It expresses general truths—here also translated as Present (cf. Eng. "Faint heart never won fair lady '') :
Nemo nisi victor pace bellum mutavit.
SALL.No one but a victor exchanges war for peace (viz., "ever changed," or "has ever changed").
Note. The last two instances might be of either the Perfect Proper or the Aoristic Perfect: in fact, the same nice distinction, as a whole, is not made in Latin as in English between "I have done" and "I did". The Latin Perfect is to a large extent one tense.
(In the Subjunctive it becomes still more so, § 345.)
The Aorist Indicative is often used for a Pluperfect in Relative, especially Temporal, clauses:
Postquam Caesar pervenit, obsides arma poposcit.
CAES.When Cæsar had come, he demanded hostages and arms.
The Perfect is used frequentatively in sub-clauses:
Quocunque aspexisti, tuae tibi occurrunt injuriae.
CIC.Wherever you look, your offences meet you.
The Pluperfect
expresses an action completed in Past time: often of one action, as preceding another: "he had written" (when I arrived).
(Note noveram, I knew: cf. novi, sup.)
Note. The Epistolary Past.
Letters, especially at the beginning, were often written in Past time, from the point of view of the recipient :
Nihil habebam, quod scriberem; neque enim novi quicquam audieram.
CIC.I have nothing to write to you; for I have heard nothing new.
The Future
expresses (1) mere action in Future time, "he will write"; less often (2) incomplete action Future, "he will be writing" (see § 211).
The Future often expresses a command, as in English "thou shalt not—":
Cum surget, surges; donec sedet illa, sedebis.
OV.Rise when she rises; while she sitteth, sit.
The Future-Perfect
expresses action completed in Future time, especially in reference to some other action: "he will have written" (when I arrive).
It often expresses the Future result of an action already past (translate as Future):
Nostris inluserit advena regnis?
VIRG.Shall this stranger mock our majesty? (viz., be allowed to have mocked).
Note the idiom with videro:
Sed de te videris.
CIC.But you will of course look to yourself (almost
Note. In sub-clauses English often uses a Present or Perfect where a Future or Future-Perfect would be logical :
Naturam si sequemur ducem, nunquam aberrabimus.
CIC.If we follow nature for our guide we shall never err.
Eum cum videro, Arpinum pergam.
CIC.When I have seen him I shall go on to Arpinum.
The Periphrastic Tenses
are formed, as in English, with the verb "to be" and a Participle, viz. :
(1) The Perfect Participle Passive: e.g., amatus sum.
(2) The Future Participle Active: e.g., amaturus sum.
The use of the Periphrastic Tenses is two-fold :—
(a) They supply a tense not provided for by the simple verb; here they may express action :
E.g., Profectus ero, I shall have started.
(b) They express a state where the plain tenses express an action:
Scribam, I shall write; Scripturus sum, I am about to write.
Note the phrase:
Compertum habeo.
CIC.I have discovered: lit., I have it as a discovered thing.
Fui usually expresses action; sum, state:
Janua clausa est, the gate is shut; janua clausa fuit, the gate has been shut.
(Observe that clausa est could also mean was shut.)
On essem and forem see § 220.
Tenses in the Oblique Moods.
The tenses bear in the Oblique Moods the same sense as to time which they bore in the Indicative, but lose to a large extent the distinction of character.
Especially the Imperfect and Perfect Subjunctive become blurred as expressing incompleteness and completeness: e.g., venit ut videret, he came to see (not "to be seeing"); rogo quid feceris, I ask what you were doing (as well as "I ask what you did" or "have done").
(But the Perfect Subjunctive in Consecutive Clauses is exceptional—always expressing completeness regardless of time.— See further, Sequence of Tenses, §§ 344, 389.)
In Final and some other Clauses any tense of the Subjunctive bears a half-future sense: N.B., Verbs of Fearing:
Timeo ne veniat, I fear that he will come.
The Prolative Infinitive is usually Present as in English, but in Poetry the Perfect is often used:
Ut posset vastas exeruisse manus.
OV.That she might protrude her huge hands.
(Contrast the English idiom with verbs expressing "power" or "obligation":
Debui hoc facere, I ought to have done this.
Poterat venire, he might have come.)
Obs. Oratio Obliqua and the Participles.
Here the tenses express time that is Past, Present, or Future in relation to the Main Verb. Thus contrast the English (1) "he said that this was true," (2) "Cambyses met his death while he was invading Egypt," with
(1) Dixit hoc verum esse.
(2) Cambyses, Aegyptum invadens, morti occubuit.
(This refers, in Oratio Obliqua, only to the main clauses in the Infinitive. The sub-clauses, in the Subjunctive, follow the rule given above.)
Indefinite and Potential.
(1) Indefinite time in sub-clauses is expressed by the Perfects Indicative—the Perfect, Pluperfect and Future-Perfect, expressing Present, Past and Future time respectively :
1.
Si quis eorum decreto non stetit, sacrificiis interdicunt.
CAES. If ever any of them does not abide by the ordinance, they exclude him from the sacrifice.2.
Cum rosam viderat, tum ver incipere arbitrabatur.
CIC. Whenever he saw a rose, he thought spring was beginning.3.
Nec hic puer, quotienscunque me viderit, ingemescet.
CIC. The boy shall not groan whenever he sees me.(An Indefinite Subjunctive sometimes occurs in Livy, but is often virtually Oblique, § 585.)
(2) Potentiality in Main Sentences is expressed by the Subjunctive: putares, you would think; dicat aliquis, someone might say, or would say; fuisset, grant that it should have been so.
Hoc Ithacus velit, et magno mercentur Atridae.
VIRG.This the Ithacan would wish, and the sons of Atreus would purchase at a great price.
PERFECT AND AORIST TENSES.
It expresses apparently an instantaneous act in Present time—really an act just past, when mentioned :
ἔφριξ᾽ ἔρωτι, περιχαρὴς δ᾽ ἀνεπτόμην.
SOPH.I tremble with love, I am elate with joy.
It expresses general truths—here also translated as Present (cf. Eng. "Faint heart never won fair lady '') :
καὶ δὴ φίλον τις ἔκταν᾿ ἀγνοίας ὕπο.
ÆSCH.Indeed a man sometimes slays a friend in ignorance.
(This is called the Gnomic Aorist, from γνώμη, a maxim.)
Note. The Aorist is often used in Greek where in English we should use "have": e.g., “who has killed him?" "having sailed away" would be Aorist. The Perfect is only used where the result is permanent: e.g., "the king is dead," "the established laws". Before using a Perfect, think of the Aorist.
The Aorist Indicative is often used for a Pluperfect in Relative, especially Temporal, clauses:
ἐπειδὴ ἐτελεύτησε Δαρεῖος καὶ κατέστη ᾿Αρταξέρξης.
ΧΕΝ.When Darius was dead and Artaxerxes had become king.
Obs. The Aorist is not necessarily momentary (e.g., συνέγραψε, sup.), but it may appear to be so, as expressing mere action (e.g., ἔφριξα, sup.). So of entrance into a state: ἐδάκρυσε, he burst into tears; ἐβασίλευσε, he became king.
The Pluperfect
expresses an action completed in Past time: often of one action, as preceding another: "he had written" (when I arrived).
(Note ᾔδη, I knew: cf. οἶδα, sup.)
Note. The Epistolary Past.
Letters, especially at the beginning, were often written in Past time, from the point of view of the recipient :
μετ᾿ ᾿Αρταβάζου ὅν σοι ἔπεμψα πράσσε θαρσῶν.
THUC.You may act without diffidence in conjunction with Artabazus whom I send to you (Artabazus being the bearer).
The Future
expresses (1) mere action in Future time, "he will write"; less often (2) incomplete action Future, "he will be writing" (see § 211).
The Future often expresses a command, as in English "thou shalt not—":
πρὸς ταῦτα πράξεις οἷον ἂν θέλῃς.
SOPH.Therefore do whatsoe'er thou wilt.
(See § 588.)
So with οὐ, as a question: οὐκ ἀπεῖ; Away! (will you not go?)
The Future-Perfect
expresses action completed in Future time, especially in reference to some other action: "he will have written" (when I arrive).
It is often used for a plain Future, strong, immediate, permanent in result:
φράζε, καὶ πεπράξεται.
ΑR.Speak and it shall forthwith be done.
(Except with a few words, e.g., τεθνήξω, I shall have died, the Future-Perfect is expressed by periphrasis: δεδρακὼς ἔσομαι, I shall have done.)
Note. In sub-clauses English often uses a Present or Perfect where a Future or Future-Perfect would be logical :
ἐν ᾧ σὺ παίξει, ἐγὼ γράψω. While you play, I shall write.
(But more often a Future or Future-Perfect in sub-clauses is represented by ἄν with the Present or Aorist Subjunctive respectively; see § 217.)
The Periphrastic Tenses
are formed, as in English, with the verb "to be" and a Participle, viz. :
(1) The Perfect Participle Passive: e.g., τετυμμένοι εἰσί.
(2) Any Active Participle except the Future.
The use of the Periphrastic Tenses is two-fold :—
(a) They supply a tense not provided for by the simple verb; here they may express action :
E.g., γεγραφὼς ἔσομαι, I shall have written.
(b) They express a state where the plain tenses express an action:
ἀνέῳκται ἡ πύλη, the gate has been opened; ἀνεῳγμένη ἐστὶν ἡ πύλη, the gate is open.
Note the phrase :
ἔχει περάνας.
SOPH.He has achieved it: lit., he is having-achieved it.
(ἔχω is here Intrans., see § 146; contrast κρύψασ᾽ ἔχεις, EUR., probably Trans., thou hast concealed and hast them. Note ἔχω (1) with Acc., I have; ἔχων, with; (2) with Adverb, I am; (3) with Infin., I can; (4) with Aor. Participles, as here.)
Tenses in the Oblique Moods.
In the Oblique Moods, except in the Participles and in Oratio Obliqua, the tenses lose to a large extent the idea of time, retaining only that of quality.
This is shown by the loss in the Oblique Moods of the Augment, which is the sign of past time.
Thus the Aorist implies in the Indicative (1) past time, (2) mere action; in the Moods only (2) mere action, as a rule.
Thus contrast the tenses in: πράττε, always act; πρᾶξον, do this. ἀπέλθωμεν καὶ μὴ μένωμεν, let us go and not remain.
αἱρετώτερόν ἐστι καλῶς ἀποθανεῖν ἢ ζῆν αἰσχρῶς.
ISOCR.It is better to die nobly than to go on living basely.
In Final and some other Clauses any tense of the Subjunctive bears a half-future sense: N.B., Verbs of Fearing:
φοβοῦμαι μὴ ἔλθῃ, I fear that he will come.
The Prolative Infinitive is Present or Aorist (e.g., ἀποθανεῖν ἢ ζῆν, sup.); but μέλλω prefers the Future:
περὶ τρίποδος γὰρ ἔμελλον θεύσεσθαι.
Hом.For they were going to run for a tripod.
(Contrast the English idiom with verbs expressing "power" or "obligation":
ὤφελον τοῦτο ποιεῖν, I ought to have been doing this.
ἐδύνατο ἐλθεῖν, he might have come.)
Obs. Oratio Obliqua and the Participles.
Here the tenses express time that is Past, Present, or Future in relation to the Main Verb. Thus contrast the English (1) " he said that this was true," (2) "Cambyses met his death while he was invading Egypt," with
(1) ἔφη τοῦτο ἀληθὲς εἶναι.
(2) Καμβύσης, τὴν Αἴγυπτον εἰσβάλλων, θανάτῳ περιέπεσεν.
(This refers to all clauses, main or subordinate, in Oratio Obliqua, whether expressed by the Infinitive, Indicative, Optative, or Participle, §§ 354, 364.)
The Particle ἄν.
The Particle ἄν has two distinct uses :
(1) In Sub-clauses with the Subjunctive, expressing (a) vague future action, (b) indefinite present action.
Such clauses are Conditional, εἰ; Relative, ὅς, οἷος, ὅστις, including Local, ὅπου; Temporal, ὅτε, ἐπειδή, ἐπεί, πρίν, ἕως, μέχρι.
Here ἄν belongs to the Pronoun or Particle, and immediately follows it, sometimes coalescing with it, ἐάν (or ἤν), ὅταν, ἐπήν, ἐπειδάν :
(α) ἐπειδὰν ἔλθῃ, χαιρήσω, when he comes, I shall rejoice.
(β) ἐπειδὰν ἔλθῃ, χαίρω, whenever he comes, I rejoice.
Note. The Aorist Subjunctive with ἄν in Temporal Clauses has the force of a Future-Perfect.
(2) In Main Sentences with (a) the Optative, (b) the Historic Tenses of the Indicative—expressing potentiality.
Here ἄν belongs to the Verb:
(α) εἴποι τις ἄν, some one would say, or might say (Future).
(β) ἔλεγεν ἄν τις, some one would now be saying (Present).
εἶπεν ἄν τις, some one would have said (Past).
INDEFINITE AND POTENTIAL.
Observe that the Present Subjunctive, thus used, expresses Future time; the Imperfect, Present time; the Pluperfect, Past time.
Note the Perfect Subjunctive in:
Paene dixerim.
CIC.I had almost said (lit., I might have said).
(It is doubtful whether Dixerit aliquis, suppose someone to have said, is Perfect Subjunctive or Future-Perfect Indicative.)
Obs. This Potential "would" or "should" is expressed in Infinitival Clauses by the Future Participle with "esse" or "fore"; or, especially if Passive, by "fore ut" or "futurum fuisse ut" with Subj. (§ 404: cf. Fr. est-ce que); in Subjunctival Clauses by the Perfect Subjunctive, viz., "fuerit" with the Future Participle or Gerundive, or else "potuerit" with the Infinitive (§ 405). In both, the context alone determines what tense of the Subjunctive is represented.
Dixit fore ut urbs caperetur. He said that the city would be captured (lit., that it would be the case that).
Non dubium est, quin, nisi subvenissemus, urbs capienda fuerit. There is no doubt that, had we not come to the rescue, the city would have been taken.
(But, nisi subveniamus, capienda fuerit, were we not to come, it would be taken.)
Note.—Essem may almost always be used; forem has in it something of potentiality—"would" or "should":
Quum porta aperta esset (not foret) intrarunt. Finding the gate open, they entered.
Imperavit ut porta aperta foret (or esset). He ordered that the gate should remain open.
But always Foret ut, it would be the case that.
THE CASES.
There were originally eight Cases: 1. Nominative, 2. Vocative, 3. Accusative, 4. Genitive, of, 5. Dative, to, for, 6. Ablative, from, 7. Locative, at, in, 8. Instrumental, with.
Of these, Latin has lost the last two, Greek the last three: the loss is supplied in the following way:—
Latin.
1. Nominative.
2. Vocative.
3. Accusative.
4. Genitive (partly Locative).
5. Ablative. A. Ablative Proper. B. Instrumental Ablative. C. Locative Ablative.
6. Dative.
1. The Nominative.
The Subject of a Finite Verb is in the Nominative Case:
Labuntur anni.
HOR.The years glide on.
(The Subject of the Historic Infinitive is Nominative, § 176.)
The Predicate of a Copulative Verb (see § 22) is in the Nominative:
Cicero declaratus est consul.
CIC.Cicero was declared consul.
2. The Vocative.
The Vocative is the Case of the Person addressed (voco, I call):
Pompei, meorum prime sodalium.
HOR.Pompeius, first of my boon-companions.
3. The Accusative.
The Accusative expresses (a) the goal of an action, (b) the extent of an action.
(a) The Goal of an Action:
1. The Accusative of Motion to (§ 307): e.g., Romam eo. I go to Rome.
2. The Accusative of the Direct Object:
The Direct Object of a Transitive Verb, or any Verb used Transitively, is in the Accusative:
Haec studia senectutem oblectant.
CIC.These studies delight old age.
Many Intransitive Verbs, when compounded with Prepositions, become Transitive, and take a Direct Object:
Brutus Mutinam circumsedet.
CIC.Brutus is besieging Mutina.
The Subject of the Infinitive is Accusative, being really the Direct Object of the Main Verb (§ 178):
Nuntiat Philippum adesse.
He announces Philip to be here.
(b) The Extent of an Action:
1. Extent in Space: motion over, distance, etc. (§309): Tria milia repimus. We crawl three miles.
2. Extent in Time: Duration (§300): Quinque annos vixit. He lived five years.
3. The Accusative of Respect qualifies Verbs and Adjectives, showing that in respect of which they are used :
Os humerosque deo similis.
VIRG.In face and bearing like unto a god.
(So cetera, in other respects.)
4. The Cognate Accusative shows the compass or manner of an action or a state. It is so called as being often allied (cognatus) in meaning to the Verb it qualifies:
Fortuna ludum insolentem ludit.
HOR.Fortune plays an insolent game.
5. The Adverbial Accusative is an extension of the Cognate Accusative to Neuter Adjectives and words used Adverbially:
Dulce ridentem Lalagen amabo.
HOR.I will love sweetly-laughing Lalagé.
Two Accusatives.
Note 1.—Transitive Verbs compounded with Prepositions may take two Accusatives, one after the Verb, the other after the Preposition:
Caesar equites flumen transjecit.
CAES.Cæsar threw his cavalry across the river.
Note 2.—Factitive Verbs of making, saying, thinking, take a second Accusative in apposition to the first:
Socrates totius se mundi civem arbitrabatur.
CIC.Socrates thought himself a citizen of the whole world.
Note 3.—Verbs of asking, teaching, concealing, can take two Accusatives, one of the Person, one of the Thing:
Antigonus iter omnes celat.
NEP.Antigonus conceals his line of march from all.
With these Verbs the Accusative of the Thing may be retained after the Passive (§ 151):
Latinae legiones militiam Romanam edoctae.
LIV.The Latin legions were schooled in Roman discipline.
Obs. Exclamation (cf. § 338).
The Nominative, Vocative and Accusative may all be used absolutely in exclamations—the Accusative being after some verb of saying or thinking understood:
1.
O studia et mores!
CIC. What tastes! what customs!2.
Proh sancte Juppiter!
CIC. O holy Juppiter!3.
Me miserum.
VIRG. Woe is me!4. The Genitive
is so called, as expressing the genus or kind to which a word belongs. Its chief use is with Substantives.
1. The Possessive Genitive expresses the possessor, author, father, and generally that to which anything should be referred; answering the question “Whose?”
Contempsi Catilinae gladios.
CIC.I have braved the swords of Catiline.
"It is the part of" is expressed by a Possessive Genitive dependent on an Infinitive:
Cujusvis hominis est errare.
CIC.It is the nature of any man to err.
The Possessive Genitive sometimes depends on a Noun understood; cf. "St. Paul's'' :
Ad Vestae. HOR. To Vesta's (temple).
Contrast the English and Latin idiom in:
Pompeii copiae plures erant quam Caesaris.
Pompey's troops were larger than those of Cæsar.
INDEFINITE AND POTENTIAL.
(The Third Singular of the Aorist must not be elided before ἄν: εἶπεν ἄν, not εἶπ᾿ ἄν.)
Note 1.—ἄν with the Imperfect or Aorist Indicative sometimes expresses frequentative action in Past time:
διηρώτων ἂν αὐτοὺς τί λέγοιεν.
PLAT.I would often ask them what they meant.
Note 2.—ἄν with Optative, 1st Person, may express a mild Future, λέγοιμ' ἄν, I will speak; 2nd Person, a mild command, λέγοις ἄν, kindly speak.
Obs. This ἄν may be retained with Infinitive or Participle, the context alone deciding whether the Optative or Historic Indicative be represented (§§ 404, 405, 598).
Notes on the use of ἄν :
1. With the Subjunctive : ἄν is sometimes omitted in Prose with μέχρι, ἕως, πρίν :
μέχρι πλοῦς γένηται.
THUC.Till the voyage should begin.
ἄν is sometimes added to ὡς or ὅπως – not ἵνα - in Final Clauses with the Subjunctive, giving to purpose a touch of consequence :
τουτὶ λαβών μου τὸ σκιάδειον ὑπέρεχε ἄνωθεν, ὡς ἂν μή μ᾽ ὁρῶσιν οἱ θεοί.
ΑR.Take this parasol here of mine and hold it over me, so that the gods may not see me (as then they will not).
2. With Indicative and Optative: ἄν is sometimes repeated for clearness in long sentences, or for emphasis :
οὐκ ἂν ἀποδοίην οὐδ᾽ ἂν ὀβολὸν οὐδενί.
ΑR.I would not give, no, not an obol to anyone.
ἄν is sometimes separated from its verb, especially with such words as οἶδα, φημί, δοκέω:
οὐκ οἶδ᾽ ἂν εἰ πείσαιμι.
EUR.(Sc. οὐκ οἶδ᾽ εἰ πείσαιμι ἄν.) I do not know if I could persuade him.
THE CASES.
There were originally eight Cases: 1. Nominative, 2. Vocative, 3. Accusative, 4. Genitive, of, 5. Dative, to, for, 6. Ablative, from, 7. Locative, at, in, 8. Instrumental, with.
Of these, Latin has lost the last two, Greek the last three: the loss is supplied in the following way:—
Greek.
1. Nominative.
2. Vocative.
3. Accusative.
4. Genitive. A. Genitive Proper. B. Genitive of Ablation.
5. Dative. A. Instrumental Dative. B. Locative Dative.
1. The Nominative.
The Subject of a Finite Verb is in the Nominative Case:
πατὴρ ὄλωλε.
SOPH.My father is dead.
(On the Nominative and Infinitive see § 179.)
The Predicate of a Copulative Verb (see § 22) is in the Nominative:
ὁ Περικλῆς ᾑρέθη στρατηγός.
Pericles was chosen general.
2. The Vocative.
The Vocative is the Case of the Person addressed (voco, I call):
σκόπει τοίνυν, ὦ Σώκρατες, ἔφη.
PLAT.Consider therefore, Socrates, said he. (ὦ is usually added, as here.)
3. The Accusative.
The Accusative expresses (a) the goal of an action, (b) the extent of an action.
(a) The Goal of an Action:
1. The Accusative of Motion to (see § 307). (This is rare in Prose without a Preposition.)
2. The Accusative of the Direct Object:
The Direct Object of a Transitive Verb, or any Verb used Transitively, is in the Accusative:
αἰάζω τὸν ῎Αδωνιν.
ΒΙΟΝ.I mourn for Adonis.
Many Intransitive Verbs, when compounded with Prepositions, become Transitive, and take a Direct Object:
Κροῖσος Ἅλυν διαβάς.
HDT.Croesus, having crossed the Halys.
The Subject of the Infinitive is Accusative, being really the Direct Object of the Main Verb (§ 178):
ἔφη τὸν Φίλιππον παρεῖναι.
He said that Philip was at hand.
(b) The Extent of an Action:
1. Extent in Space: motion over, distance, etc. (§309): ἐξελαύνει δύο σταθμούς. He marches three stages.
2. Extent in Time: Duration (§300): πέντε ἔτη ἐβασίλευσεν. He reigned five years.
3. The Accusative of Respect qualifies Verbs and Adjectives, showing that in respect of which they are used :
βέλτιόν ἐστι σῶμά γ' ἢ ψυχὴν νοσεῖν.
ΜENANDER.It is better to ail in body than in mind.
So τάλλα, in other respects.
4. The Cognate Accusative shows the compass or manner of an action or a state. It is so called as being often allied (cognatus) in meaning to the Verb it qualifies:
ζήσεις βίον κράτιστον ἢν θυμοῦ κρατῇς.
ΜΕNANDER.You will live the best life if you control your temper.
5. The Adverbial Accusative is an extension of the Cognate Accusative to Neuter Adjectives and words used Adverbially:
πάντες ἐπ᾿ αὐτῷ ἡδὺ ἐγέλασαν.
Ном.They all laughed lightly at him.
Two Accusatives.
Note 1.—Transitive Verbs compounded with Prepositions may take two Accusatives, one after the Verb, the other after the Preposition:
τεῖχος περιβαλέσθαι τὴν πόλιν.
HDT.To cast a wall round the city.
Note 2.—Factitive Verbs of making, saying, thinking, take a second Accusative in apposition to the first:
σὺ Ἔρωτα οὐ θεὸν νομίζεις.
PLAT.You do not consider Love a god.
Note 3.—Verbs of asking, teaching, concealing, can take two Accusatives, one of the Person, one of the Thing:
πολλοί με σῖτον αἰτοῦσι, πολλοὶ δὲ ἱμάτια.
XEN.Many ask me for food, and many for clothes.
With these Verbs the Accusative of the Thing may be retained after the Passive (§ 151):
διδάσκομαι λόγους.
ΕUR.I am schooled in speech. (Other such verbs are ἀποστερέω, I deprive; κακὰ ποιέω, I do harm to.)
Obs. Exclamation (cf. § 338).
The Nominative, Vocative and Accusative may all be used absolutely in exclamations—the Accusative being after some verb of saying or thinking understood:
1.
ὦ πόλις, πόλις.
ARIST. O my city, my city!2.
ὦ Ἡρακλεῖς.
ARIST. O Heracles!3.
ὦ ἐμὲ δείλαιον.
EUR. Woe is me!4. The Genitive
has two uses : A. Genitive Proper, B. Genitive of Ablation.
A. Genitive Proper.
1. The Possessive Genitive expresses the possessor, author, father, and generally that to which anything should be referred; answering the question “Whose?”
ὁ Δαρείου ἵππος ἐχρεμέτισε.
HDT.The horse of Darius neighed.
"It is the part of" is expressed by a Possessive Genitive dependent on an Infinitive:
ἐσθλοῦ γὰρ ἀνδρὸς τῇ δίκῃ γ᾽ ὑπηρετεῖν.
EUR.For it is the part of a good man to assist justice.
The Possessive Genitive sometimes depends on a Noun understood; cf. "St. Paul's'' :
εἰς Ἅιδου. To (the house) of Hades.
Note the Possessive Genitive with the Article :
οἱ ᾿Αρταξέρξου στρατιῶται πλείονες ἦσαν τῶν Κύρου.
The troops of Artaxerxes were larger than those of Cyrus.
GENITIVE CASE.
2. The Partitive Genitive
expresses the whole of which a part is being considered; answering the question "Among which?”
Elephanto belluarum nulla est prudentior.
CIC.Of animals none is more sagacious than the elephant.
Note. With expressions of Number and Superlatives e with the Abl. is often used: Unus ex illis, one of them. Note: Nos omnes, all of us (not nostrum).
(The Partitive Genitive may be used after Neuter Pronouns, Adverbs, and sometimes Verbs:
Aliquid mali, some evil; nihil injuriae, no injury; ubinam gentium? where on earth? satis eloquentiae, enough eloquence; id temporis, at that time; scribe tui gregis hunc (HOR.), count him in your train.)
3. The Descriptive Genitive
shows the material or character of a thing, or the use of a word; it answers the question "What sort?"
Ingentem farris acervum formicae populant.
VIRG.Ants lay waste a huge heap of grain.
(The Genitive is here equivalent to an Adjective, and is called an Attributive Genitive.)
Note. Quality and amount require an Adjective (cf. § 273, Ablative):
Ingenui voltus puer ingenuique pudoris.
JUV.A youth of noble face and noble modesty. ("Face" here = expression.)
(Sometimes the Genitive is equivalent to a Noun in Apposition: it is then called the Genitive of Definition: e.g.,
Vox voluptatis. CIC. The word pleasure.
But Urbs Roma, the city of Rome.)
4. The Subjective and Objective Genitives
are used after Verbal Nouns, and express respectively the Subject and Object of a verbal action.
(a) Subjective Genitive (the enemy fled): Fuga hostium. The flight of the enemy.
(b) Objective Genitive (men love knowledge):
Erat insitus menti cognitionis amor.
CIC.Love of knowledge had been implanted in the mind.
The Objective Genitive may follow Adjectives containing a verbal notion :
Quis famulus amantior domini quam canis?
COL.What servant is fonder of a master than is a dog?
(On the Genitive with similis see § 281.)
The Genitive also follows Verbs—partly objective, partly otherwise.
(1) Memini, to remember; obliviscor, to forget; misereor, to pity:
Ipse jubet mortis te meminisse deus.
MART.God himself bids you remember death.
Note. Memini, reminiscor, obliviscor often take an Accusative; recordor usually; revoco, miseror, commiseror always.
(2) The five Impersonals, piget, vexes, pudet, shames, paenitet, repents, taedet, wearies, miseret, pities, take Accusative of Person, Genitive of Thing:
Miseret te aliorum, tui te nec miseret nec pudet.
PLAUT.You pity others, for yourself you feel neither pity nor shame.
(3) Interest, interests, and refert, concerns, take (a) the Feminine Ablatives meâ, tuâ, suâ, nostrâ, vestrâ, or (b) a Possessive Genitive—but with refert the Genitive is rare. To both, the Genitives of Value magni, etc. (§ 257), are often added:
(a)
Illud meâ magni interest te ut videam.
CIC. It is of great importance to me that I should see you.(b)
Interest omnium recte facere.
CIC. It is for the good of all to do right.(4) Potior takes either a Genitive or Ablative (§ 269): Potiri oppido or oppidi, to get possession of a city.
5. The Genitive of Fulness and Want.
Verbs and Adjectives implying fulness or want are followed by a Genitive:
E.g., Plenus, egeo, indigeo :
Acerra turis plena.
HOR.A casket full of incense.
Obs.—Words implying want, e.g., egeo, indigeo, take also a Privative Ablative—careo always (§ 260). Words of fulness, especially Verbs, e.g., impleo, take also an Instrumental Ablative (§ 269).
6. The Genitive of Cause,
viz., of the crime, follows Verbs and Adjectives of accusing, acquitting, condemning :
Alter latrocinii reus, alter caedis convictus est.
CIC.One was accused of robbery, one convicted of murder.
Note. The penalty is usually expressed by the Instrumental Ablative:
Miltiades, capitis absolutus, pecuniâ multatus est.
ΝΕΡ.Miltiades was acquitted on the capital charge, but fined a sum of money.
(But there was some confusion between the crime and the penalty. Thus Cicero says both capitis damnari, to be condemned on a capital charge, and, capite damnari, to be condemned to death.)
7. The "Locative” Genitive:
The following Genitives were originally Locatives:
(1) The Genitive of Place (§ 307): Romae, at Rome.
(2) The Genitive of Value : with Verbs of buying, selling, valuing. This is confined to vague phrases, magni, parvi, plurimi, minimi, pluris, minoris; also flocci (fleece), nauci (nut). For definite price, the Instrumental Ablative is used:
Quanti emptae? Octussibus.
HOR.How much did they cost? Eight asses.
Obs. The following are also perhaps Locative : Maturus aevi (VIRG.), mature in age; Pendere animi, to be in suspense of mind. But both here, and in many instances classed as Objective, etc., the Genitive is probably a vague Genitive of Respect. Thus:
Integer vitae scelerisque purus.
HOR.Blameless of life and all unstained by sin.
5. The Ablative.
(The Ablative has three uses: A. Ablative Proper, B. Instrumental, C. Locative.)
A. Ablative Proper.
1. The Ablative of Motion from: Roma, from Rome (§ 307).
2. The Ablative of Separation or Privation : After Verbs implying to remove, release, deprive, cease, differ and the like:
Barbari oppugnatione desistunt.
CAES.The barbarians cease from the assault.
So with Verbs of wanting, indigeo, egeo, careo, vaco (§ 255).
So with Adjectives, Adverbs and (§ 291) Prepositions implying the same ideas : E.g., liber, orbus, procul, sine, etc.
Procul negotiis, solutus omni fenore.
HOR.Far from business, freed from all usury.
GENITIVE CASE.
2. The Partitive Genitive
expresses the whole of which a part is being considered; answering the question "Among which?”
τῶν λαμβανόντων ἄρ᾽ εἰσὶν οἱ μανθάνοντες.
PLAT.Learners are among those who receive.
Note.—On ἥμισυς, ἄκρος, etc., see § 57. οἱ ἡμίσεις τῶν πολιτῶν, half the citizens.
(Observe πάντες ἡμεῖς, all of us.)
(The Partitive Genitive may be used after Neuter Pronouns, Adverbs, and sometimes Verbs: e.g.,
ἐς τοῦτο μωρίας, to such a pitch of folly; ὄψε τῆς ἡμέρας, late in the day; ὡς εἶχον τάχους, lit., as they had of speed, at full speed; τῆς γῆς ἔτεμον, they ravaged (some) of the land: cf. j'ai du pain. So after μετέχω, I share, etc.)
3. The Descriptive Genitive
shows the material or character of a thing, or the use of a word; it answers the question "What sort?"
ὁρῶσι σώρους σίτου, ξύλων, λίθων.
ΧΕΝ.They see piles of grain, timber, stones.
(The Genitive is here equivalent to an Adjective, and is called an Attributive Genitive.)
Note. Amount requires an Adjective:
τριῶν ἡμερῶν ὅδος.
ΧΕΝ.A three days' journey.
(Otherwise Quality is not expressed by the Genitive.)
(Sometimes the Genitive is equivalent to a Noun in Apposition: it is then called the Genitive of Definition: e.g.,
τὸ κλεινὸν ὄνομα τῆς σωτηρίας.
EUR.The glorious word safety.
But ἡ Μένδη πόλις, the city of Mendé.)
4. The Subjective and Objective Genitives
are used after Verbal Nouns, and express respectively the Subject and Object of a verbal action.
(a) Subjective Genitive (the king died): ὁ τοῦ βασιλέως θάνατος. The death of the king.
(b) Objective Genitive (they feared the Helots):
μέγιστος φόβος περιέστη τὴν Σπάρτην τῶν Εἱλώτων.
THUC.The greatest fear of the Helots possessed Sparta.
The Objective Genitive may follow Adjectives containing a verbal notion :
εὐχῆς δικαίας οὐκ ἀνήκοος θεός.
MENANDER.God is not unmindful of righteous prayer.
(On the Genitive with κύριος, ἄξιος, etc., see § 265.)
The Genitive also follows Verbs—partly objective, partly otherwise.
(1) μιμνήσκομαι, remember; λανθάνομαι, forget; ἐπιμέλομαι, care for; ἀμελέω, neglect; φείδομαι, spare; καταφρονέω, despise :
ὁ τῆς Θέτιδος υἷος κινδύνου κατεφρόνησεν.
PLAT.The son of Thetis despised danger.
(μέλει, μεταμέλει take Dative of Person, Genitive of Thing:
ἐμοὶ δ᾽ ἔλασσον Ζηνὸς ἢ μηδὲν μέλει.
AESCH.I care less than nothing for Zeus.
(2) Verbs of the senses: ἅπτομαι, touch; γεύομαι, taste; ὀσφραίνομαι, smell; αἰσθάνομαι, perceive:
“τί δῆτα κλάεις; Κρομμύων ὀσφραίνομαι.” "Why then do you weep?" "I smell onions.”
So
ἔλαβον τῆς ζώνης τὸν Ὀρόντην.
ΧEN. They seized Orontes by the girdle.Note.—ἀκούω takes Genitive of Person, Accusative of Thing:
ταῦτα Καλύψους ἤκουσα.
Ηом.This I heard from Calypso.
(3) Verbs of straining after, ἐπιθυμέω; attaining, τυγχάνω; missing, ἁμαρτάνω :
τοῦ σκοποῦ ἁμαρτὼν τοῦ παιδὸς ἔτυχεν.
ΑΝΤΙΡH.He missed the mark and hit the child.
A Partitive Genitive also follows verbs: e.g., μετέχω, μεταδίδωμι; a Separative Genitive (§ 260) verbs like παύω.
Verbs of mastery, βασιλεύω, etc., take either a Comparative Genitive (§ 263) or an Indirect Dative (§ 278).
5. The Genitive of Fulness and Want.
Verbs and Adjectives implying fulness or want are followed by a Genitive:
E.g., πλήρης, κενός, πίμπλημι, δέομαι, δεῖ, σπανίζω :
ποταμὸς πλήρης ἰχθύων.
ΧΕΝ.A river full of fish.
Ν.Β.—πολλοῦ δεῖ, far from it (lit., it lacks much; cf. French, "il s'en faut de beaucoup").
Obs. The Genitive of Want is half-Privative (§ 260). Verbs of fulness take also an Instrumental Dative (§ 269).
6. The Genitive of Cause
is used:
(1) With Verbs of accusing, acquitting, condemning:
διώκω μὲν κατηγορίας, φόνου δὲ φεύγω.
LYS.I prosecute for libel, I am prosecuted for murder.
(But κατηγορεῖν τινος δειλίαν, to accuse some one of cowardice; καταγιγνώσκειν τινὸς θάνατον, to condemn some one to death.)
(2) With Verbs of feeling, ζηλόω, θαυμάζω, χάριν ἔχω, etc.:
ζηλῶ σε τοῦ νοῦ, τῆς δὲ δειλίας στυγῶ.
SOPH.I envy thee for thy wit, but hate thee for thy cowardice.
(3) In exclamations (cf. Eng. "alas for my ill-fortune") :
ἀλλαντοπώλης; ὦ Πόσειδον τῆς τέχνης.
AR.A sausage-seller! Poseidon, what a trade!
7. The Genitive of Value:
with to buy, sell, value:
δόξα χρημάτων οὐκ ὠνητή.
ISAEUS.Glory is not to be purchased for money.
Ν.Β.—πολλοῦ, οὐδένος ποιεῖσθαι, to make much, nothing of.
So after τίμιος, ἄξιος, worth (§265), and Verbs of exchanging.
(To buy and exchange take also Instrum. Dative, § 268.)
(On the Genitives of Time and Place, νυκτός, by night, see § 303.)
Obs. Many of the Genitives classed as Objective or Causal may be Genitives of Respect. This is especially so with some of the vaguer Genitives after Adjectives. Sometimes the Genitive depends on a word contained in the Adjective: e.g.,
δωμάτων ὑπόστεγοι.
SOPH.Under shelter of the house.
In other cases, e.g., with words expressing "want," it is difficult to distinguish between the Genitive Proper and the Genitive of Ablation.
B. Genitive of Ablation.
1. The Genitive of Motion from: in Prose, with Preposition (§ 305).
2. The Genitive of Separation or Privation: After Verbs implying to remove, release, deprive, cease, differ and the like:
ἐπεὶ δὲ θρήνων καὶ γόων ἐπαύσατο.
EUR.But when she had ceased from moaning and lament.
So with Verbs of wanting, δέομαι, σπανίζω, ἀπορέω (see supra, § 255).
So with Adjectives, Adverbs and (§ 291) Prepositions implying the same ideas : E.g., γυμνός, ὄρφανος, χωρίς, ἄνευ, etc.
γλῶσσα καθαρὰ τῶν σημείων.
HDT.A tongue clear of the marks.
ABLATIVE CASE.
3. The Ablative of Origin:
Apollo Jove natus est et Latona.
CIC.Apollo was born from Jove and Latona.
(Of distant ancestors, ab or ex is prefixed.)
4. The Ablative of the Agent, with a or ab:
marks the person from whom the action arises or originates; see Passive Construction, § 148.
5. The Comparative Ablative (Major humano, larger than human):
shows the point of departure from which the Comparison originates: "A is better, judging from B," § 62.
6. The Ablative Absolute (Regibus exactis, the kings being expelled; Teucro duce, with Teucer as leader)
is probably an Ablative of Accompaniment (§272). See § 195.
The following also take an Ablative:
(1) dignus, indignus; dignor (I deem worthy):
Dignum laude virum Musa vetat mori.
HOR.A man worthy of praise the Muse forbids to die.
(2) Opus est, there is need of:
Ubi res adsunt, quid opus est verbis?
SALL.When facts are forthcoming, what need is there of words?
Obs. The last three, the Ablative Absolute, and the Ablatives with dignus and opus, are probably rather Instrumental (Accompaniment or Means).
B. The Instrumental Ablative.
1. The Ablative of Means or Instrument (cf. § 149):
Dente lupus, cornu taurus petit.
HOR.The wolf attacks with his teeth, the bull with his horns.
The idea of Means includes many idioms, the character of which is sometimes obscured by the English equivalent: e.g., "he entered by the gate,” “I hold in (viz., with) my hand," “to receive within (viz., with) the house". So also—
2. The Ablative of Measure of Difference:
Hibernia dimidio minor est Britannia.
CAES.Ireland is smaller than Britain by one half.
So Multo major, much bigger.
3. The Ablative of Price (see Genitive of Value, § 257):
Vendidit hic auro patriam.
VIRG.This man sold his country for (with) gold.
3. The Genitive of Origin:
πατρὸς λέγεται Κῦρος γενέσθαι Καμβύσου.
XEN.Cyrus is said to have been the son of Cambyses.
(More often ἐξ or ἀπό is prefixed.)
4. The Ablative of the Agent, with ὑπό:
marks the person from whom the action arises or originates; see Passive Construction, § 148.
5. The Comparative Genitive (μείζων ἀνδρός, larger than a man):
shows the point of departure from which the Comparison originates: "A is better, judging from B," § 62.
6. The Genitive Absolute (Θεοῦ θέλοντος, God willing)
probably, in spite of its resemblance to the Latin Ablative Absolute, marks the Antecedent Circumstances like 4 (§ 195).
The following also take a Genitive:
(1) ἄξιος, ἀνάξιος, ἀξιόω (I deem worthy) (cf. § 257):
τί δ᾽ ἄξιον μοι τῆσδε τυγχάνει φυγῆς;
EUR.What have I done to earn this banishment?
(2) χρεία ἐστι, δεῖ, there is need of:
σοί τε γὰρ παίδων τί δεῖ;
EUR.What need hast thou of children?
5. The Dative.
The Dative has three uses: A. Instrumental, B. Locative, C. Dative Proper.
A. The Instrumental Dative.
1. The Dative of Means or Instrument (cf. § 149):
χρηστὸς πονηροῖς οὐ τιτρώσκεται λόγοις.
MENANDER.A good man is not wounded by bad words.
The idea of Means includes many idioms, the character of which is sometimes obscured by the English equivalent: e.g., "he entered by the gate,” “I hold in (viz., with) my hand," “to receive within (viz., with) the house". So also—
2. The Dative of Measure of Difference:
Ὀρέστης τῇ κεφαλῇ μείζων ἦν τῶν νῦν ἀνθρώπων.
Orestes was taller by a head than the men of to-day.
So πολλῷ μεῖζων, much bigger.
3. The Dative of Penalty, less often Price:
ἐζημίωσαν Φρύνιχον χιλίαις δραχμαῖς.
HDT.They fined Phrynichus (with) a thousand drachmae.
INSTRUMENTAL CASE.
4. The Ablative of Material:
Britanni lacte et carne vivunt, pellibusque sunt vestiti.
CAES.The Britons live on milk and meat, and are clothed with skins.
So with the Adjectives plenus, praeditus, fretus; and the Verbs utor, fruor, fungor, vescor, potior:
Hannibal cum victoriâ posset uti frui maluit.
LIV.Hannibal, when he might have used his victory, preferred to enjoy it.
(Plenus and potior take also a Genitive (§§ 254, 255).)
5. The Ablative of Cause:
Mantua Vergilio gaudet, Verona Catullo.
OV.Mantua rejoices in (through) Virgil, Verona in Catullus.
6. The Ablative of Connexion,
after, e.g., misceo, conjungo, especially in the Passive Participle:
Commixtis igne tenebris.
VIRG.Gloom mingled with fire.
(After Finite Verbs cum is usually added.)
7. The Ablative of Manner or Attendant Circumstance,
usually with an Epithet or cum :
Jam veniet tacito curva senecta pede.
OV.Soon bent old age will come with silent step.
Sometimes literal Accompaniment is thus expressed: e.g., "he came with a large army".
Probably the Ablative Absolute is of this kind (§ 264).
With certain Adverbial Phrases the Preposition may be omitted:
Jure, rightly; more, after the manner of; vi, by force.
8. The Ablative of Quality,
with an Epithet (cf. the Genitive of Quality, § 247):
Senex promissa barba, horrenti capillo.
PLIN.An old man with a long beard and rough hair.
Note that the Ablative is used chiefly of physical qualities, the Genitive only of mental qualities.
C. The Locative Ablative.
1. The Ablative of Place where: rure, in the country (§ 307).
2. The Ablative of Time when: vere, in spring (§ 301).
3. The Ablative of Respect (cf. Accusative, § 231):
Ennius ingenio maximus, arte rudis.
OV.Ennius mighty in genius, rude in art.
So in such phrases as "few in number," "Calchas by (in) name," "a Persian by (in) race".
So of the Part Affected:
Et corde et genibus tremit.
HOR.She trembles both in heart and knee.
6. The Dative
(1) The Dative of the Indirect Object.
(a) With Transitive Verbs of giving, telling, showing, promising, entrusting, owing, which take a Direct Accusative :
Caesar Pompeio tres legiones tradidit.
CAES.Cæsar handed over three legions to Pompey.
(b) After Intransitive Verbs, to believe, spare or pardon, obey, command, persuade, permit, please, help, hurt :
Credo, invideo, parco, ignosco, pareo, impero, persuadeo, permitto, placeo, subvenio, noceo:
Imperare sibi maximum imperium est.
SEN.To master oneself is the highest mastery.
(Many Verbs similar in meaning to the above take a Direct Accusative; e.g., compare with the last six: Jubeo, moneo, sino, delecto, juvo, laedo.)
Note. If the Verbs in (b) are used Transitively, they of course take an Accusative of the Direct Object:
Caesar equites toti provinciae imperaverat.
CAES.Cæsar had requisitioned the whole province for cavalry.
Beside the above, many Verbs, whether Transitive or Intransitive, when compounded with Prepositions, take a Dative: especially compounds of sum, e.g., desum, prosum; even Verbs of taking away, e.g., adimo, aufero. Also compounds of bene, male, satis, e.g., satisfacio.
Conjux capiti subduxerat ensem.
VIRG.My wife had removed my sword from beneath my head.
Many Adjectives and Adverbs, e.g., useful, becoming, kind, obedient, like, take a Dative, like the Verbs they resemble :
* Par levibus ventis volucrique simillima somno.
VIRG.Like to light winds, and similar to fleeting sleep.
Similis, dissimilis take a Genitive always of Personal Pronouns, usually of living things: Ille similis est mei (PLAUT.), He is like me.
(2) The Dative of Interest.
While the Dative of the Indirect Object is confined to certain Verbs, the Dative of Interest may be used with any Verb. It is called also the Dativus Commodi or Dativus Incommodi, if it expresses what is distinctly to anyone's Advantage or Disadvantage.
Sic vos non vobis mellificatis, apes.
OV.Thus ye make honey not for yourselves, O bees.
(So arceo or defendo aliquid alicui, to keep off something from (for) any one.)
Sometimes this Dative expresses merely the Person Judging, the person from whose point of view a statement is made:
Quintia formosa est multis, mihi candida.
CAT.Quintia is beautiful in the eyes of many, in mine she is fair.
In its vaguest use it is called the Ethic Dative—confined to personal pronouns: cf. “knock me on this door".
Quid mihi Celsus agit?
HOR.What is my friend Celsus doing? (Or, What, I pray, etc.)
The Dative of Interest often occurs where we should use a Genitive or a Possessive Pronoun:
Sese flentes Caesari ad pedes projecerunt.
CAES.They threw themselves in tears at Cæsar's feet.
The following special uses are only forms of the Dative of Interest in another guise :
(1) The Dative of the Possessor: with the Verb "to be":
Est mihi namque domi pater.
VIRG.For I have a father at home (there is for me).
(2) The Dative of the Agent: with Gerunds, Gerundives, and Verbal Adjectives (§188):
Mihi dormiendum est, I must sleep (cf. "sleep is the thing for me").
(In Poetry this use extends to Passive Participles.)
(3) The Dative of the thing or Predicative Dative expresses the result, purpose, or bearing of an action. It is often joined to a Dative of the Person, when the whole phrase is called the Double Dative :
Exitio est avidum mare nautis.
HOR.The ravenous sea is (for) a destruction to sailors.
The Prepositions.
Prepositions define further the meaning already present in the case. They were once adverbs, and some remain so still.
(1) Twenty-eight Prepositions with the Accusative only:
Ad, to; adversus, against; apud, at, near; ante, post, before, after (time, place, or relation); pone, behind; circum, circa, circiter, round, about; cis, citra, on this side of; ultra, on the other side of, beyond; contra, against, opposite to; erga, towards (not of place); inter, among, between, during; extra, outside; intra, within (time, or place); infra, supra, beneath, above (place or relation); juxta, adjoining; ob, on account of; penes, in the power of; per, through (place, time, or relation); praeter, along, past, besides; prope, near; propter, on account of, along; secundum, along, next to, according to; trans, across, over; versus, towards.
Note.—Versus always follows its case: Brundisium versus. CIC. Towards Brundisium.
(2) Twelve Prepositions with the Ablative only:
A, ab, by, from; absque, without (rare); coram, in the presence of; de, down from, concerning; sine, without; tenus, as far as; pro, in front of, on behalf of; prae, in front of, compared with; palam, in the sight of; clam, unknown to; cum, with; e, ex, out of, from.
Note 1.—A, e before Consonants; ab, ex before Vowels or Consonants.
Note 2.—Mecum, tecum, secum, nobiscum, vobiscum, quibuscum: not cum me, etc.
Note 3.—Tenus, like versus, always follows its case; it also takes a Genitive.
Capulo tenus abdidit ensem.
VIRG.He buried his sword to the hilt.
Note 4.—Clam is used in Comedy also with the Genitive.
INSTRUMENTAL CASE.
So ἀλλάσσω, change, with Dat.
4. The Dative of Material:
ἅρμα τε οἱ χρυσῷ τε καὶ ἀργύρῳ εὖ ἤσκηται.
ΗΟΜ.And his chariot is well-inlaid with gold and silver.
So χράομαι, I use, and in the same sense, νομίζω :
ἔχρητο τῇ τραπέζῃ τοῦ πατρός.
DEM.He had dealings with his father's bank.
(Most Verbs and all Adjectives implying to "abound in" take a Genitive of Fulness (§ 255).)
5. The Dative of Cause:
εὐπραγίαις οὐκ ἐξυβρίζομεν.
THUC.We do not break out into insolence through success.
6. The Dative of Connexion,
after, e.g., ὁμιλέω, μίγνυμι, συλλέγομαι, μάχομαι, ἀκολουθέω, ἕπομαι:
θρόμβῳ δ᾽ ἔμιξεν αἵματος φίλον γάλα.
AESCH.And mingled the sweet milk with gouts of blood.
(With these, σύν or ἅμα is often added.)
7. The Dative of Manner or Attendant Circumstance,
usually with an Epithet or σύν:
οἱ ᾿Ἀθηναῖοι ἀτελεῖ τῇ νίκῃ ἀνέστησαν.
ΤHUC.The Athenians retired with their victory incomplete.
Sometimes literal Accompaniment is thus expressed: e.g., "he came with a large army".
(It is often expressed by ἔχων: e.g., πολὺν στρατὸν ἔχων παρῆλθεν.)
With certain Adverbial Phrases the Preposition may be omitted:
δίκῃ, rightly; πέζῃ, on foot; δρόμῳ, at full speed.
Note. To the Dative of Accompaniment αὐτός is often added:
μίαν ναῦν ἔλαβον αὐτοῖς ἀνδράσιν.
THUC.They took one ship, men and all (with the men themselves).
(The Dative of Quality should not be used in Greek: e.g., "with long hair,” μακρὰν ἔχων τὴν κόμην : cf. § 272.)
B. The Locative Dative.
1. The Dative of Place where: Μαραθῶνι, at Marathon (§ 307).
2. The Dative of Time when: τῇ προτεραίᾳ, the day before (§ 301).
3. The Dative of Respect (cf. Accusative, § 231):
λόγῳ μὲν δημοκρατία, ἔργῳ δὲ ἀρχή.
THUC.In theory, a republic; in fact, a despotism.
So in such phrases as "few in number," "Calchas by (in) name," "a Persian by (in) race".
In most of these the Accusative can also be used; the Part Affected is invariably Accusative.
C. The Dative Proper.
(1) The Dative of the Indirect Object.
(a) With Transitive Verbs of giving, telling, showing, promising, entrusting, owing, which take a Direct Accusative :
ἡ μωρία δίδωσιν ἀνθρώποις κακά.
MENANDER.Folly brings evil to men.
(b) After Intransitive Verbs, to believe, spare or pardon, obey, command, persuade, permit, please, help, hurt :
πιστεύω, φθονέω, συγγιγνώσκω, πείθομαι, ἐντέλλομαι, παραινέω, συγχωρέω, ἀρέσκω, βοηθέω, λυμαίνομαι (on συν-, see § 280):
πείσομαι δὲ μᾶλλον τῷ θεῷ ἢ ὑμῖν.
PLAT.I shall obey God rather than you.
(Many Verbs similar in meaning to the above take a Direct Accusative; e.g., compare with the last six: κελεύω, πείθω, ἐάω, τέρπω, ὠφελέω, βλάπτω.)
Note. If the Verbs in (b) are used Transitively, they of course take an Accusative of the Direct Object:
παραινέσαι γέ σοι θέλω τὰ λῷστα.
ÆSCH.I wish at any rate to give thee the best advice.
Beside the above, many Verbs, whether Transitive or Intransitive, when compounded with Prepositions, take a Dative: especially compounds of ἐπί and πρός, in the sense of adding or attacking. E.g.:
εὐπετῶς ἐπιθήσει Εὐβοίᾳ.
HDT.You will easily attack Eubœia.
(Compounds of σύν take a Dative of Connexion, Instrumental, § 271.)
Many Adjectives and Adverbs, e.g., useful, becoming, kind, obedient, like, take a Dative, like the Verbs they resemble :
κύματα πελώρια, ἶσα ὄρεσιν.
Hом.Huge waves, like mountains.
(With words implying difference, ἀλλότριος, διάφορος, a Separative Genitive is usual, § 260. But note διάφορός τινι, at variance with someone.)
(2) The Dative of Interest.
While the Dative of the Indirect Object is confined to certain Verbs, the Dative of Interest may be used with any Verb. It is called also the Dativus Commodi or Dativus Incommodi, if it expresses what is distinctly to anyone's Advantage or Disadvantage.
πᾶς ἀνὴρ αὑτῷ πονεῖ.
SOPH.Every one labours for himself.
(So ἀμύνειν, τιμωρεῖν τινι, to defend, avenge any one (keep off, punish, for some one); ἀμύνειν, τιμωρεῖν τινα, to keep off, punish some one.)
Sometimes this Dative expresses merely the Person Judging, the person from whose point of view a statement is made:
Ἐπίδαμνός ἐστι πόλις ἐν δεξίᾳ ἐσπλέοντι.
THUC.Epidamnus is a city on the right hand as you sail in.
In its vaguest use it is called the Ethic Dative—confined to personal pronouns: cf. “knock me on this door".
μέμνησθέ μοι μὴ θορυβεῖν.
PLAT.Remember, I pray, not to interrupt.
The Dative of Interest often occurs where we should use a Genitive or a Possessive Pronoun:
σκῆπτρον δέ οἱ ἐξέπεσε χειρός.
Hом.And the staff fell from his hand.
The following special uses are only forms of the Dative of Interest in another guise :
(1) The Dative of the Possessor: with the Verb "to be," etc.:
ἐνταῦθα Κύρῳ ἢν παράδεισος μέγας.
ΧΕΝ.Cyrus had a large park there.
(2) The Dative of the Agent: with Verbal Adjectives (§188):
ὠφελητέα σοι ἡ πόλις ἐστίν.
XEN.You must benefit the State (lit., here is the State for you, to be benefited).
Obs. The Dative of Agent is also used with the Third Person Singular of the Perfect and Pluperfect Passive:
ἐπειδὴ παρεσκεύαστο Κορινθίοις.
THUC.When the Corinthians had made their preparations.
(The Dative of the Thing is not used in Greek.)
The Prepositions.
Prepositions define further the meaning already present in the case. They were once adverbs, and some remain so still.
(1) Three Prepositions with the Accusative:
εἰς (ἐς), into, to; ὡς, to (of Persons); ἀνά, up, throughout :
ἀφίκετο ὡς Περδίκκαν καὶ ἐς τὴν Χαλκιδικήν.
THUC.He came to Perdiccas and to Chalcidice.
Note 1.—εἰς is preferred before both consonants and vowels by Attic Prose writers, except Thucydides, who uses ἐς; in Attic Verse, ἐς is usual before consonants, εἰς before vowels, unless the metre requires ἐς.
Note 2.—ἀνά is found in Epic with the Dative. Observe ἄνα (N.B. accent) for ἀνάστηθι, up! (§ 295.)
Two Prepositions with the Dative only:
ξύν (σύν), with; ἐν, in (of time or place).
Note.—σύν is preferred in Prose; ξύν, the older form, in Tragedy, unless the metre requires σύν.
(μετά with the Genitive absorbs many of the uses of σύν with the Dative.)
Four Prepositions with the Genitive only:
ἀντί, instead of; ἀπό, from; ἐκ (ἐξ), out of; πρό, before (of place, time, or preference).
Note.—ἐκ is used before consonants, ἐξ before vowels.
(2) Five Prepositions with the Accusative and Genitive:
διά, through; 1. Acc. = on account of; 2. Gen. = by means of, (motion) through.
κατά, down; 1. Acc. = along, according to; 2. Gen. = down from, down on.
ὑπέρ, over; 1. Acc. = beyond, more than; 2. Gen. = on behalf of.
ἀμφί, about; 1. Acc. = round, nearly; 2. Gen. = concerning.
μετά, attendant on; 1. Acc. = after; 2. Gen. = with.
(Note especially δι' αὐτόν, because of him, δι' αὐτοῦ, by his means; μετ᾿ αὐτόν, after him, μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ, with him.)
or Accusative. Even with the Ablative it is rare as a Preposition in Prose.
(3) Four Prepositions with Accusative or Ablative:
Super, above; 1. Acc. = over, beyond; 2. Abl. = rest over.
Sub, under; 1. Acc. = to under; 2. Abl. = rest under.
Subter, under; 1. Acc. = to under; 2. Abl. = rest under.
In; 1. Acc. = into; 2. Abl. = in, on.
(With all four, the Accusative implies motion; the Ablative rest: Sub arbore restat, he remains under the tree; sub arborem venit, he comes under the tree. But the motion is often previous to the action of the Verb: Sub arborem consedit, he halted under the tree.)
Obs. Several of the above are also Adverbs: pone, circum, ante, post, all in -tra, palam, clam, coram.
The Adverbs procul, simul are also used as Prepositions with the Abl. (§§ 260, 271); causâ, gratiâ, for the sake of, can be followed by the Gen.
Distinguish Longum post tempus, after a long time (Prep.), and Longo post tempore, a long time afterwards (Adv.).
The following idioms with Prepositions should be noticed :
Ad Cannas, at Cannae; ad voluptatem vivere, to live for pleasure; nihil ad rem, not to the point; ad haec, in addition to this; per te stetit, it was through you; per deos, in Heaven's name; per haec, by these means; propter haec, on account of this; secundum legem, according to law; contra legem, contrary to law; praeter hoc, except this; praeter spem, beyond one's hopes; apud eum, at his house; apud (contra) Massiliam, off Marseilles; cum dis, with Heaven's help; ex Metello consule, from the consulship of Metellus; ex itinere captus, captured on a journey; e dextra, on the right (so ad dextram); unus ex illis, one of them; in Ganymede, in the case of Ganymede; in equum ascendere, to mount on horseback (but equo vehi, to ride); in gratiam, for the benefit of; in hostes, against the enemy; sub noctem, at nightfall; sub montem, close up under the mountain; sub specie pacis, under pretence of peace; ab omni parte, on every side; ab aliquo, by anyone (agent); stare ab aliquo, to be on anyone's side; de his, about this; pro patriâ, for one's country; supra modum, beyond measure.
Notes on the Prepositions.
Prepositions are sometimes used "proleptically" (§ 545), anticipating a condition not yet attained.
Chiefly with in and the Ablative: e.g.,
In sacri vertice montis abit.
OV.Departs (and abides) on the summit of the sacred mount.
The Preposition generally precedes both the Substantive and its Attribute: e.g.,
Cum multâ vi; propter belli Latini metum.
But it often comes between the Substantive and Adjective: e.g.,
Magnâ cum curâ; uno in illo proelio.
In Poetry it often precedes the Attribute alone: e.g.,
Coelo demittit ab alto.
VIRG.
Namque sub Oebaliae memini me turribus altis.
VIRG.
(This licence does not extend to monosyllables. Thus, in writing verses, such phrases as Littus ad, to the shore, must be avoided.)
Prepositions in Composition with Verbs.
All the above Prepositions, except adversus, versus, tenus, penes, clam, palam, coram, and those in -tra, can be joined to Verbs; also ambi-, on both sides; dis-, asunder; re-, back; se-, apart; por- (= pro), forward.
A few special meanings of Prepositions in Composition should be noticed :
Subrideo, smile (slightly); submitto, send secretly; lux sublapsa, light flashing up (from under); subverto, overthrow; declamo, bluster loudly; desaevit hiemps, the storm rages itself out; denuntio, threaten; deduco, lead forth; perficio, finish; pereo, die; excipio, succeed (in order); emorior, die off; abutor, (1) use fully, (2) misuse; reddo, render what is due, give back; resigno, unseal; transfero, translate, transcribe; transmuto, interchange; intersum, take part in; intermitto, interrupt; intervello, thin.
With Compound Verbs the Preposition is, as a rule, repeated only where physical motion is implied: e.g.,
Mare or per mare percurrere, to pass over the sea; but, Multas res oratione percurrere, to enumerate details. (But usually abhorrere ab, to shrink from.)
One Preposition in Composition is often explained by another:
Ad- by in; ab- by de or ex; de- by ex; e.g., in murum ascendere; ex equo descendere.
A Compound Verb may sometimes govern either a new case (§280) or the one required by its Preposition. This is especially so in phrases expressing "motion to":
Curetum adlabimur oris—VIRG. (Dative); but, Fama adlabitur aures—VIRG. (Accusative).
Time, Place, Space.
1. Time: how long, when, within which.
Time is expressed by a Case, without a Preposition.
(1) Time how long: the Accusative (§ 230):
Pericles quadraginta annos praefuit Athenis.
CIC.Pericles was head of Athens for forty years.
Note the expression of age with the Participle, "being born":
Cato quinque et octoginta annos natus excessit e vita.
CIC.Cato died at the age of eighty-five.
or Accusative. Even with the Ablative it is rare as a Preposition in Prose.
Note. The Dative is found in Poetry with μετά (among) and ἀμφί (about).
(3) Five Prepositions with the Accusative, Genitive and Dative:
ἐπί, on; 1. Acc. = against; 2. Gen. = on (partially); 3. Dat. = on (wholly).
παρά, beside; 1. Acc. = to (beside), contrary to; 2. Gen. = from (beside); 3. Dat. = near (beside).
περί, around; 1. Acc. = (motion) round; 2. Gen. = concerning; 3. Dat. = (rest) round.
πρός, to; 1. Acc. = towards, regarding; 2. Gen. = in respect to; 3. Dat. = in addition to.
ὑπό, under; 1. Acc. = to under; 2. Gen. = from under; 3. Dat. = (rest) under.
Many Adverbs are also used as Prepositions :
(a) With Dative : ἅμα, ὁμοῦ, along with.
(b) With Genitive : πλήν, except; ἄνευ, ἄτερ, χωρίς, δίχα, without; ἕνεκα, ἕνεκεν, ἕκατι, for the sake of (these follow their case); λάθρα, κρύφα, unknown to; and Adverbs of Place: εἴσω, inside; ἐκτός, outside; μεταξύ, between; ἐγγύς, πέλας, πλησίον, ἄγχι, near. (The last four less often take a Dative.)
The following idioms with Prepositions should be noticed :
πρὸς βωμόν, at the altar; πρὸς ἡδονὴν ζῆν, to live for pleasure; πρὸς ταῦτα, therefore; πρὸς τούτοις, in addition to these things; πρὸς αὐτοῦ, by him (agent); πρὸς θεῶν, in Heaven's name; διὰ τούτων, by these means; διὰ ταῦτα, on account of this; κατὰ νόμον, according to law; παρὰ νόμον, contrary to law; οὐδὲν παρὰ ταῦτα, nothing except this; παρ' ἐλπίδα, beyond one's hopes; παρὰ Κῦρον, Κύρου, Κύρῳ, to, from, at the court of Cyrus; μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ (σὺν αὐτῷ), with him; μετὰ ταῦτα (ἐκ τούτων), after these things; ἐκ δεξιᾶς, on the right (so ἐπὶ δεξιᾶς, πρὸς δεξιάν, κατὰ δεξιάν); τυφλὸς ἐκ δεδορκότος, blind after seeing; ἐφ᾽ ἵππου, on horseback; ἐπ᾿ ἐμοῦ, in my time; τὰ ἐπὶ Θράκῃς, the parts Thracewards; ἐπὶ πολέμῳ, with a view to war; ἐπὶ τούτοις, on these conditions; ἐπ᾿ αὐτόν, against him; ὑπὸ νύκτα, at nightfall; ὑπὸ ὄρος, or ὑπὸ ὄρους, under the mountain; ὑπὸ σάλπιγγος πίνειν, to drink to the sound of the trumpet; ὑπό τινος, by anyone (agent); οἱ περὶ Πείσανδρον, Pisander's followers; περὶ τούτων, about these things; ὑπὲρ πόλεως, for one's country; ὑπὲρ αἶσαν, beyond measure.
Notes on the Prepositions.
Prepositions are sometimes used "proleptically" (§ 545), anticipating a condition not yet attained.
Frequent with ἐν, εἰς, ἐκ, especially with the Article:
ἐκδιδράσκουσιν οἱ ἐκ τῶν Ὀρνεῶν.
THUC.The men at Orneae escape.
The Preposition generally precedes both the Substantive and its Attribute: e.g.,
μετὰ πολλῆς σπουδῆς, ἐν τῇ τῶν πολεμίων χώρᾳ.
In Prose this rule is almost invariable; in Poetry there is some licence. Note the following examples:
τῆσδ᾽ ἀπ᾿ Ἰδαίας χθονός.
ἴσχε διὰ πολυρράφου στρέφων πόρπακος.
ἐν τοῖς ᾿Ατρείδου δοῦλος ᾤκισται δόμοις.
In poetry also a two-syllabled Preposition often follows its Noun; cf. English, "We roam the fields around": e.g.,
τῆσδε τῆς χώρας ὕπερ, for this country. N.B., the accent is here thrown back ("Anastrophe") with all except ἀντί, ἀμφί, διά, ἀνά (§ 289).
πέρι is often postponed after a Genitive, even in Prose.
Prepositions in Composition with Verbs.
All these Prepositions, except ὡς, to, are used also in Composition; also the semi-Adverbial δίχα, apart; πάλιν, back; ὁμοῦ, along with; and some others. E.g., ὁμολογῶ τινι, I agree with someone.
A few special meanings of Prepositions in Composition should be noticed :
ὑπογελάω, smile (slightly); ὑποφεύγω, escape secretly; ἀναιρέω, overthrow; καθαιρέω, overthrow; κατακλαίω, weep bitterly; κατακοιμᾶν τὴν ἡμέραν, sleep out the day; κατηγορέω, accuse; κατάγειν, restore from exile; διατελέω, finish; διανέμω, distribute; διάδοχος, a successor; ἀποθνήσκω, die (off); ἀποχράομαι, (1) use fully, (2) misuse; ἀποδίδωμι, render what is due, give back; ἀποκαλύπτω, uncover; μεταγράφειν, translate, transcribe; μεταλλάσσω, interchange; μεταδίδωμι, μετέχω, give, have a share of; μεταπέμπω, send for.
With Compound Verbs the Preposition is, as a rule, repeated only where physical motion is implied: e.g.,
νῆσον or διὰ νήσου διελθεῖν, to pass over an island; ἕκαστα λόγῳ διελθεῖν, to enumerate details. (But ἀπό is invariably repeated.)
One Preposition in Composition is often explained by another:
ἐν- or ἀνα- by εἰς; ἀπο- or κατα- by ἐξ; e.g., ἐμβαίνειν εἰς ναῦν; καταβαίνειν ἐκ δίφρου.
A Compound Verb may sometimes govern either a new case (§280) or the one required by its Preposition. This is especially so in phrases expressing "motion to":
τοὺς ἡμῖν ἐπιστρατεύσαντας—THUC. (Dative); but, τοὺς μὴ ἐπικαλουμένους ἐπιστρατεύουσιν.—THUC. (Accusative).
Time, Place, Space.
1. Time: how long, when, within which.
Time is expressed by a Case, without a Preposition.
(1) Time how long: the Accusative (§ 230):
τρὶς ἐννέα ἔτη ἐγένετο ὁ πόλεμος.
THUC.The Peloponnesian War lasted for thrice nine years.
Note the expression of age with the Participle, "being born":
ἐπεχείρει δημηγορεῖν οὐδέπω εἴκοσιν ἔτη γεγονώς.
ΧΕΝ.He attempted to address the people when not yet twenty-one.
EXPRESSION OF TIME.
(2) Time when: the Ablative (§ 275) :
Mancipia venibant Saturnalibus tertiis.
CIC.The slaves were sold on the third day of the Saturnalia.
With Numbers expressing "time after, before which," the Ordinal (§ 78) is preferred where we use the Cardinal:
Anno tricesimo altero post urbem conditam. 32 years after the founding of Rome.
(With abhinc either the Ablative or an Accusative of Duration may be used: thirty days ago, abhinc diebus triginta or abhinc dies triginta.)
(3) Time within which: the Ablative:
Tribus horis Aduaticam venire potestis.
CIC.You can get to Aduatuca within three hours.
So especially with negatives, "for":
Roscius Romam multis annis non venit.
CIC.Roscius has not been to Rome for many years.
(So of vaguer phrases, nocte dieque, by night and day. In all these, the Ablative, expressing any point within a space of time, must be distinguished carefully from the Accusative, which expresses action lasting throughout a space of time.)
2. Place: whither, whence, where.
Place is usually expressed by a Case with a Preposition :
(1) Place whither: the Accusative with in or ad :
Caesar in Italiam magnis itineribus contendit.
CAES.Cæsar hurried into Italy by forced marches.
(2) Place whence: the Ablative with ab or ex:
Ducite ab urbe domum, mea carmina, ducite Daphnim.
VIRG.Lead Daphnis from the city, O my songs.
(3) Place where: the Ablative with in:
Castra sunt in Italia contra rempublicam collocata.
CIC.A camp has been established in Italy against the State.
Note. With the names of towns and small islands, domus, foras, rus, the Accusative (§ 225), Ablative (§ 259) and Locative (§ 257) are used without a Preposition. (The Locative = (a) Genitive, if First or Second Declension and Singular (§ 257); (b) Ablative, if Third Declension or Plural) (§ 274).
Demaratus fugit Tarquinios Corintho.
CIC.Demaratus fled to Tarquinii from Corinth.
(a) Quid Romae faciam? JUV. What am I to do at Rome?
(b) Philippus Neapoli est, Lentulus Puteolis. CIC. Philippus is at Naples, Lentulus at Puteoli.
So domi, at home; militiae, abroad; humi, on the ground.
(Some words have either Locative or Ablative termination: Tibure or -i, Carthagine or -i, rure or -i.)
Road by which: the Ablative of the Instrument (see Remark, § 266) :
Ibam forte Viâ Sacrâ.
HOR.I happened to be walking along the Sacred Way.
3. Space, Distance, Measure.
(1) Space over which: the Accusative (§ 229):
Milia tum pransi tria repimus.
HOR.Then having lunched we crawl three miles.
(2) Distance: the Accusative (§ 229) (sometimes the Ablative, § 267):
Marathon abest ab Athenis circiter milia passuum decem.
NEP.(Or milibus passuum.) Marathon is about ten miles from Athens.
(3) Measure, height, breadth, etc.: the Accusative (§ 229) :
Erant muri Babylonis ducenos pedes alti.
PLIN.The walls of Babylon were each 200 feet high.
(Instead of "to go to a person at a place," the usual idiom is " to go to a place to a person"; and so with motion from:
Ex suis unum Romam ad patrem mittit.
LIV.He despatches one of his friends to his father at Rome.
Case-Construction of the Commoner Verbs.
Two Accusatives. Rogo, celo, doceo.
Genitive. Memini, obliviscor, misereor, (piget, pudet, paenitet, taedet, miseret, Acc. and Gen.).
Genitive or Ablative. Egeo, indigeo, potior.
Ablative. Utor, fruor, vescor, fungor, dignor, careo (opus est mihi).
Dative. Parco, pareo, placeo, ignosco, invideo, impero, credo, subvenio, succurro, suadeo, persuadeo, permitto, irascor, minor, faveo, nubo, insto, resisto, (objicio), obviam eo, noceo, prosum, desum, intersum, (licet, libet, convenit).
(The Impersonals may also take Acc. and Infin., § 381.)
THE CONJUNCTIONS.
1. Copulative: and.
Et has four meanings: (1) and, (2) both, (3) also, (4) even.
-que*, (1) and, (2) both, must be attached to a word: multaque.
Atque, ac, and, is used especially in coupling two similar words: Cura atque diligentia, care and diligence.
(Atque, before vowels or consonants; ac, only before consonants.)
When several words are coupled, e.g., brothers, parents, children, the following systems are used :
(a) Fratres et parentes et liberi (or in Poetry, -que—que).
(b) Fratres, parentes, liberi.
(c) Fratres, parentes, liberique.
(But not Fratres, parentes et liberi.)
The following expressions for "both—and" may be used:
(a) Et—et: the commonest, both for words and clauses.
EXPRESSION OF TIME.
(2) Time when: the Dative (§ 275):
οἱ ἐν Ἰθώμῃ τετάρτῳ ἔτει συνέβησαν.
THUC.Those on Ithome came to terms in the fourth year.
With Numbers expressing "time after, before which," the Ordinal (§ 78) is preferred where we use the Cardinal:
τεσσαρακόστῃ ἡμέρᾳ ὕστερον ἢ Ποτίδαια ἀπέστη.
THUC.Forty days after Potidæa revolted.
(With οὗτος an Accusative of Duration may be used:
ἐξήλθομεν τρίτον ἔτος τουτί.
DEM.(On τουτί see § 103.) It is now three years since we went out.
(3) Time within which: the Dative:
Ἑρμαῖ μίᾳ νυκτὶ οἱ πλεῖστοι περιεκόπησαν.
THUC.Most of the Hermae were mutilated in one night.
Note. The Genitive is also used for Time When and Time Within Which : νυκτός, by night; τρὶς τοῦ ἐνιαύτου, thrice a year; δεκὰ ἡμερῶν, within ten days.
(The Genitive of Time When expresses habitual action or indefinite time and has usually no epithet: νυκτὸς εὖ καθεῦδεν, he slept well o' nights; ἐκείνῃ τῇ νυκτὶ εὖ καθεῦδεν, he slept well on that night; τὴν νυκτὰ εὖ καθεῦδεν, he slept well throughout the night.)
2. Place: whither, whence, where.
Place is usually expressed by a Case with a Preposition :
(1) Place whither: the Accusative with εἰς or πρός:
᾿Αθηναῖοι ἐβοήθουν ἐς Μαραθῶνα.
HDT.The Athenians marched to Marathon.
(2) Place whence: the Genitive with ἀπό or ἐξ :
ὁ Θεμιστοκλῆς φεύγει ἐκ Πελοποννήσου ἐς Κέρκυραν.
THUC.Themistocles flies from the Peloponnese to Corcyra.
(3) Place where: the Dative with ἐν:
Λεωτυχίδης ἡγεῖτο τῶν ἐν Μυκάλῃ Ἑλλήνων.
THUC.Leotychides commanded the Greeks at Mycalé.
Note. With a few words Place Whither may be expressed also by the suffix -σε, or -δε, Place Whence by the suffix -θεν, Place Where by the Locative Dative without a Preposition. Thus:
οἴκαδε, οἰκόνδε, homewards; ᾿Αθήναζε (= ᾿Αθήνας-δε), to Athens; ἄλλοσε, to another place.
οἴκοθεν, from home; ᾿Αθήνηθεν, from Athens; ἄλλοθεν, from elsewhere.
Μαραθῶνι καὶ Σαλαμῖνι καὶ Πλαταίαις.
PLAT.At Marathon, and at Salamis, and at Platæa.
So οἴκοι, at home; ᾿Αθήνῃσι, at Athens; χάμαι, on the ground.
(-οι and -αι are the proper Locative terminations) (§ 274).
Note the Possessive Genitive in Οἰνόη τῆς ᾿Αττικῆς (THUC.), Oenoe in (of) Attica. (A real Genitive of Place Where occurs in Poetry, § 579.)
Road by which: the Accusative, like space over (§ 309):
οἱ Πλαταιῆς ἐχώρουν τὴν ἐς Θήβας φέρουσαν ὁδόν.
THUC.The Platæans went along the road which leads to Thebes.
3. Space, Distance, Measure.
(1) Space over which: the Accusative (§229):
Κῦρος ἐξελαύνει σταθμοὺς τρεῖς, παρασάγγας εἴκοσιν.
ΧΕΝ.Cyrus advances three stages, twenty parasangs.
(2) Distance: the Accusative, as with "Space over which" (§ 229):
ἀπέχει ἡ Πλάταια τῶν Θηβῶν σταδίους ἑβδομήκοντα.
THỤC.Platæa is seventy stades from Thebes.
(3) The expression of Measure is exceptional (§ 247):
πυραμὶς λιθίνη τὸ ὕψος τριῶν πλέθρων.
ΧΕΝ.A stone pyramid of three plethra, as to height. (
(Instead of "to go to a person at a place," the usual idiom is " to go to a place to a person"; and so with motion from:
ἀπέπλευσαν ἐς Φώκαιαν ὡς ᾿Αστύοχον.
THUC.They sailed to Astyochus at Phocaea.)
Case-Construction of the Commoner Verbs.
Two Accusatives. αἰτέω, κρύπτω, διδάσκω.
Genitive. μιμνήσκω, μιμνήσκομαι, λανθάνομαι, αἰσθάνομαι, πυνθάνομαι, (ἀκούω), ἅπτομαι, γεύομαι, ὀσφραίνομαι, ἐπιθυμέω, τυγχάνω, ἁμαρτάνω, μετέχω, μεταδίδωμι, παύομαι, κατηγορέω, καταγιγνώσκω, καταφρονέω, ὀλιγωρέω, ἐπιμέλομαι, ἀμελέω, φείδομαι, ἀπορέω, δέομαι, (δεῖ, μέλει, μεταμέλει, μοι).
Genitive or Dative. βασιλεύω, ἄρχω, ἡγέομαι.
Dative. χράομαι, ἀκολουθέω, ἕπομαι, πιστεύω, πείθομαι, παραινέω, ἀρέσκω, φθονέω, ἀπειλέω, ἐπιτίθεμαι, ἐντυγχάνω, συγγιγνώσκω, βοηθέω, ἀμύνω, τιμωρέω, (δοκεῖ, ἔξεστι, συμφέρει).
THE CONJUNCTIONS.
1. Copulative: and.
καί has four meanings: (1) and, (2) both, (3) also, (4) even.
τε *, (1) and, (2) both, is enclitic (§ 324): πολλά τε.
Note.—καί is often used in the sense of "namely," "or rather". Note κἀγώ = καὶ ἐγώ.
Distinguish, in questions: πῶς καί, asking for fresh information, and καὶ πῶς, how, pray? ironical. On εἰ καί, καί εἰ see § 439.
When several words are coupled, e.g., brothers, parents, children, the following systems are used :
(α) ἀδελφοὶ καὶ τοκεῖς καὶ παῖδες (or in Poetry, τε—τε).
(β) ἀδελφοὶ, τοκεῖς, παῖδες ("asyndeton," no Copula).
(c) ἀδελφοὶ, τοκεῖς, παῖδές τε.
(But not ἀδελφοὶ, τοκεῖς καὶ παῖδες.)
(b) -que—que: chiefly for words and in Poetry.
(c) -que—et: for words only (not in Cicero or Cæsar).
(d) Et-—que: for sentences.
(Also cum—tum, or tum—tum, "both—and".)
The following combinations with the Negative should be noticed:
And not, neque (or neve, § 334); but et non may be used to negative a particular word.
Neither—nor, neque—neque. The following are also possible: et neque, neque—que (but not que—neque).
Note.—Nec and neque are used indifferently before Vowels and Consonants. They sometimes mean not even.
2. Disjunctive: or.
Aut, or (haud, not): strong—of two opposed terms.
Vel, or (volo, I wish): weak.
So aut—aut, vel—vel, either—or, whether—or.
Distinguish carefully the following, which may all be rendered equally by the English "whether—or":
(1) Disjunctive: aut servus aut liber; vel bonus vel optimus.
(2) Conditional: sive vult sive non vult.
(3) Interrogative: rogavi utrum fugisset an caesus esset.
3. Adversative: but.
Sed, but, especially after negatives: strong opposition.
Autem, vero, but, often almost "and" or “while”: autem is the stronger of the two. So at, a weak but.
Thus: (1) "they did not kill the men, but enslaved them"; (2) "they killed the men, but (while) they enslaved the women":
(1) Viros non necaverunt, sed in servitutem redegerunt.
(2) Viros quidem necaverunt, feminas autem in servitutem redegerunt (or both quidem and autem may be omitted).
Note also sed enim, but (stay) for; immo vero, or simply immo, nay rather; en vero, but lo; nec vero, nor in truth; verum, but, stronger than vero (verum enimvero, but in truth); verum, verily; verum, granted that; quanquam, atqui, and yet; tamen, attamen, nevertheless.
Observe non modo—sed etiam, not only—but also.
Note.—Intensive Particles.
Quidem, indeed: often followed (e.g., § 319) by autem, when quidem means "on the one hand". Notice ne—quidem, not even; equidem (ego quidem), I, even I; siquidem, that is, if.
Quippe, forsooth: notice quippe qui with Subjunctive, seeing that he (§ 468).
Nempe, doubtless, you must know: nempe tu, you.
Sane, in truth, verily: often in proverbs. Emphatic: fortis sane, very strong.
Vero, indeed: e.g., tum vero, then indeed.
Scilicet, evidently, of course: chiefly ironical.
Nimirum, undoubtedly, I presume.
Saltem, at least, at any rate.
Tandem, in questions, pray: e.g., quid tandem? what, pray?
4. Causal: for.
Nam, enim *, namque, etenim, for.
These are often used in questions and wishes, and where in English we express no conjunction at all: e.g.,
Oderant virum. Saepe enim injuste egerat. They hated the man: he had often acted unjustly.
5. Conclusive: therefore.
Igitur, ergo, therefore; accordingly, as in English. Often in questions, so, then; sometimes ironical, it seems.
Proinde, therefore, then: especially in commands.
Itaque, and so.
(Distinguish "therefore" in connexion with Sub-Clauses: e.g., "Because we are rich, we are not therefore happy": Non quia divites sumus, idcirco sumus felices.)
Position of Conjunctions.
The words marked *, autem, vero, enim, come second in a sentence; tamen, ergo, igitur, first or second.
-que, quidem, come after the word, or the first word of the Clause, they refer to.
The rest come first, before the word or Clause. Thus:
Et urbes et homines cepit. He captured both cities and men.
Et urbes cepit et homines occidit. He both took cities and slew men.
(The above Conjunctions are all Coordinate, viz., they must couple two similar things—two Nouns in the same Case, two Verbs in the same Mood, two parallel Clauses, etc.; for Subordinate Conjunctions see the Compound Sentence: the commonest are ut, quod, quum, quia, ubi, quando, dum, priusquam, si, ne.)
Remark.—Different Conjunctions should, for clearness, be used for larger Clauses and for the small Clauses or the words inside them: e.g.,
Et naves habent plurimas et scientia atque usu nauticarum rerum reliquos antecedunt.
CAES.
Asyndeton (the omission of a Conjunction) is frequent in (a) official phrases: Cn. Pompeio, M. Crasso consulibus; (b) antithesis: probare vera, falsa denegare; (c) quick narrative: abiit, excessit, evasit, erupit; (d) where a word is repeated: omnia providi, omnia paravi.
Interjections.
Interjections are Exclamatory Particles, used to draw attention or express feeling. The commonest are:
O, o; heu, eheu, alas; heus, heia, ho; en, ecce, behold.
Interjections do not, as a rule, affect the construction of a Sentence; but there are some exceptions:
Hei mihi, woe is me; vae victis, alas for the conquered (Dat.).
Note also, proh Jupiter (Nom. or Voc.), in Jove's name;
mehercle, by Hercules (= me Hercules juvet, may Hercules help me).
(Observe, heia age, come now! The Sing. may be retained even with a Plural Vocative.)
Adverbs.
Adverbs, as a rule, qualify only Adjectives and Verbs: see Introduction.
(A few instances of Adverbs with Substantives occur, chiefly in Poetry: omnes circa populi (LIV.), all people round; paene insula (CAT.), a peninsula; iste post phaselus (CAT.), that which was afterwards a yacht.)
(β) τε—τε: less common, chiefly Poetic.
(c) τε—καί: the commonest, both for words and clauses.
(But not καὶ—τε.)
(ἄλλως τε καί, especially: lit., "both otherwise and".)
The following combinations with the Negative should be noticed:
And not, οὐδέ (or μηδέ, § 334); but καὶ οὐ may be used to negative a particular word.
Neither—nor, οὔτε—οὔτε. The following are also possible: τε—οὔτε, οὔτε—τε.
Note.—οὔτε is not used alone, but with another οὔτε or with τε. οὐδέ is used alone; οὐδέ sometimes means not even.
2. Disjunctive: or.
ἤ, or: both “vel" and "aut".
(Distinguish ἤ, than, and ἢ = -ne, interrogative.)
So ἢ—ἤ, either—or, whether—or.
Distinguish carefully the following, which may all be rendered equally by the English "whether—or":
(1) Disjunctive : ἢ δοῦλος ἢ ἐλεύθερος.
(2) Conditional : εἴτε βούλεται εἴτε καὶ μή.
(3) Interrogative : ἠρόμην πότερον πεφεύγοι ἢ τεθνήκοι.
3. Adversative: but.
ἀλλά, but, especially after negatives: strong opposition.
δέ*, but, often "and" or "while". (As a stronger alternate for δέ, μέντοι may be used.)
Thus: (1) "they did not kill the men, but enslaved them"; (2) "they killed the men, but (while) they enslaved the women":
(1) τοὺς ἄνδρας οὐκ ἀπέκτειναν ἀλλὰ κατεδούλωσαν.
(2) τοὺς μὲν ἄνδρας ἀπέκτειναν, τὰς δὲ γυναῖκας κατεδούλωσαν. (Or τὰς μέντοι γυναῖκας κ.τ.λ.)
Note also ἀλλὰ γάρ, but (stay) for; μὲν οὖν, nay rather; καὶ μὴν, and now, but lo (e.g., introducing a fresh actor); οὐ μήν, but in truth not; ἀλλὰ μήν, but in truth (enimvero); ἢ μήν, verily (of oaths); καὶ δὴ, but granted that; καίτοι, and yet; ὅμως, ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως, ὅμως δέ, nevertheless.
Observe οὐ μόνον—ἀλλὰ καί, not only—but also.
Note.—Intensive Particles.
μέν *, indeed, on the one hand, must always be followed by δέ (see § 319), or by μέντοι, (except when ἔπειτα succeeds : see infra, § 325).
γε *, indeed, at least: notice ἔγωγε, I indeed; εἴ γε, that is, if; ὅς γε, with Indicative (Lat. quippe qui), seeing that he. (§ 468).
τοι *, forsooth: emphatic, σέ τοι, YOU; often in Proverbs: e.g., κιχάνει τοι βραδὺς ὠκύν, the slow outstrip the swift.
δή emphasises, πολλάκις δή, very often; or summarises, τότε δή, then indeed.
δῆθεν*, scilicet: often ironical, as was pretended.
δήπου*, nimirum: undoubtedly, I presume.
γοῦν* (γε οὖν), at least, at any rate.
ποτε *, in questions, pray: e.g., τί ποτε; what in the world?
4. Causal: for.
γάρ *, for. Sometimes καὶ γάρ, etenim, namque.
These are often used in questions and wishes, and where in English we express no conjunction at all: e.g.,
τεκμήριον δέ. ἐπεὶ γὰρ ἦλθον κ.τ.λ. The following is a proof of this. When they came, etc.
5. Conclusive: therefore.
οὖν *, οὐκοῦν, therefore (but οὔκουν—; therefore not?).
ἄρα *, so, then, it seems (distinguish in questions ἆρα, -ne).
δῆτα *, νῦν *, τοίνυν *, then: often in commands.
ὥστε (ὡς τε, ita-que), and so.
(Distinguish "therefore" in connexion with Sub-Clauses: e.g., "Because we are rich, we are not therefore happy": οὐχ ὅτι πλούσιοί ἐσμεν, διὰ τοῦτο εὐδαιμονοῦμεν.)
Position of Conjunctions.
The words marked *, μέν, δέ, γάρ, οὖν, μέντοι, ἄρα, τοίνυν, νῦν come second; those without an accent being enclitic (§ 125).
τε, γε, γοῦν come after the word, or the first word of the Clause they refer to.
The rest come first.
Note that the Conjunctions which come second even separate the Article from its Substantive: e.g., ὁ τε ἀνὴρ καὶ ἡ γυνή, both the man and the woman, not ὁ ἀνήρ τε.
(The above Conjunctions are all Coordinate, viz., they must couple two similar things—two Nouns in the same Case, two Verbs in the same Mood, two parallel Clauses, etc.; for Subordinate Conjunctions see the Compound Sentence: the commonest are ὡς, ὅτι, ἵνα, ὥστε, ὅπως, ὅτε, ἐπεί, ἐπειδή, πρίν, ἕως, εἰ, μή.)
Remark.—Different Conjunctions should, for clearness, be used for larger Clauses and for the small Clauses or the words inside them: e.g.,
ἐπόρθουν μὲν τὴν ἤπειρον, ὕβριζον δὲ τὰς νήσους, ἐλυμαίνοντο δὲ τὴν Πελοπόννησον καὶ μεστὴν στάσεων ἐποίησαν.
ISOCR.
Asyndeton occurs in Greek with words (e.g., ἀδελφοί, § 314); with Clauses it is very rare, being almost confined to οὕτως, resumptive of a previous Sentence, and to ἔπειτα in the idiom πρῶτον μὲν—ἔπειτα (which is rather commoner than ἔπειτα δέ). When in doubt, use δέ.
Interjections.
Interjections are Exclamatory Particles, used to draw attention or express feeling. The commonest are:
ὦ, O; φεῦ, οἴμοι, alas; εἰ, εἴθε, O that; ἤν, behold.
Interjections do not, as a rule, affect the construction of a Sentence; but there are some exceptions:
οἴμοι τῆς τύχης, alas for my fate (§ 256).
νὴ Δία, yes by Zeus (ναί, yes); μὰ Δία, no by Zeus (μή).
Note ὦ in crasis : e.g., ὤνθρωπε, i.e., ὦ ἄνθρωπε.
(Observe εἰ δ᾽ ἄγε, come now! = heia age. εἰ is here an exclamation, from which εἰ, if, was afterwards derived.)
Adverbs.
Adverbs, as a rule, qualify only Adjectives and Verbs: see Introduction.
But, with the aid of the Article, they may qualify Substantives, or become Substantives themselves (§§ 88, 89) :
οἱ πάλαι, the men of old.
ἡ πρὶν εὐτυχία, our former good fortune.
THE SIMPLE SENTENCE.
The Simple Sentence expresses one plain thought. It is of three kinds: (1) Direct Statement; (2) Direct Command, Exhortation and Wish; (3) Direct Question. Also Exclamation.
1. Direct Statement.
The Verb in Direct Statement is usually in the Indicative Mood:
Romulus spolia opima tulit.
Romulus won the spoils of honour.
Sometimes Potential Subjunctive: Dicat aliquis, someone might say (§ 218).
2. Direct Command, Exhortation, Wish.
(a) Command.
Second Person :
Positive: the Imperative:
I, sequere Italiam.
VIRG.Go, seek Italy.
Negative: (1) ne with Imperative, poetic :
Equo ne credite, Teucri.
VIRG.Do not trust the horse, ye Trojans.
(2) ne with Perfect Subjunctive; in Prose and Poetry, but common in neither:
Ne feceris quod dubitas.
PLIN.Do not do anything about which you are in doubt.
(3) Noli with the Infinitive: the regular idiom in Prose:
Nolite id velle quod fieri non potest.
CIC.Do not wish what cannot be.
Third or First Person: Present Subjunctive, whether Positive or Negative (Neg., ne):
Aut bibat aut abeat.
CIC.Either let him drink or go away.
(b) Exhortation:
the First Person Subjunctive (usually Plural), (Negative, ne) :
Sed moriamur, ait.
VIRG.But let me die, she said.
(c) Wishes:
the Subjunctive. Negative ne: Particles utinam, si, o si, si modo :
(1) Future time, Present Subjunctive:
O mihi praeteritos referat si Jupiter annos.
VIRG.Oh, if Jupiter would restore past years to me!
(2) Present time, Imperfect Subjunctive:
Utinam populus Romanus unam cervicem haberet.
SUET.Would that the Roman people had but one neck.
(3) Past time, Pluperfect Subjunctive:
O utinam primis arsisses ignibus infans.
OV.Would thou hadst been burnt with early fires in infancy.
(With any of these, the Particle, though commonly inserted, may be omitted.)
Note. Sometimes, where we should use "have" in English, the Perfect Subjunctive may be used to express a wish: e.g.,
Hac Trojana tenus fuerit fortuna secuta.
VIRG.Let the fortune of Troy have followed us thus far.
In Jussive Sentences "never" must be ne unquam (not nunquam); "nor," neve or neu (not neque):
Ne unquam peccet neve erret!
Let him never sin nor err.
(For other ways for expressing Commands and Wishes see § 588.)
3. Direct Question:
A Direct Question may be introduced either by an Interrogative Pronoun, "who," "whence," "where," etc., or by an Interrogative Particle. But the latter is sometimes omitted.
By Pronouns: quis, unde, quando (not quum), etc. :
O rus, quando te aspiciam?
HOR.O country, when shall I see thee?
(Distinguish quis, quid, Subs., and qui, quod, Adj. (§ 137):
Quis hoc fecit? Who did this? Qui homo hoc fecit? What man did this?)
By Particles :
(a) Open: -ne, attached to the first word:
Comitemne sororem sprevisti moriens?
VIRG.Didst thou despise thy sister for comrade in thy death?
(b) Desiring the answer "yes": nonne :
Canis nonne similis lupo est?
CIC.A dog is like a wolf, is it not?
(c) Desiring the answer "no": num:
Num barbarorum Romulus rex fuit?
CIC.Romulus was not a king of barbarians, was he?
(d) Alternative: utrum—an (-ne—an):
Utrum tu mas an femina es?
PLAUT.Art thou man or woman?
("Or not" is annon.)
Obs.—-ne and utrum are sometimes omitted.
Note. Deliberative Questions: the Subjunctive:
Quid faciam? roger, anne rogem?
OV.What am I to do? be asked, or ask?
1. Direct Statement.
The Verb in Direct Statement is usually in the Indicative Mood:
Λεωνίδας ἐν Θερμοπύλαις ἀπέθανεν.
Leonidas died at Thermopylae.
Note also λέγοιμ' ἄν, I will say; εἴποι τις ἄν, someone might say (§ 218).
2. Direct Command, Exhortation, Wish.
(a) Command.
Second and Third Persons:
Positive: the Imperative:
γνῶθι σεαυτόν.
ORACLE.Know thyself.
Negative: (1) μή with the Present Imperative, of a general command: e.g., μὴ κλέπτε, do not ever steal (as in the Commandments).
(2) μή with the Aorist Subjunctive, of a particular command: e.g., μὴ κλέψῃς τοῦτο, do not steal this.
ὃν μήτ᾽ ὀκνεῖτε μήτ᾿ ἀφῆτ᾽ ἔπος κακόν.
SOPH.Do not keep shrinking from him; utter no single evil word.
So with the Third Person :
Positive: ἀπελθέτω, let him go away (not ἀπέλθῃ).
Negative: (1) μὴ ἀπερχέσθω, let him never go away.
(2) μὴ ἀπέλθῃ, let him not go away now.
(b) First Person—Exhortation:
Subjunctive (usually Plural), (Neg., μή) :
ἀλλ᾽, εἰ δοκεῖ, πλέωμεν.
SOPH.But let us sail, if it be thy will.
(c) Wishes:
Optative, possible; Indicative, unfulfilled. Neg. μή: Particles εἴθε, εἰ γάρ, εἰ.
(1) Future time, Optative:
ὦ παῖ, γένοιο πατρὸς εὐτυχέστερος.
SOPH.My son, mayest thou be more fortunate than thy father.
(2) Present time, Imperfect Indicative:
εἴθ᾽ εἶχες, ὦ τεκοῦσα, βελτίους φρένας.
Would, my mother, that thou hadst a better mind.
(3) Past time, Aorist Indicative:
εἴθε σοι, ὦ Περικλεῖς, τότε συνεγενόμην.
ΧΕΝ.Would, Pericles, that I had met you then.
(With the Optative, a Particle may or may not be used; with the Indicative, a Particle is necessary.)
Note 1.—ὤφελον, μὴ ὤφελον with the Present or Aorist Infinitive may express an unfulfilled wish in Present or Past time respectively. So also εἴθ᾽ ὤφελον :
εἴθ᾽ ὤφελ᾽ Ἄργους μὴ διαπτάσθαι σκάφος.
EUR.Would that the hull of the Argo never had sped through.
In Jussive Sentences use μηδέποτε, never (not οὐδέποτε); μηδέ, nor (not οὐδέ) :
μηδέποτε ἁμαρτανέτω μηδ᾽ ἀδικείτω.
Let him never sin or do wrong.
(For other ways for expressing Commands and Wishes see § 588.)
3. Direct Question:
Indicative (Negative οὐ).
A Direct Question may be introduced either by an Interrogative Pronoun, "who," "whence," "where," etc., or by an Interrogative Particle. But the latter is sometimes omitted.
By Pronouns : τίς, πόθεν, πότε, etc. (see § 136):
ποῦ δ᾽ ἐστὶ Τεῦκρος, κἀπὶ τῷ λέγει τάδε;
SOPH.Where is Teucer, and why does he say this?
Sometimes two Pronouns are combined:
πῶς ἐκ τίνος νέως ἥκετε;
EUR.How and from what ship came ye?
By Particles :
(a) Open: ἆρα (or ἦ) :
ἆρ᾽ οἶσθ᾽ ἀφ᾽ ὧν εἶ;
SOPH.Dost thou know those from whom thou art sprung?
(Distinguish ἄρα, then, §323.)
(b) Desiring the answer "yes": ἆρ᾽ οὐ (or οὔκουν) :
ἆρ᾽ οὐχὶ μωρόν ἐστι τοὐγχείρημά σου;
SOPH.Thine enterprise is foolish, is it not?
(c) Desiring the answer "no": ἆρα μή (or μῶν = μὴ οὖν) :
ἆρα μὴ τέθνηκεν ὁ βασιλεύς; Surely the king is not dead, is he?
(d) Alternative: πότερον or πότερα—ἤ (ἆρα—ἤ) :
πότερα δικαστὴν ἢ δικήφορον λέγεις;
AESCH.Is it judge or avenger thou dost mean?
(“Or not” is ἢ οὐ.)
Obs.—ἆρα and πότερον are sometimes omitted.
Note. Deliberative Questions: Subjunctive (Neg. μή) :
εἴπωμεν, ἢ σιγῶμεν, ἢ τί δράσομεν;
EUR.Are we to speak or keep silent, or what shall we do?
(The Imperfect Subjunctive is used of a Past Deliberative :
Quid faceret?
VIRG.What was he to do?
Exclamation.
An Exclamation shares, in a way, the nature of all three of the above—Statement, Wish, Question; but most commonly it resembles the last, being often introduced by Interrogative Pronouns:
Hei mihi, qualis erat! quantum mutatus ab illo Hectore!
VIRG.Ah me, what form he bore! how changed from that Hector of old!
(Sometimes ut, how, is used in Exclamations:
Ut vidi, ut perii!
VIRG.When I saw, how was I undone!
On the absolute use of the Nominative, Vocative and Accusative in Exclamations see § 238. The Accusative sometimes has a contemptuous force.
(Sometimes βούλει or ἐθέλεις are prefixed: βούλεσθ᾽ ἐπεισπέσωμεν; AR. Are we to attack? (do you wish us to?))
Exclamation.
An Exclamation shares, in a way, the nature of all three of the above—Statement, Wish, Question; but most commonly it resembles the last, being often introduced by Interrogative Pronouns:
᾿Ατρείδη, ποῖόν σε ἔπος φύγεν ἕρκος ὀδόντων.
HOM.Son of Atreus, what word hath escaped the barrier of thy teeth!
(Sometimes Relatives are used, cf. § 469:
οἷά μ᾿ ἔοργας, what hast thou done to me! ὡς ἐμάνην, how mad I was!)
On the absolute use of the Nominative, Vocative and Accusative in Exclamations see § 238. The Accusative sometimes has a contemptuous force.
THE COMPOUND SENTENCE.
The Compound Sentence consists of a Principal Sentence, and one or more Subordinate Clauses (see § 2).
Subordinate Clauses are divided into three classes: (1) Substantival, (2) Adverbial, (3) Adjectival, according as they stand to the Principal Sentence in the relation of a Substantive, an Adjective, or an Adverb (§ 34).
1. Substantival Clauses (§ 31).
(a) Indirect Statement; (b) Indirect Command, Exhortation, and Wish; (c) Indirect Question.
2. Adverbial Clauses (§ 32).
(a) Final ("in order that"); (b) Consecutive ("so that"); (c) Conditional ("if"); and, which are to some extent developments of these, (d) Concessive ("although," "even if"), (e) Comparative ("as," "as if," "than"); (f) Causal ("because," "since"); (g) Temporal (" when," " while," " until "), and (h) Local (" where," etc.).
3. Adjectival Clauses (§ 33)
are Relative Clauses, being introduced by a Relative Pronoun, "who," "which," "such as," "whoever," etc.
Sequence.
The Subordinate Clause may be pitched in one of two Keys, according as a thing is regarded in the Principal Sentence from the point of view of (1) Present time, e.g., "he comes," or of (2) Past time, "he came". The first of these points of view is called Primary, as being the "first" or most natural way of regarding a thing; the second is called Secondary or Historic, as being the "next" or less obvious way of looking at it, the point of view of a narrative or history. Thus we say "he comes that he may see," but " he came that he might see"; "he asks what is truth," but "he asked what was truth".
This alteration of the Subordinate Clause to suit the Main Sentence is called Sequence: and the law of Sequence is that Primary should be "followed" (sequor) by Primary, Historic by Historic.
In Latin, Sequence is of Tenses, and means that Primary Tenses of the Indicative must be followed by Primary Tenses of the Subjunctive, Historic Tenses of the Indicative by Historic Tenses of the Subjunctive.
In the Indicative the Tenses are:
(1) Primary: Present, Future, Perfect proper, Future-Perfect.
(2) Historic: Imperfect, Aoristic Perfect, Pluperfect.
These are followed in the Subjunctive by
(1) Primary: Present, Perfect.
(2) Historic: Imperfect, Pluperfect.
The Clauses to which the Law of Sequence applies are mainly of three kinds: 1. Final Clauses; 2. Consecutive Clauses; 3. Indirect Questions.
Thus, in Final Clauses:
Adest ut videat, he is here that he may see (Primary).
Aderat ut videret, he was here that he might see (Historic).
So in Indirect Questions:
Rogo quid feceris, I ask what you did (Primary), etc.
Note 1.—The Imperative takes Primary Sequence. So too the Present Subjunctive of Wishes and Exhortations.
Note 2.—The Historic Present and Perfect with "have" take either Sequence. The Perfect Subjunctive in Main Sentences is Primary, in Dependent Clauses either Primary or Historic.
(Cicero prefers Historic Sequence after the Perfect "with have".)
Obs. In Final Clauses Sequence presents no difficulty. In Consecutive Clauses and in Indirect Questions a difficulty sometimes occurs which may be turned by the use of the Perfect Indicative or Subjunctive, though sometimes the idea of continuous action is hereby lost :
(1) Vivum adeo timui ut horrescam vel mortuum. I used to fear him so much in his life, that I tremble at him even when he is dead.
(We really say here "I have feared him". Note that timebam would violate the Sequence.)
(2) Rogo quid feceris. I ask what you were doing.
(Note that the Latin could also mean "I ask what you did" or "have done".)
In both cases the continuous action may be retained by the insertion of a Perfect Subjunctive, as a sort of Junction at which one may change from the one Sequence to the other: the Perfect Subjunctive in sub-clauses being both Primary and Historic (§ 345) :
(1) Adeo timebam ut facere non potuerim quin horrescam. I used to fear him so much that I could not help trembling.
(2) Rogo quid fuerit quod faceres. I ask what it was that you were doing.
On the Tenses of the Infinitive and Participle see § 216.
SUBSTANTIVAL CLAUSES.
1. Indirect Statement.
One construction only: Accusative and Infinitive (cf., “I assert this to be true"):
Democritus dicit innumerabiles esse mundos.
CIC.Democritus says that there are countless worlds.
Note 1.—Nego is used for "I say that—not" (not dico non) :
Negat esse deos.
He says there are no gods.
Note 2.—Spero, promitto, minor usually take the Future Infinitive:
Sperabam id me assecuturum.
CIC.I was hoping to attain this.
Note 3.—Esse is very often omitted with the Future Infinitive Active (see last instance), and not infrequently with the Past Participle Passive or Deponent (see § 198):
Boiotum crasso jurares aëre natum.
HOR.You would avow him born in the thick air of Bœotia.
(The Verb of Speaking may in such cases be regarded as a Factitive Verb (§ 235).)
Obs. Se must be used for the Third Person, Masculine or Feminine, Singular or Plural, when the Subject of the Infinitive is the Subject also of the Main Verb (§ 114):
Pollicebatur pecuniam se esse redditurum.
CIC.He promised that he would return the money.
Both this and the other Personal Pronouns are usually expressed: Simulo me furere, I pretend to be mad. (So me assecuturum, sup.)
In the Passive, with such phrases as "it is said that," "it seems that," a Personal Construction is usually preferred :
Hannibal ad urbem contendere dicebatur.
It was said that Hannibal was marching on the city.
(Not, dicebatur Hannibalem. See § 155, Personal Construction.)
1. Substantival Clauses (§ 31).
(a) Indirect Statement; (b) Indirect Command, Exhortation, and Wish; (c) Indirect Question.
2. Adverbial Clauses (§ 32).
(a) Final ("in order that"); (b) Consecutive ("so that"); (c) Conditional ("if"); and, which are to some extent developments of these, (d) Concessive ("although," "even if"), (e) Comparative ("as," "as if," "than"); (f) Causal ("because," "since"); (g) Temporal (" when," " while," " until "), and (h) Local (" where," etc.).
3. Adjectival Clauses (§ 33)
are Relative Clauses, being introduced by a Relative Pronoun, "who," "which," "such as," "whoever," etc.
Sequence.
The Subordinate Clause may be pitched in one of two Keys, according as a thing is regarded in the Principal Sentence from the point of view of (1) Present time, e.g., "he comes," or of (2) Past time, "he came". The first of these points of view is called Primary, as being the "first" or most natural way of regarding a thing; the second is called Secondary or Historic, as being the "next" or less obvious way of looking at it, the point of view of a narrative or history. Thus we say "he comes that he may see," but " he came that he might see"; "he asks what is truth," but "he asked what was truth".
This alteration of the Subordinate Clause to suit the Main Sentence is called Sequence: and the law of Sequence is that Primary should be "followed" (sequor) by Primary, Historic by Historic.
In Greek, Sequence is of Moods, and means that Primary Tenses of the Indicative must be followed by the Primary Mood, the Subjunctive (or Indicative); Historic by the Historic Mood, the Optative.
In the Indicative the Tenses are:
(1) Primary: Present, Future, Perfect, Future-Perfect.
(2) Historic: Imperfect, Aorist, Pluperfect.
The Sequence of Mood is of three kinds:
(1) Primary: 1. Final ἵνα, etc., Subjunctive; 2. Indefinite Relative, etc., ἄν with Subjunctive; 3. Indirect Speech and Question, Indicative.
(2) Historic: 1. Final ἵνα, etc., Optative; 2. Indefinite Relative, etc., Optative; 3. Indirect Speech and Question, Optative. Viz., Optative in all.
Thus, in Final Clauses:
πάρεστιν ἵνα ἴδῃ, he is here that he may see (Primary).
παρῆν ἵνα ἴδοι, he was here that he might see (Historic).
So with the Indefinite Relative and with Indirect Speech with ὅτι.
Note 1.—The Imperative and Subjunctive take Primary Sequence; but the Optative of Wishes, or the Potential Optative with ἄν, generally take (1) an Optative by attraction in Indefinite Clauses, (2) Primary Sequence in Final Clauses and Indirect Speech or Question.
Note 2.—The Historic Present is usually regarded as a Historic Tense, the Gnomic Aorist as a Primary Tense.
Obs. Vivid Sequence. In all three kinds, however, Primary Sequence may, for the sake of vividness, follow also a Historic Tense:
παρῆν ἵνα ἴδοι (Historic); παρῆν ἵνα ἴδῃ (Vivid). He was present, that he might see.
ἠρώτησα ὅ τι ποιοίης (Historic); ἠρώτησα ὅ τι ποιεῖς (Vivid). I asked what you were doing.
In Indirect Speech and Question the Vivid Sequence is not merely possible but necessary (1) in any clause (a) with the Past Indicative and ἄν (to avoid confusion with the Optative with ἄν), and (b) with the Imperfect and Pluperfect Indicative (as these tenses have no proper Optative); (2) in sub-clauses, with the Aorist Indicative (as the Optative here would represent ἄν with the Subjunctive).
Thus:
(1) (α) ἠρώτησα ὅ τι ἐποίησας ἄν. I asked what you would have done (ποιήσειας ἄν would mean, what you would do).
(β) ἠρώτησα ὅ τι ἐποίεις. I asked what you had been doing (ποιοίης would represent a Present: "what you were doing").
(2) ἠρώτησα εἰ ὅπερ ἐποίησας ἐσφάλη. I asked if what you had done had failed (ποιήσειας would here represent ὅπερ ἂν ποιήσῃς, Indefinite).
On the Tenses of the Infinitive and Participle see § 216.
SUBSTANTIVAL CLAUSES.
1. Indirect Statement.
Three constructions are possible:
(a) Accusative and Infinitive with Verbs of saying and thinking (Negative οὐ) :
λέγεται ᾿Αλκιβιάδην Περικλεῖ διαλεχθῆναι περὶ νόμων.
ΧΕΝ.It is said that Alcibiades conversed with Pericles about the laws.
Note 1.—"I say that—not" is οὔ φημι (nego), not φημὶ οὐ.
Note 2.— ἐλπίζω, ὑπισχνέομαι, ὄμνυμι, ἀπειλέω usually take the Future Infinitive (Negative μή).
(These do not take ὅτι, § 353.)
ὤμοσαν μὴ εἰς Φωκαίαν ἥξειν.
HDT.They swore not to go to Phocaea.
(b) The Participle is used instead of the Infinitive (§ 198) with Verbs of perception—physical or mental (Neg. οὐ) : ὁράω, ἀκούω *; εὑρίσκω; αἰσθάνομαι *, πυνθάνομαι *; μανθάνω, γιγνώσκω; οἶδα, ἐπίσταμαι; μέμνημαι *, λανθάνομαι; also δείκνυμι, ἀγγέλλω. (* These usually take a Genitive.)
οἱ Ἕλληνες οὐκ ᾔδεσαν Κῦρον τεθνηκότα.
XEN.The Greeks did not know that Cyrus was dead.
Obs. Nominative Attraction. If the Subject of the Infinitive or Participle is the same as the Subject of the Main Verb, the Nominative is used (§ 179). The Subject itself (1) if unemphatic, is omitted; (2) if emphatic, is expressed by αὐτός—all three Persons :
(1) ὁ ᾿Αλέξανδρος ἔφασκεν εἶναι Διὸς υἱός. Alexander used to say that he was the son of Zeus.
(2) οὐκ ἔφη αὐτὸς ἀλλ᾽ ἐκεῖνον στρατηγεῖν. THUC. He said that not he but the other was general.
With σύνοιδα ἐμαυτῷ, I am conscious with myself, the Participle may be either Nominative or Dative:
σύνοιδα ἐμαύτῳ οὐδὲν ἐπισταμένῳ (or ἐπιστάμενος).
PLAT.I am conscious that I know nothing.
(On the Personal construction with φανερός and δῆλος see § 198.)
(The phrase "Indirect Statement" refers not merely to Verbs of saying and thinking, but also to such phrases as "he did not know that," "I feel certain that," and Impersonal phrases such as “it is agreed that," constat inter omnes: all of which are constructed with the Accusative and Infinitive.
On the use of quod with the Indicative, and ut with the Subjunctive in certain Clauses expressing "fact," see § 377.)
Remark.—The Tenses of the Infinitive are Past, Present, or Future, not in themselves, but in relation to the Main Verb; in other words, the Tense of the speaker must be retained:
He said that we were doing wrong, dixit nos peccare.
He said that we had done wrong, dixit nos peccavisse.
He said that we should do wrong, dixit nos peccaturos esse.
2. Indirect Command, Exhortation, Wish.
Ut or ne and Subjunctive, (1) Present, (2) Imperfect, § 344; e.g., after impero *, persuadeo *, hortor, oro, rogo, moneo, (* These take a Dative.)
(1) Rogat eos atque orat ne oppugnent filium suum. CIC. He begs and entreats them not to attack his son (Primary).
(2) Caesar imperavit suis ut pontem interscinderent. CAES. Caesar ordered his men to cut down the bridge (Historic).
(This construction follows the law of Final Clauses, § 384.)
Here, as in Direct Command, and not must be neve or neu (§ 334).
Obs. 1.—Jubeo and veto take Accusative and Infinitive:
Caesar Helvetios suum adventum expectare jussit.
CAES.Cæsar told the Helvetians to wait his arrival.
Obs. 2.—“I order—not” must be veto or impero ne, not jubeo non.
Verbs of wishing usually take a Plain Prolate Infinitive; also Accusative and Infinitive, or Plain Subjunctive: e.g.,
Velim rescribas.
CIC.(Without ut.) I wish you would answer.
(Some Verbs of speaking, e.g., nuntio, may introduce a Command, with ut or ne and the Subjunctive; but dico, I tell, is rarely so used. Thus, "Cæsar told them to wait": use jussit, § 356.)
Several Verbs in English—e.g., "I warn," "I persuade," "I tell,"—can introduce either an Indirect Statement or an Indirect Command, and will take their construction accordingly. The two uses can be distinguished by finding the words of the speaker: e.g., "I warned him to go"—original word "go!"; "I warned him there was danger'"—original words "there is danger".
3. Indirect Questions.
These include not merely such Sentences as "I ask whether he has come," but also such Sentences as "I do not know whether he has come," "I will tell you whether he has come": in all equally, a direct form, "Has he come?" is implied.
Mood and Tense. The Subjunctive: Tense according to Sequence: viz., (1) Primary, Present or Perfect; (2) Historic, Imperfect or Pluperfect.
Pronouns and Particles. As in Direct Questions. But "I ask if" is not rogo si, but rogo -ne, or rogo num (num does not here expect the answer "no"); "or not" is usually necne, not annon.
(1)
Videndum est quando et cui et quemadmodum et quare demus.
CIC. We must consider the occasion, the recipient, the manner, the object of our gifts.(2)
Epaminondas quaesivit num salvus esset clypeus.
Epaminondas enquired if his shield was safe.Note. For Future Time, use the Future Participle with sim or essem:
Fac me certiorem quando adfuturus sis.
CIC.Let me know when you will be here.
Such Sentences as "He described the size and character of the island" may often be rendered as Indirect Questions : "He said how great the island was, and of what sort".
(Observe nescio an, I almost think that, lit. "I do not know whether":
Nescio an noris hominem.
PLIN.I do not know if you know the man (§ 383).)
Indirect Deliberative. Subjunctive: (1) Primary, Present; (2) Historic, Imperfect:
(1)
De pueris quid agam, non habeo.
CIC. What to do about the children, I do not know.(2)
Non satis Bruto vel tribunis militum constabat quid agerent.
CAES. Brutus and the military tribunes were uncertain what to do.(Sense alone distinguishes these from plain Indirect Questions.)
(Such Sentences as "He had nowhere to turn" are Indirect Deliberative Questions: "He did not know where he was to turn". See the first instance above.)
Note. Subordinate Clauses.
Subordinate Clauses in Indirect Speech, Command, and Question, are in the Subjunctive (see § 474) :
Ais, quoniam sit natura mortalis, immortalem etiam esse oportere.
CIC.You say that, since there is a mortal nature, there must also be an immortal one.
(On Indirect Speech, Command and Question, and the Sub-Clauses in these, see further Continuous Or. Obl., § 479.)
Substantival Clauses (continued).
The following are akin to the above Substantival Clauses, especially to Indirect Statement and Command. In construction they vary between a Prolate Infinitive and the construction of a Final or Consecutive Clause.
1. Effect, cause, compel.
Impello, facio, efficio, ago : ut or ut non with Subj. (§ 388).
Sol efficit ut omnia floreant.
CIC.The sun makes all nature to flourish.
Observe "id agere ut," to do one's best to. (Ut is often omitted after the Imperative, fac.)
Note. Cogo, I compel, usually takes an Infinitive. (Compello means "I drive together," not "I compel".)
2. Try, strive, be eager.
(1) Conor, studeo, with Infinitive:
Illa graves oculos conata attollere.
VIRG.She striving to uplift her heavy eyes.
(2) Nitor, ut or ne with Subjunctive (Final, § 384):
Nitebantur ne quid gravius in eum consuleretur.
SALL.They strove that no hard sentence should be passed on him.
(Tempto takes either Infinitive or ut, ne, with Subjunctive.)
Note. Constituo, I determine, takes the Infinitive.
3. Take care, beware.
Provideo, curo, caveo, ut or ne and Subjunctive (§ 384):
Cura ut valeas.
CIC.Take care of your health.
Cave ne portus occupet alter.
HOR.Take care that another seize not the harbour first.
Note. After the Imperative cave, ne is often omitted:
Cave faxis te quidquam indignum.
HOR.Beware of doing anything unworthy of thee.
(Faxis = facias.)
4. Fear.
Timeo, metuo, vereor.
(1) Ne or ne non with Subjunctive ("I fear lest," "I fear lest not"):
Non vereor ne janua frangatur.
HOR.Nor am I afraid that the door may be broken in (
Timuit ne non succederet.
HOR.He was afraid that he would not succeed (
Note. Ut, "how," is sometimes used for ne non:
O puer, ut sis vitalis, metuo.
HOR.My son, I fear that you will not live long.
(Observe the sequence in: Vereor ne Romulus barbarorum rex fuerit. CIC. Romulus was a king of barbarians, I fear.)
(2) Infinitive ("I fear to"):
Cur timet flavum Tiberim tangere?
HOR.Why is he afraid to bathe in the yellow Tiber?
5. Allow, permit; prevent, refuse, deny, forbid, doubt.
Allow: sino, Acc. and Infin.; permitto, Dat. and ut, ne, Subj.
Prevent, etc.: see infra on quominus, quin, §§ 510, 512.
6. Impersonal Verbs.
1. It is customary, it happens that (statement of fact).
Mos est*, usually Infinitive (sometimes ut, ut non, with Subjunctive).
Contingit, evenit, fit, ut or ut non with Subjunctive.
Accidit*, accedit*, ut or ut non with Subjunctive (also Infinitive, or quod with Indicative).
(1)
Virginibus Tyriis mos est gestare pharetram.
VIRG. It is the custom for Tyrian maidens to bear the quiver.(2)
Accidit ut unâ nocte omnes Hermae dejicerentur.
NEP. It happened that in one night all the Hermae were thrown down.Note the phrase est ut with Subjunctive, it is possible that.
Observe the phrase tantum abest ut—ut, so far from; see § 444.
(3)
Accedit huc quod postridie ille venit.
CIC. Added to this is the fact that he came next day.2. It is allowable, expedient, necessary, pleasing (cf. Indirect Command).
Decet, dedecet, juvat, libet*, expedit*, opus est: Infinitive.
Licet*, oportet, necesse est: Infinitive, or Subjunctive without ut.
Placet*, convenit*: Infinitive, or ut, ne and Subjunctive.
(c) ὅτι or ὡς (1) with the Indicative, if Primary; (2) with the Optative (or Vivid Indicative), if Historic (§ 344) (Negative οὐ) :
(1)
λέγει ὡς οὐδέν ἐστιν ἀδικώτερον φήμης.
AESCHIN. He says that nothing is more unjust than rumour (Primary).(2)
ἔγνωσαν ὅτι κενὸς ὁ φόβος εἵη.
ΧΕΝ. They realised that their fear was groundless (Historic).φανερῶς εἶπον ὅτι ἡ πόλις τετείχισται ἤδη.
THUC.He said openly that the city had been already fortified (Vivid).
Obs. This construction applies both to Infinitive Verbs and, though less so, to those with the Participle. But φημί takes only the Infinitive; εἶπον only ὅτι or ὡς.
With all these, the Infinitive, Participle, and ὅτι, the Tense of the Speaker must be kept. (On Tenses of the Infinitive and Participle see § 216.)
2. Indirect Command, Exhortation, Wish.
The Infinitive: Negative μή (Tense, Present or Aorist, § 214); e.g., κελεύω, αἰτέω, παραινέω *, παρακελεύομαι *, πείθω, etc. (* These, and Verbs of speaking implying to Command, take a Dative):
ἐκέλευσε τοὺς ὁπλίτας μένειν ἐν τάξει.
ΧΕΝ.He told the hoplites to remain in their ranks (
Μοίρας ἔπεισας ἀφθίτους θεῖναι βρότους.
AESCH.You persuaded the Fates to make men immortal (
(Note that κελεύω, πείθω take an Accusative.)
The Compound Negatives must be μηδέποτε, μηδαμοῦ, etc., § 344.
Obs. 1.—ὅπως with Future Indicative is sometimes used (cf. § 385).
Obs. 2.—Verbs of Forbidding, e.g., ἀπαγορεύω, often take μή with Infinitive (§ 510). Note also οὐκ ἐῶ σε μένειν, I forbid you to stay.
Verbs of wishing usually take a Plain Prolate Infinitive; also Accusative and Infinitive, or Plain Subjunctive: e.g.,
θέλεις εἰκάθω;
SOPH.Do you want me to yield? (See § 337.)
(Any Verb of speaking may introduce a Command. The Object is then Dative, the Negative μή:
εἶπον τῷ Παυσανίᾳ τοῦ κήρυκος μὴ λείπεσθαι.
THUC.They told Pausanias not to leave the herald.)
Several Verbs in English—e.g., "I warn," "I persuade," "I tell,"—can introduce either an Indirect Statement or an Indirect Command, and will take their construction accordingly. The two uses can be distinguished by finding the words of the speaker: e.g., "I warned him to go"—original word "go!"; "I warned him there was danger'"—original words "there is danger".
3. Indirect Questions.
These include not merely such Sentences as "I ask whether he has come," but also such Sentences as "I do not know whether he has come," "I will tell you whether he has come": in all equally, a direct form, "Has he come?" is implied.
Mood and Tense. As in Indirect Statement with ὅτι: viz., (1) Primary, Indicative; (2) Historic, Optative or Vivid Indicative.
Pronouns and Particles. As in Direct Questions. But the Indirect forms, ὅστις, ὅπου, may be also used; "I ask if" is not ἐρωτῶ ἆρα, but ἐρωτῶ εἰ; if not is either εἰ οὐ or εἰ μή; or not, either ἢ οὐ or ἢ μή.
(1)
ἴστε ὁπόθεν ὁ ἥλιος ἀνίσχει καὶ ὅποι δύεται.
ΧΕΝ. Ye know whence the sun rises and whither he goeth down.(See also under Interrogative Pronouns, § 137.)
(2)
διηρώτα τὸν Κύρον πότερα βούλοιτο μένειν ἢ ἀπιέναι.
ΧΕΝ. She asked Cyrus whether he wished to stay or go (Historic).ἠπόρουν τί ποτε λέγει ὁ θεός.
PLAT.I was in doubt as to what the god meant (Vivid).
(Here also the Tense of Direct Question must be kept, § 354.)
Such Sentences as "He described the size and character of the island" may often be rendered as Indirect Questions : "He said how great the island was, and of what sort".
(An echoed Question becomes Indirect and uses Indirect Particles (§ 136):
Σὺ δ᾽ εἰ τίς ἀνδρῶν; Ὅστις εἶμ᾿ ἐγώ; Μέτων.
AR.Who on earth are you? Who am I? Meton.
Indirect Deliberative. (1) Primary, Subjunctive; (2) Historic, Optative (or Vivid Subjunctive, § 346).
(1)
οὐκ ἔχω ὅπως σοι εἴπω ἃ νοῶ.
PLAT. I do not know how to tell you what I think.(2)
ἐπήροντο τὸν θεὸν εἰ παραδοῖεν τὴν πόλιν.
THUC. They asked the god if they should give up the city (Historic).ἠπόρησαν ὅπη καθορμίσωνται.
THUC.They were in doubt where to put in (Vivid).
(Such Sentences as "He had nowhere to turn" are Indirect Deliberative Questions: "He did not know where he was to turn". See the first instance above.)
Note. Subordinate Clauses.
Subordinate Clauses in Indirect Speech, Command, and Question, follow the rules given for ὅτι (§ 353): viz., Primary, Indicative; Historic, Optative or Vivid Indicative.
But in Subordinate Clauses the Indicative must always be retained with Historic Tenses. (Both with the Indicative and Optative the Tense of the speaker must be here also retained.) §§ 346-7.
Substantival Clauses (continued).
The following are akin to the above Substantival Clauses, especially to Indirect Statement and Command. In construction they vary between a Prolate Infinitive and the construction of a Final or Consecutive Clause.
1. Effect, cause, compel.
ἀναγκάζω, ποιέω, with Infinitive (Negative μή) :
ἠναγκάζοντο ἀμύνεσθαι.
HDT.They were compelled to defend themselves.
Note 1.—ὥστε may be prefixed to the Infinitive (§ 388).
Note 2.—πράσσω, ποιέω, take also ὅπως and Future Indicative (§ 385). (βιάζομαι does not mean "I compel a man to do a thing".)
2. Try, strive, be eager.
πειράομαι, σπουδάζω, σπεύδω, with Infinitive:
ἐσπούδαζες ἄρχειν Δαναΐδαις.
EUR.Thou wert eager to lead the Danaans.
Such verbs are also constructed with ὅπως, ὅπως μή, with the Future Indicative; or ὅπως, ὅπως μή (or simply μή, lest), with Subjunctive or Optative: like Final Clauses.
(Also with ἐάν and Subj. or εἰ with Opt., to try whether.)
Note.—μέλλω, I intend, takes the Future Infinitive (§ 214).
3. Take care, beware.
φυλάσσομαι, etc., with ὅπως and Future Indicative (Negative μή):
ὅρα ὅπως μή σου ἀποστήσονται Πέρσαι.
HDT.See to it that the Persians do not revolt from you.
Note.—The Imperative ὅρα is often omitted before ὅπως :
ὥσπερ με τὸν ᾿Αθάμανθ᾽ ὅπως μὴ θύσετε.
AR.Mind you don't sacrifice me like Athamas (sc. ὅρα ὅπως).
Obs. Less often these verbs take μή and Subjunctive.
4. Fear.
φοβοῦμαι, δείδω (δέδοικα), etc.
(1) (a) Of Future things, μή or μὴ οὐ with Subjunctive or Optative (§ 344):
δέδοικα μὴ οὐδ᾽ ὅσιον ἢ ἀπαγορεύειν.
PLAT.I am afraid it may not even be right to deny it. (
ἔδεισαν οἱ Ἕλληνες μὴ προσάγοιεν πρὸς τὸ κέρας.
ΧΕΝ.The Greeks were afraid they would charge on the wing. (
(b) Of Present and Past things, μή or μὴ οὐ with Indic. :
δέδοικά σ᾽, ὦ πρεσβῦτα, μὴ πληγῶν δέει.
AR.I am afraid, old man, you need a beating.
φοβοῦμαι μὴ λόγοις τισὶ ψεύδεσιν ἐντετυχήκαμεν.
PLAT.I am afraid we have lit on false arguments.
Obs. With the Subjunctive the Verb of fearing is sometimes omitted (§ 514).
(2) Infinitive ("I fear to"):
φοβήσεται ἀδικεῖν τὸν ἀδελφόν.
XEN.He will be afraid to wrong his brother.
5. Allow, permit; prevent, refuse, deny, forbid, doubt.
Allow : ἐάω, Acc. and Infin.; ἐπιτρέπω, Dat. and Infin.
Prevent, etc.: see infra on μή and μὴ οὐ with Infin., §§ 510, 512.
6. Impersonal Verbs.
1. It is customary, it happens that (statement of fact).
νομίζεται, it is customary; συμβαίνει*, it happens, Infinitive:
συνέβη Γέλωνα νικᾶν.
HDT.The result was that Gelo was victorious.
Obs. Sometimes a personal construction is preferred :
παρὼν ἐτύγχανον. SOPH. It happened that I was there (§ 198).
φανερὸς ἦν ἁμαρτάνων. It was clear he was wrong (§ 198).
Note 1.—With συμβαίνει, ὥστε sometimes precedes the Infin.
Note 2.—Observe the phrases: οὐκ ἔσθ᾽ ὅπως, with Indicative (Negative οὐ), it is impossible that; οὐχ ὅπως—ἀλλά, so far from; see § 444. (Cf. πολλοῦ δεῖ οὕτως ἔχειν, it is far from being so.)
Note 3.—δῆλον ὅτι, it is clear that (or δηλονότι, clearly) the only use of ὅτι, that, except after a Verb of Speaking.
2. It is allowable, expedient, necessary, pleasing (cf. Indirect Command).
ἔξεστι*, it is allowed; συμφέρει*, πρέπει*, χρή, δεῖ, ἀνάγκη*, it is fitting, etc.; ἀρέσκει*, δοκεῖ*, it seems good: all with the Infinitive.
ἀλλ᾽ εὐ φέρειν χρὴ συμφορὰς τὸν εὐγενῆ.
EUR.But it befits the nobly-born nobly to bear misfortunes.
(1)
Licet nemini contra patriam ducere exercitum.
CIC. It is not lawful for any man to lead an army against his country.(2)
Me ipsum ames oportet, non mea.
CIC. You ought to love me, not my possessions.3. It concerns, it is a care, it repents, etc.
Interest and refert take an Infinitive, ut or ne with Subjunctive, or an Interrogative Clause in the Subjunctive:
Quid meâ refert cui serviam?
PHAEDR.What does it matter to me whom I serve? (§ 253.)
Attinet and pertinet take ad with Accusative and an Infinitive.
Miseret, piget, pudet, poenitet, taedet take an Infinitive, or quod with Subjunctive:
Poenitet vos quod salvum exercitum traduxerim?
CAES.Are you sorry I have brought over the army in safety? (See also § 252.)
* These Verbs take either an Accusative or a Dative with the Infinitive: e.g., "It is fitting for me to do it," or "It is fitting that I should do it". The rest, unless otherwise stated, take an Accusative. (See Subj. and Pred. of the Infin., § 180.)
Remark 1. The mere idea "the fact that" is usually expressed by one of two constructions :
Viz., either the Accusative and Infinitive, or quod with the Indicative: e.g.,
Hoc praestamus maxime feris quod loquimur.
CIC.We excel beasts most in this respect, that we speak.
Remark 2.—Certain words, besides taking their normal constructions, admit also of special usages :
Miror si with Indicative, I wonder that; memini quum with Subjunctive, I remember (the time) when (§ 415).
Gaudeo takes a Prolate Infinitive, "rejoice to," or quod with Indicative, “I rejoice that".
Haud scio an, nescio an, with Subjunctive, as Indirect Questions: I do not know whether, I almost think that.
So forsitan, perhaps, in Prose takes the Subjunctive (lit., fors est an, it is a chance whether).
ADVERBIAL CLAUSES.
1. Final Clauses.
Final Sentences express the purpose, object, end (finis) of an action. They may be known in English by "may" or "might".
They are expressed by ut, if Positive, by ne, if Negative, with the Subjunctive. (For Tense see § 344.)
Primary :
(1)
Ut jugulent homines, surgunt de nocte latrones.
JUV. Robbers rise at night to cut men's throats.Historic:
(2)
Scipio rus abiit ne ad causam dicendam adesset.
CIC. Scipio went away into the country that he might not be present to defend his case.(
Pompeius, ne circumcluderetur, discedit.
CAES. P. retired, that he might not be shut in (Hist. Pres.).)Note 1.—With Comparatives quo is used for ut :
Solon furere se simulavit, quo tutior esset vita ejus.
CIC.Solon pretended that he was mad, that his life might be safer.
Note 2.—The Perfect and Pluperfect Subjunctive are sometimes used in Final Clauses, as in English, with reference to an action which is already past:
Sic ne perdiderit, non cessat perdere lusor.
OV.So, that he may not have lost, the gambler continues to lose.
(In Final Clauses and not is neve or neu.)
(A Final Clause is often marked by a Demonstrative Adverb: Ideo, idcirco, propterea.)
Obs. Other ways of expressing Purpose: E.g., "they sent ambassadors to announce":
(1) Qui and Subjunctive: qui nuntiarent (§ 462).
(2) Supine: nuntiatum (§ 182).
(3) Gerund: nuntiandi causa, or ad nuntiandum.
(4) Si with Subjunctive: "if perchance" (§ 407).
2. Consecutive Clauses.
Consecutive Clauses express the Result or Consequence which follows (consequor) the action of the Main Verb.
Ut, if Positive, ut non, if Negative, with Subjunctive. The Tense is usually the Present or Imperfect (§ 344):
Non sum ita hebes ut istud dicam.
CIC.I am not so stupid as to say that.
Nemo adeo ferus est ut non mitescere possit.
HOR.No one is so savage that he cannot soften.
Note 1.—The Perfect Subjunctive may be used of a result which is a fact, whatever the Sequence (§ 345).
Tormentis quum laceraretur, eo fuit habitu oris ut ridentis speciem praebuerit.
LIV.In the agony of torture, the expression of his face was such that he looked as if he were laughing.
Note 2.—Observe the following idiomatic use of ita ut :
Cujus ego ingenium ita laudo ut non pertimescam.
CIC.While fully commending his genius, I am not paralysed by it. (I praise it in such a way that, etc.)
The Consecutive Construction is frequent after Comparatives:
Isocrates majore ingenio est quam ut cum Lysia comparetur.
CIC.Isocrates is too great a genius to be compared with Lysias.
Observe the Negative in Final and Consecutive Clauses:
That not: Final, ne; Consecutive, ut non.
That no one: Final, ne quis; Consecutive, ut nemo.
That no: Final, ne ullus; Consecutive, ut nullus.
That never: Final, ne unquam; Consecutive, ut nunquam.
Obs. Consequence can also be expressed by qui with the Subjunctive (§ 463), or, after a Negative, by quin (§ 512).
Remark.—Final and Consecutive Clauses are sometimes used parenthetically, especially Final Clauses: e.g., ut ita dicam, so to speak, lit., that I may say so; ne longior sim, to be brief.
3. Conditional Clauses.
The "if" Clause is called the Protasis, because it usually precedes; the Main Clause is called the Apodosis, or "result".
On nisi, unless, si non, if not, see below, § 408.
(Plain Conditions) The Indicative.
A. Open, as to fulfilment.
Any Tense of the Indicative may be used in either Clause which the sense requires :
Non si Opimium defendisti, idcirco te bonum civem putabunt.
CIC.Not, if you defended Opimius, will they therefore think you a good citizen.
Note 1.—Observe the Future and Future-Perfect in the following:
Si patriam prodere conabitur pater, silebitne filius?
CIC.If a father tries to betray his country, shall his son keep silence?
Si feceris id quod ostendis, magnam habebo gratiam.
CIC.If you do what you offer, I shall be very grateful.
Note 2.—The Apodosis may be a Command or Wish :
Moriar, si vera non loquor.
CIC.May I die, if I am not speaking the truth. (Sc., as I live I speak, etc.)
(Potential "Would" or "Should”) The Subjunctive.
B. Improbable, as to fulfilment: Future time.
Primary Tenses of Subjunctive in both Clauses:
Sescenta memorem, si sit otium.
PLAUT.I could mention hundreds of things, were I ever to have leisure (which is improbable).
C. Impossible: Present and Past time.
Historic Tenses of Subjunctive in both Clauses.
(1) Present time: Imperfect Subjunctive both Clauses:
Si foret in terris, rideret Democritus.
HOR.Democritus would laugh, were he alive now. (But he is not.)
(2) Past time: Pluperfect Subjunctive both Clauses:
Si id scissem, nunquam huc tulissem pedem.
TER.I should never have come here, had I known that. (But I did not.)
Or C. (1) and C. (2) may be combined, the Protasis being in (2), the Apodosis in (1).
Ergo ego nisi peperissem, Roma non oppugnaretur.
LIV.And so, had I never borne a son, Rome would not now be attacked.
(The Imperfect sometimes refers to Past time; but the opposite is rare.)
With Verbs expressing duty, possibility, likelihood, the Apodosis in B. and C. is usually a plain Indicative :
Viz., possum, debeo, oportet, the Gerundive, Future Participle, etc.:
Antoni gladios potuit contemnere, si sic Omnia dixisset.
JUV.He could have despised the swords of Antony, if all his utterances had been in this strain.
Indefinite or General Conditions.
These are expressed in the Apodosis by the Present or Imperfect Indicative or some iterative tense; In the Protasis by the Perfects Indicative—the Perfect, Pluperfect, and Future-Perfect expressing Present, Past, or Future time respectively, § 217:
Si quis eorum decreto non stetit, sacrificiis interdicunt.
CAES.If ever any of them does not abide by the ordinance, they exclude him from the sacrifice.
Si a persequendo hostes deterrere nequiverant, disjectos a tergo circumveniebant.
SALL.If ever they could not deter the enemy from pursuit, they cut them off and enclosed them in the rear.
Subordinate Conditions.
(a) In Oratio Obliqua "would" is expressed by the Future Participle with esse, "would have" by the Future Participle with fuisse :
Si Allobrogibus satisfaciant, sese cum iis pacem esse facturum.
CAES.If they gave satisfaction to the Allobroges, he would make peace with them.
Note. With Passives "would" and "would have" are often expressed by fore (or futurum esse) ut and futurum fuisse ut respectively :
Quorum si aetas potuisset esse longinquior, futurum fuisse ut omni doctrina hominum vita erudiretur.
CIC.If their years could have been prolonged, human life would have been richer in all manner of learning.
(b) In Clauses, e.g., after quin or ut, which would in any case be Subjunctive, "would” is expressed by the Perfect Subjunctive, whatever the sequence: viz., if Active, by fuerit with the Future Participle; if Passive, by fuerit with the Gerundive, or potuerit with the Infinitive:
Nec dubium erat quin, si tam pauci simul obire omnia possent, terga daturi hostes fuerint.
LIV.There was no doubt that if so small a body could occupy every position, the enemy would turn to flight.
Adeo aequis viribus gesta res est, ut, si adfuissent Etrusci, accipienda clades fuerit.
LIV.So evenly was the fight contested that, if the Etruscans had been present, a defeat would have been sustained.
ἀλλ᾽ εὐ φέρειν χρὴ συμφορὰς τὸν εὐγενῆ.
EUR.But it befits the nobly-born nobly to bear misfortunes.
Obs. With these, ὥστε with Infinitive, or ὅπως with Future Indicative (Negative μή), may also be used. (Note οὐ δεῖ σε φυγεῖν, you must not fly; not, δεῖ μή.)
3. It concerns, it is a care, it repents, etc.
μέλει takes a Dative and Infinitive; διαφέρει * and προσήκει*, a Dative or Accusative with Infinitive. The first two are specially common used absolutely (οὐδὲν διαφέρει, it does not matter; οὐδέν μοι μέλει, I care not), and are often used with εἰ and Indicative—an Indirect Question.
μεταμέλει takes a Dative and a Participle:
μετεμέλησέ οἱ τὸν Ἑλλήσποντον μαστιγώσαντι.
HDT.It repented him that he had scourged the Hellespont (lit., as having scourged). (See also § 251.)
* These Verbs take either an Accusative or a Dative with the Infinitive: e.g., "It is fitting for me to do it," or "It is fitting that I should do it". The rest, unless otherwise stated, take an Accusative. (See Subj. and Pred. of the Infin., § 180.)
Remark 1. The mere idea "the fact that" is usually expressed by one of two constructions :
Viz., either the Plain Infinitive, or the Infinitive with the Neuter Article prefixed: e.g.,
ἡ τῶν παίδων ἀρχή, τὸ μὴ ἐᾶν ἐλευθέρους εἶναι.
PLAT.The government of children, our not allowing them to be free.
Remark 2.—Certain words, besides taking their normal constructions, admit also of special usages :
θαυμάζω εἰ with Indicative, I wonder that (Negative οὐ or μή); μέμνημαι ὅτε with Indicative, I remember (the time) when (§ 414).
χαίρω, ἥδομαι, ἄχθομαι take a Participle (§ 198), "I rejoice to," etc.; Genitive Absolute, "I rejoice that”: χαίρω ἐλθών, I rejoice to have come; χαίρω σου ἐλθόντος, I rejoice that you have come. (Never Infinitive.)
Note ὡς for ἴσθι ὡς :
ὡς ᾿Αττικὸν τὸ χωρίον.
AR.Know that the land is Attic.
ADVERBIAL CLAUSES.
1. Final Clauses.
Final Sentences express the purpose, object, end (finis) of an action. They may be known in English by "may" or "might".
They are expressed by ἵνα or ὡς with the Subjunctive or Optative, according to Sequence (§ 344), (Negative μή).
Primary :
(1)
διανοεῖται τὴν γέφυραν λῦσαι, ὡς μὴ διαβῆτε.
ΧΕΝ. He proposes to destroy the bridge, that you may not cross.Historic:
(2)
ὤρνυθ᾽ ἵν᾿ ἀθανάτοισι φόως φέροι ἤδε βροτοῖσιν.
ΗΟΜ. She rose that she might bring light to gods and men.πλοῖα κατέκαυσεν ἵνα μὴ Κῦρος διαβῇ.
ΧΕΝ.He burnt the boats, that Cyrus might not cross (Vivid).
Note 1.—In poetry Final Clauses are sometimes expressed by ὡς or ὅπως (not ἵνα) with the Future Indicative.
(On ὡς ἄν with the Subjunctive see ἄν, § 219.)
Note 2.—An unfulfilled purpose in Past Time is expressed by ἵνα, ὡς, ὅπως, with the Historic Tenses of the Indicative (Negative μή):
τί μ᾿ οὐ λαβὼν ἔκτεινας εὐθὺς ὡς ἔδειξα μήποτε;
SOPH.Why didst thou not take and slay me that I might never have shown (as I have done)?
(In Final Clauses and not is μηδέ or καὶ μή.)
(A Final Clause is often marked by a Demonstrative Adverb: διὰ τόδε, τούτου ἕνεκα.)
Obs. Other ways of expressing Purpose: E.g., "they sent ambassadors to announce":
(1) ὅστις and Future Indicative: οἵτινες ἀγγελοῦσιν (§ 462).
(2) Future Participle (§ 193): ἀγγελοῦντας, or τοὺς or ὡς ἀγγ.
(3) τοῦ with Infinitive: τοῦ ἀγγέλλειν (§ 186).
(4) ἐάν with Subjunctive, or εἰ with Optative (§ 407).
2. Consecutive Clauses.
Consecutive Clauses express the Result or Consequence which follows (consequor) the action of the Main Verb.
(a) Possible Result: ὥστε with Infinitive (Negative μή). (A Negative Clause generally precedes or follows.)
τὰ παραδείγματα τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων ἵκανα τοῖς σώφροσιν ὥστε μηκέτι ἁμαρτάνειν.
ANDOC.Examples of errors are enough for sensible people to save them from further error.
(b) Actual Result: ὥστε with Indicative (Negative οὐ). (A Positive Clause generally precedes.)
εἰς τοῦτ᾽ ἀπληστίας ἦλθον, ὥστ᾽ οὐκ ἐξήρκεσεν αὐτοῖς ἔχειν τὴν κατὰ γῆν ἀρχήν.
ISOCR.They reached such a pitch of greed, that it was not enough for them to possess the empire of the land.
Note 1.—ἐφ᾽ ᾧτε with Infinitive (Negative μή) means on condition that:
ἀφίεμέν σε ἐφ᾽ ᾧτε μηκέτι φιλοσοφεῖν.
PLAT.We acquit you, on condition you no longer study philosophy.
The Consecutive Construction is frequent after Comparatives:
ᾔσθοντο αὐτὸν ἐλάσσω ἔχοντα δύναμιν ἢ ὥστε τοὺς φίλους ὠφελεῖν.
XEN.They saw he had too little power to help his friends.
Often ὥστε is omitted here: e.g.,
μεῖζον ἢ φέρειν κακόν.
SOPH.An evil too great to bear.
On the other hand ὥστε is sometimes added where we should expect a plain Infinitive:
ὕδωρ ψυχρὸν ὥστε λούσασθαι.
ΧΕΝ.Water cold for bathing.
Obs. Consequence can also be expressed by οἷος or ὅσος with the Infinitive (§ 465), or ὅστις with the Indicative (§ 463).
Remark.—Final and Consecutive Clauses are sometimes used parenthetically, especially Consecutive Clauses: e.g., ὡς εἰπεῖν, so to speak, lit., so as to speak; συνελόντι εἰπεῖν, to be brief. (See Infin., § 176.)
3. Conditional Clauses.
The "if" Clause is called the Protasis, because it usually precedes; the Main Clause is called the Apodosis, or "result".
The Negative in the "if" Clause is μή: see § 408.
The Indicative.
A. Open, as to fulfilment.
Any Tense of the Indicative may be used in either Clause which the sense requires :
εἴ που τι ἔπραξα, τοιοῦτος φανοῦμαι.
PLAT.If I ever did anything, I shall appear to be such a man.
Note 1.—εἴ with Future Indicative is only emphatic:
εἰ μὴ καθέξεις γλῶσσαν, ἔσται σοι κακά.
EUR.If you WILL not control your tongue, you will suffer.
More often ἐάν with Subj. is used of Future time:
ἐάν μοι πείθησθε, φείσεσθε μου.
PLAT.If you take my advice, you will spare me.
Note 2.—The Apodosis may be a Command or Wish :
κάκιστ᾽ ἀπολοίμην, Ξανθίαν εἰ μὴ φιλῶ.
AR.May I die miserably, if I do not love Xanthias.
av in the Apodosis.
B. Improbable, as to fulfilment: Future time.
Protasis, εἰ with Optative; Apodosis, Optative with ἄν:
εἴης φορητὸς οὐκ ἄν, εἰ πράσσοις καλῶς.
AESCH.You would be unendurable, were you ever to be prosperous (which is improbable).
C. Impossible: Present and Past time.
Historic Tenses of Indicative: ἄν in Apodosis.
(1) Present time: εἰ with Imperfect Indicative; Imperfect Indicative with ἄν :
καὶ τόδ', εἴπερ ἔσθενον, ἔδρων ἄν.
SOPH.And I should now be doing this deed, had I the strength (but I have not).
(2) Past time: εἰ with Aorist Indicative; Aorist Indicative with ἄν:
ἀπέθανον ἂν εἰ μὴ ἡ τῶν τριάκοντα ἀρχὴ κατελύθη.
PLAT.I should have died, if the rule of the Thirty had not been overthrown (but it was).
Or C. (1) and C. (2) may be combined, the Protasis being in (2), the Apodosis in (1).
εἰ τότε ἐβοηθήσαμεν, οὐκ ἂν ἠνώχλει ὁ Φίλιππος.
DEM.If we had gone to the rescue then, Philip would not be troubling us now.
(The Imperfect sometimes refers to Past time; but the opposite is rare.)
With Verbs expressing duty, possibility, likelihood, the Apodosis in B. and C. is usually a plain Indicative :
Viz., χρή, δεῖ, verbals in -τεος, μέλλω, κινδυνεύω, etc. :
χρῆν δέ σε, εἴπερ ἦσθα χρηστὸς, τοῖς μέλλουσιν ἀδίκως ἀποθανεῖσθαι μηνυτὴν γενέσθαι.
LYS.You ought, were you honest, to have turned informer on behalf of those about to be unjustly put to death.
Indefinite or General Conditions.
These are expressed in the Apodosis by the Present or Imperfect Indicative or some iterative tense; In the Protasis (1) by ἐάν with Subjunctive, if Primary; (2) by εἰ with Optative, if Historic. (The Optative here must be distinguished from the Optative in B., sup. § 398.)
(1) Primary:
ἣν ἐγγὺς ἔλθῃ θάνατος, οὐδεὶς βούλεται θνήσκειν.
EUR.If ever death draws near, no man cares to die.
(2) Historic:
ἀλλ᾽ εἴ τι μὴ φέροιμεν, ὤτρυνεν φέρειν.
EUR.But if ever we did not bring anything, he urged us to bring it.
Subordinate Conditions.
(a) In Oratio Obliqua ἄν of the Apodosis is retained with the Infinitive and Participle—the Protasis alone showing whether an Optative (B.) or an Indicative (C.) is represented :
εἰ σφίσι προσγένοιτο, νομίζοντες ἅπασαν ἂν ἔχειν Πελοπόννησον.
THUC.Thinking that if the place came over to them, they would be masters of the whole Peloponnese.
(Oratio Recta: ἂν ἔχοιεν, B.)
εἰ ἀπήχθησθε ὥσπερ ἡμεῖς, εὖ ἴσμεν μὴ ἂν ἧσσον ὑμᾶς λυπηροὺς γενομένους τοῖς συμμάχοις.
THUC.If you had incurred the same odium as ourselves, we feel sure that you would have seemed no less oppressive to your allies. (Oratio Recta : ἂν ἐγένεσθε, C. (2). On μή see § 501.)
(It follows, therefore, that after Historic Tenses the Vivid Sequence must be retained in the Protasis, otherwise conditions in B. and C. would be indistinguishable (§ 346). After ὅτι, that, this remark applies also to the Apodosis. In all such cases the Indicative of C. must be retained, and not altered to the Optative.)
(b) ἐάν with the Subjunctive may, after Historic Tenses, become εἰ with the Optative: e.g.,
ἐλογίζοντο ὡς, εἰ μὴ μάχοιντο, ἀποστήσοιντο αἱ περιοικίδες πόλεις.
XEN.They argued that, if they did not fight, the neighbouring cities would revolt. (Oratio Recta : ἐὰν μὴ μαχώμεθα, ἀποστήσονται.)
This remark applies also to Indefinite Conditions.
SUBORDINATE CONDITIONS.
Remarks on Conditional Sentences.
Note 1.—The real Apodosis of B. and C. is sometimes suppressed and a plain Indicative substituted for vividness, to show how near a thing is to happening:
Numeros memini, si verba tenerem.
VIRG.I remember the music, (and I should remember the whole song) if I could recall the words.
Sometimes, where the real Apodosis is thus suppressed, a Protasis in the Conjunctive practically expresses Purpose:
Circumfunduntur hostes, si aditum reperire possent.
CAES.The enemy swarm round, to see if they could find an entrance anywhere (sc., they would attack, if).
Note 2.—The Protasis of a Conditional Sentence may be a Participle (§ 193), or a Relative Clause (§ 469), etc.
Note 3.—The Protasis of B. and C. sometimes stands alone as a Wish (§ 332), "if only this were so!" (I should be glad); the Apodosis, as a Potential Statement (§ 329), "one would say".
Note 4.—Occasionally the Apodosis, if it comes second, is introduced with a Connective Particle, as though it were a Coordinate Clause: Viz., by the Particle at (chiefly in Livy).
Note 5.—Observe sin minus, sin aliter, but if the opposite be the case; if the first Clause be Negative, but if so.
Note 6.—Nisi, unless, is used only if the Apodosis is Nega- tive: otherwise si—non, if—not, must be used.
If if, whether—or, is sive—sive.
4. Causal Clauses.
Quod, quia, because; quoniam, since:
(1) With Indicative, if the cause is given as a fact:
Possunt, quia posse videntur.
VIRG.They have the power because they think they have.
(On quum, since, with Subjunctive, Causal, see § 415.)
(2) With Subjunctive in virtual Oratio Obliqua (§ 476):
Themistocles noctu ambulabat, quod somnum capere non posset.
CIC.Themistocles used to walk about at night, because, he said, he could not sleep.
Note. So non quia, non quod, quam quia, take the Subjunctive when they refer to what is not a fact:
Pugiles ingemiscunt, non quod doleant, sed quia venit plaga vehementior.
CIC.Boxers groan, not because they are in pain, but because their blow comes with the more force thereby.
SUBORDINATE CONDITIONS.
Remarks on Conditional Sentences.
Note 1.—The real Apodosis of B. and C. is sometimes suppressed and a plain Indicative substituted for vividness, to show how near a thing is to happening:
εἰ δὲ μὴ Φρυγῶν πύργους πεσόντας ᾖσμεν, φόβον παρέσχεν.
EUR.Had we not known that the towers of the Phrygians had fallen, it had caused us fear.
Sometimes, where the real Apodosis is thus suppressed, a Protasis in the Conjunctive practically expresses Purpose:
πρὸς τὴν πόλιν, εἰ ἐπιβοηθοῖεν, ἐχώρουν.
THỤC.They marched towards the city, to see if the enemy would come out against them (in which case they would join battle).
Note 2.—The Protasis of a Conditional Sentence may be a Participle (§ 193), or a Relative Clause (§ 469), etc.
Note 3.—The Protasis of B. and C. sometimes stands alone as a Wish (§ 332), "if only this were so!" (I should be glad); the Apodosis, as a Potential Statement (§ 329), "one would say".
Note 4.—Occasionally the Apodosis, if it comes second, is introduced with a Connective Particle, as though it were a Coordinate Clause: Viz., by δέ: hence called “apodotic δέ”.
Note 5.—Observe εἰ δὲ μή, but if the opposite be the case. (If the first clause is Negative, εἰ δὲ μή = but if so.)
Note 6.—The Negative in the Protasis is regularly μή, but οὐ may be used to negative particular words (§ 500).
If if, whether—or, is εἴτε—εἴτε, ἐάν τε—ἐάν τε.
4. Causal Clauses.
ὅτι, διότι, because; ὡς, as. (The Negative is οὐ) :
(1) With Indicative, if the cause is given as a fact:
τὸ ὅσιον, ὅτι ὅσιόν ἐστι, φιλεῖται ὑπὸ τῶν θεῶν.
PLAT.Holiness is loved by the gods because it is holiness.
(On ἐπεί, ἐπειδή, since, with Indicative, Causal, see § 415.)
(2) With Optative in virtual Oratio Obliqua (§ 476) :
τὸν Περικλέα ἐκάκιζον, ὅτι στρατηγὸς ὢν οὐκ ὑπεξάγοι.
THUC.They began to revile P. because, though general, he did not lead them out.
Obs.—ὅτι and ὡς may perhaps here mean (saying) "that".
Note 1.—In Poetry οὕνεκα, ὁθούνεκα, are also used in the sense of "because".
Note 2.—With ἐπεί, ἐπειδή, ὡς, the Main Clause usually follows; with ὅτι, διότι, it almost always precedes.
(ἐπεί sometimes means "for": ἐπεὶ δίδαξον. SOPH. For tell me.)
CAUSAL CLAUSES
Obs. A cause may also be expressed by
(1) The Participle, often with ut or tanquam (§ 193).
(2) The Relative, qui, quippe qui, with Subjunctive (§ 468).
(3) Siquidem, with Indicative (also miror si, § 383).
(4) Gerund or Gerundive in Ablative (§ 184).
5. Temporal Clauses.
Temporal Particles admit of two constructions, according as they express—
(1) Merely time, when they take the Indicative;
(2) Also purpose, when they take the Subjunctive, like Final Clauses (§ 384).
(Quum is exceptional, taking the Subjunctive if it expresses cause or concession. Dum with Subjunctive may also mean "provided that".)
1. When.
Ubi, quando, ut, Indicative, as expressing mere time:
Pompeius, ut equitatum suum pulsum vidit, acie excessit.
CAES.When Pompey saw the rout of his cavalry, he left the field.
(On the Tense of vidit see § 205.)
Quum.
Quum takes the Subjunctive if it means not purely temporal :
(1) When, Historic time (half-Causal):
Cum triginta tyranni oppressas tenerent Athenas, Thrasybulus his bellum indixit.
NEP.When the thirty tyrants were oppressing Athens, Thrasybulus declared war against them.
Cum Pausanias de templo elatus esset, confestim animam efflavit.
NEP.When Pausanias was carried out of the temple, he immediately expired.
(2) Since (i.e., because), both Primary and Historic time:
Quae cum ita sint.
CIC.Since this is so.
(3) Although, both Primary and Historic time:
Patrem meum, cum proscriptus non esset, jugulastis.
CIC.You murdered my father, though he was not proscribed.
Quum takes the Indicative when it means
(1) When, Primary time. Observe the Futures in
De his rebus, otiosi cum erimus, loquemur.
CIC.We will talk of these things when we are at leisure.
Eum cum videro, Arpinum pergam.
CIC.When I have seen him, I shall go on to Arpinum.
(2) Whenever, with the Perfect, Future-Perfect, or Pluperfect of Present, Future, or Past time respectively:
Cum ad villam veni, hoc ipsum nihil agere me delectat.
CIC.Whenever I come to my country-house, the mere idleness of the life delights me.
Cum rosam viderat, tum ver incipere arbitrabatur.
CIC.Whenever he saw a rose, he thought spring was beginning.
(3) And then (this is called "inverse cum" because the Clauses are inverted, the quum clause really containing the Principal Statement):
Jam ver appetebat cum Hannibal ex hibernis movit.
LIV.Spring was already approaching, when Hannibal moved out of his winter-quarters (viz., "when Spring was approaching, Hannibal, etc.").
Remark.—Quum, when, even in Historic time, may take the Indicative if mere time is expressed—especially if tum is added:
Lituo Romulus regiones direxit tum cum Romam condidit.
CIC.Romulus marked out the districts with a staff at the time he founded the city.
So since, that, of mere time—duration:
Multi anni sunt cum Fabius in aere meo est.
CIC.It is many years that Fabius has been in my debt.
If the English admits of being transposed into the Participle in "-ing," use the Subjunctive with quum; if not, the Indicative: e.g., "Pausanias having been carried out," "these things being so,” supra.
Note 1.—As soon as is expressed by the same Particles and under the same rules as "when," with the addition of an Adverb implying "firstly," viz., primum, e.g., quum primum.
Also by simul, or simul ac, simul atque (and sometimes simulac, etc.).
Note 2.—Whenever may be expressed also by quotiens, quotiescunque, usually with the Perfect, Future-Perfect or Pluperfect (§ 217).
Dum.
2. While, until.
Dum, donec, quoad: (1) while, (2) until.
(1) In the sense of “while” these Particles take the Indicative, like ubi (sup.). But dum, "while," usually takes the Present Indicative, even in Past time and in Oratio Obliqua, if it denote a longer period than the main verb:
Dum Romani consultant, jam Saguntum oppugnabatur.
LIV.While the Romans were deliberating, Saguntum was already undergoing siege.
(2) In the sense of "until" they take
(a) The Indicative, of mere time:
Milo in senatu fuit eo die, quoad senatus dimissus est.
CIC.Milo was in the Senate that day until it was dismissed.
(b) The Subjunctive, if they express purpose:
Rusticus expectat dum defluat amnis.
HOR.The rustic waits for the river to flow by (
Observavit dum dormitaret canis.
PLAUT.He waited for the dog to fall asleep (
Note. Dum, modo, dummodo, provided that, take the Subjunctive (Negative ne):
Oderint, dum metuant.
SUET.Let them hate me, provided that they fear me. (For nedum see § 445.)
Priusquam.
3. Before.
Priusquam, antequam (sometimes as two words, prius quam, ante—quam) follow the constructions of dum, until; but the Indicative is usually past, and usually follows a Negative.
(1) With the Indicative, purely Temporal; sometimes after a Present and a Positive:
Ante rorat quam pluit.
VARRO.It drizzles before it rains.
More often a Negative precedes, and the Perfect Indicative is used (the Imperfect rarely, the Pluperfect never): "until".
Nec prius fugere destiterunt quam ad flumen Rhenum pervenerunt.
CAES.And they did not cease flying, till they came to the river Rhine.
(2) With the Subjunctive, if Purpose is implied :
Graeci tragoedi cotidie, antequam pronuntient, vocem cubantes excitant.
CIC.A Greek tragic actor, before delivering his part, works up his voice in a recumbent position every day.
(Sometimes the Subjunctive expresses result prevented—the idea of Purpose existing only in the writer's mind :
Ante discessit quam illum venisse audissem.
CIC.He left before I had heard of his arrival.)
4. After.
Postquam: with the Indicative only, mere time:
Postquam cenavimus, Atticus advenit.
CIC.After we had dined Atticus came.
(Note the use of the Perfect for the Pluperfect here, § 205.)
Time "after" may also be expressed by any of the Particles given above for time "when".
Observe the phrase postridie quam, the day after, with the Indicative:
Post diem tertium res gesta est quam dixerat.
CIC.The deed was done three days after he had spoken.
Observe also the following Particles expressive of time:
Ex quo, since; quoad (sup., § 425), until; quamdiu, as long as.
Obs. Time may also be expressed by
(1) The Participle: scribens, while writing; progressus, when he had come; moriturus, before he died (§ 193).
(2) A preposition and Participial or Gerundival phrase: post urbem conditam, after the city had been built; ante Caesarem occisum, before Cæsar was slain; inter loquendum, while he was talking (§ 184).
6. Local Clauses,
where, whither, whence, follow the construction of Relative Clauses (§ 458).
1. Indicative: of Definite place:
Quâ te ducit via, dirige gressum.
VIRG.Where the way leads thee, direct thy steps.
Note. The Perfects may be used of Indefinite place (§ 217):
Quocunque aspexisti, tuae tibi occurrunt injuriae.
CIC.Wherever you look your offences meet you.
2. Subjunctive: of consequence or purpose:
Recumbe, ubi stare non possis. Lie down, where you cannot stand (in places such that: Consequence).
Vias relaxat, veniat qua sucus in herbas.
VIRG.It opens the pores, whereby the moisture may reach the herbs. (Purpose.)
(Such phrases as "I have nowhere to go," with Conjunctive, are probably Indirect Deliberative Questions: "I do not know where," etc. (§ 363).)
7. Concessive Clauses: even if, although.
A Concessive Clause is so called because it "concedes" or grants an objection to the Main Clause.
1. Etsi, etiamsi, follow the rules of Conditionals (§ 395):
Etiamsi tacent, satis dicunt. CIC. (A.) Even if they are silent, they say enough.
Caesar, etiamsi in nos non esset qui est, tamen ornandus videretur.
CIC.(C. 1.) Cæsar, even if he were not to us what he is, would still seem worthy of honour.
(Si maxume is sometimes used, the maxume qualifying some special word.)
2. (a) Quanquam, with Indicative, of a fact:
Quanquam festinas, non est mora longa.
HOR.Though thou art in haste, the delay is not long.
(b) Quamvis, licet, with Subjunctive, of a thing treated as a supposition, whether it be a fact or not:
Quod turpe est, id, quamvis occultetur, tamen honestum fieri nullo modo potest.
CIC.What is disgraceful cannot, let it be concealed as much as you like, by any means become right.
Note 1.—Quamvis may also be used with an Adjective or Participle.
Note 2.—Et with the Participle may also mean "although," the Negative form being ne—quidem.
(Quamvis with Indicative is common in Poetry: Quanquam is rarely found with the Subjunctive.)
Obs. Other ways of expressing Concession are:
(1) Quum with Subjunctive: although (see § 417).
(2) Ut with Subjunctive: although (Negative ne).
(3) Qui with Subjunctive (§ 469).
Note. The following Limitative Clauses should also be observed:
Tantum abest ut—ut, with Subjunctive, so far from :
Tantum abest ut nostra miremur ut nobis non satisfaciat ipse Demosthenes.
CIC.So far am I from admiring my own works that not even Demosthenes satisfies me.
Nedum, let alone, much less, with Subjunctive:
Mortalia facta peribunt: Nedum sermonum stet honos et gratia vivax.
HOR.Mortal deeds shall pass away; much less may the grace and glory of men's words remain alive.
Obs. A cause may also be expressed by
(1) The Participle, often with ὡς or ἅτε (§ 193):
(2) The Relative, ὅς, ὅστις, ὅς γε, ὅστις γε, with Indic. (§ 468).
(3) εἴ γε, with Indicative. (Also θαυμάζω εἰ, see § 383.)
(4) τῷ or διὰ τό, with Infinitive (§ 184).
5. Temporal Clauses.
Temporal Particles admit of two constructions, according as they express—
(1) Definite time, when they take the Indicative;
(2) Indefinite time, when they take ἄν with Subjunctive if Primary, the plain Optative if Historic (§ 403).
Future time is almost necessarily Indefinite; viz., they correspond throughout to Conditional Clauses, § 396.
1. When.
Note.—ἐπεί, ἐπειδή, with the Indicative, have other meanings. not purely temporal :
(1) When, half-Causal, chiefly Historic time:
ἐπεὶ ἠσθένει Δαρεῖος, ἐβούλετο οἱ τὼ παῖδε ἀμφοτέρω παρεῖναι.
ΧΕΝ.When Darius was ill, he wished both his sons to appear before him.
ἐπειδὴ δὲ ὀλιγαρχία ἐγένετο, οἱ τριάκοντα μετεπέμψαντό με.
PLAT.When an oligarchy had been established, the Thirty Tyrants sent for me.
(On the Tense of ἐγένετο see § 205.)
(2) Since (i.e., because), any time (see § 409) :
ἐπεὶ δὲ ταῦτα οὕτως ἔχει.
DEM.And since this is so.
(3) Although: chiefly Indicative with ἄν :
ἐπεὶ καὶ ταῦτ᾽ ἂν ἴσως οὐκ ἀηδῶς σου ἤκουον.
PLAT.Though I should have been glad perhaps to hear this also from you.
(b) ὅταν, ἐπειδάν with the Subjunctive, a vague Future; the Aorist Subjunctive is here equivalent to a Future Perfect (Negative μή) :
οὐκοῦν, ὅταν δὴ μὴ σθένω, πεπαύσομαι.
SOPH.So, when I have no power, I will cease.
ἐπειδὰν δὲ διαπράξωμαι ἃ δέομαι, ἥξω.
ΧΕΝ.When I have accomplished my purpose, I shall return.
(c) Indefinite time, whenever: ὅταν, ἐπειδάν with Subjunctive, Primary; ὅτε, ἐπεί with Optative, Historic (Neg. μή) :
μαινόμεθα πάντες, ὁπόταν ὀργιζώμεθα.
PHILEMON.We are all mad, when we are angry.
ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἀνοιχθείη, εἰσῄειμεν παρὰ τὸν Σωκράτη.
PLAT.Every morning when the prison opened we used to go in and see Socrates.
Note 1.—"When" in the inverse sense of "and then" may be expressed by ὅτε, but more commonly the idea is expressed by καί and a Coordinate Clause. E.g.:
ἦν δὲ ἦμαρ δεύτερον κἀγὼ κατηγόμην.
SOPH.It was now the second day, when I put in to shore.
Note 2.—ἐπεί, ἐπειδή, ἐπειδάν have usually a causal force or express some other relation between the two clauses beside that of time.
ὅτε is, as a rule, merely temporal, ὅταν always so—ὅτε being usually attended by an antecedent, e.g., τότε (supra, § 414).
(But ἐπεί, since, that, expresses little more than time:
δέκατον μὲν ἔτος τόδ᾽ ἐπεὶ ἦραν.
AESCH.It is now ten years since they started.
When thus defined, ὅτε may be used with the Future Indicative:
νὺξ ἔσται ὅτε με στυγερὸς γάμος ἀντιβολήσει.
Ном.The night will come when loathéd wedlock will come upon me.
Note 1.—As soon as is expressed by the same Particles and under the same rules as "when," with the addition of an Adverb implying "firstly," viz., τάχιστα, e.g., ἔπει τάχιστα. But ὅτε τάχιστα is not used; ὡς and τάχιστα in this sense (§ 73) are usually separated.
Note 2.—Whenever may be expressed also by ὁπόταν, Subjunctive; ὁπότε, Optative, according to § 344. These words are only Indefinite.
πρίν.
3. Before.
πρίν, πρὶν ἤ, πρότερον ἤ. πρίν, after Negatives, follows the constructions of ἕως, until; after Positives it takes a fresh construction—the Infinitive.
(πρίν is often preceded by a redundant πρότερον.)
(a) After Positives, the Infinitive:
πρὶν γενέσθαι ἡμᾶς ἦν ἡμῶν ἡ ψυχή.
PLAT.Before we were born, our soul was in existence.
(b) After Negatives (translate "until'') :
1. The Indicative, Past time: Definite:
οἱ Λακεδαιμόνιοι οὐ πρότερον ἐπαύσαντο πρὶν Μεσσηνίους ἐξέβαλον ἐκ τῆς χώρας.
ISAEUS.The Spartans did not cease till they had expelled the Messenians from the land.
2. ἄν with Subjunctive, Primary: Optative, Historic; of Future time:
οὐκ ἀποκρινοῦμαι πρότερον πρὶν ἂν πύθωμαι.
PLAT.I will not answer till I hear.
ἀπηγόρευε μηδένα βάλλειν πρὶν Κῦρος ἐμπλησθείη θηρῶν.
ΧΕΝ.He forbad any one to shoot till Cyrus had had his surfeit of the chase.
Observe that πρίν with the Conjunctive practically implies Purpose.
(On πρίν, μέχρι, ἕως with a plain Subjunctive, see § 98.)
4. After.
ὕστερον ἤ: only with the Past Indicative, Definite:
τεσσαρακοστῇ ἡμέρᾳ ὕστερον ἢ Ποτιδαία ἀπέστη.
THUC.Forty days after Potidæa had revolted.
(Note the use of the Aorist for the Pluperfect here, § 205.)
Time "after" may also be expressed by any of the Particles given above for time "when".
Observe the phrase τῇ ὑστεραίᾳ ἤ, the day after, usually with ᾗ (sc. ἡμέρᾳ) :
τῇ ὑστεραίᾳ ἢ ᾗ ἔθυεν.
PLAT.Three days after he was sacrificing.
Observe also the following Particles expressive of time:
ἐξ οὗ, since; ἐς ὅ, until; ἐν ᾧ, while (often picked up by ἐν τούτῳ); ὅσον χρόνον, as long as.
Obs. Time may also be expressed by
(1) The Participle: μεταξὺ γράφων, while he was writing; ἀπελθών, when he had gone, etc. (§ 193).
(2) A Preposition with the Article and Infinitive: πρὸ τοῦ θανεῖν, before he died; μετὰ τὸ ταῦτα γενέσθαι, after this had happened.
Note also φθάνω and ὑστερέω with the Participle (§ 198).
6. Local Clauses,
where, whither, whence, follow the construction of Relative Clauses (§ 458).
1. Indicative: of mere place:
αὐτοῦ μέν, οὗπερ κἀφάνης.
SOPH.Remain here where thou didst first appear.
2. ἄν with Subjunctive, or pure Optative, Indefinite:
μολών τε χῶρον ἔνθ᾽ ἂν ἀστιβῆ κίχω.
SOPH.Going where'er I find a place untrod. (
ἐκέλευε λίθους καταβάλλειν ὅπου βούλοιτο.
ΧΕΝ.He ordered him to throw down the stones wherever he liked. (
3. Future Indicative: of purpose (Negative μή):
κρυψόν νιν ἔνθα μή τις ὄψεται θεῶν.
SOPH.Hide it where none of the gods may see it.
(Such phrases as "I have nowhere to go," with Conjunctive, are probably Indirect Deliberative Questions: "I do not know where," etc. (§ 363).)
7. Concessive Clauses: even if, although.
A Concessive Clause is so called because it "concedes" or grants an objection to the Main Clause.
1. κεἰ (= καὶ εἰ), κἄν (= καὶ ἐάν), (Neg. μή). (Conditionals, § 395.)
κεἰ μὴ πέποιθα, τοὔργον ἔστ᾽ ἐργαστέον.
AESCH.(A.) Even if I do not believe them, the deed must be done.
ὡς εὐμαθές σου, κἂν ἄποπτος ᾖς ὅμως, φώνημ᾽ ἀκούω.
SOPH.(Indefinite, or vague Future.) How clearly do I hear thy voice, even though thyself may be unseen.
(With εἰ καί, the καί affects a special word: εἰ καὶ μὴ βλέπεις, SOPH., though thou SEEST not.)
2. καίπερ, with the Participle (Negative οὐ), (§ 193) :
πείθου γυναιξὶ, καίπερ οὐ στέργων, ὅμως.
AESCH.Give way to women, though thou love them not.
(ὅμως, belonging strictly to the Main Sentence, “nevertheless," is often, as here and in the last instance, absorbed into the Concessive Clause.)
Note 1.—περ, alone, is often used in Poetry, with the Participle:
γυνή περ οὖσα, τῷδε μηχανήσομαι.
AESCH.Though but a woman, I will contrive it for him.
(περ was originally περί, very, intensive. Cf. ὅσπερ, who indeed.)
Note 2.—καί, alone, with the Participle may also be used, the Negative form being οὐδέ : καὶ εἰδώς, though he knew.
(Occasionally καίπερ is found with an Adjective. Sometimes καί and περ are separated in Poetry.)
Obs. Other ways of expressing Concession are:
(1) ἐπεί with Historic Indicative and ἄν (see § 417).
(2) ὡς : e.g., ὡς Λακεδαιμόνιος, although a Spartan.
(3) ὅστις with Indicative (§469).
Note. The following Limitative Clauses should also be observed:
οὐχ ὅπως—ἀλλά, so far from :
οὐχ ὅπως τῶν αὑτοῦ τι ἀπέδωκεν, ἀλλὰ τῶν ἡμετέρων πολλὰ ὑφήρηται.
LYS.So far from giving us anything of his own, he has surreptitiously possessed himself of much of ours.
μὴ ὅπως, μὴ ὅτι, not to say: viz., after a Negative, much less; after a Positive, much more :
οὐδὲ ἀναπνεῖν, μὴ ὅτι λέγειν δυνησόμεθα.
ΧΕΝ.We shall not be able to recover breath, much less speak.
χρηστοὶ γυναιξί, μὴ ὅτι ἀνδράσιν.
7. CONCESSIVE CLAUSES.
(In tantum abest ut—ut both Clauses are Consecutive: the clause with nedum is half-final. On dum, dummodo, see § 427.)
8. Comparative Clauses: As, as if, than, than if.
By a Comparative Clause, as the name shows, one statement is compared with another.
Such Clauses fall under two heads, according as they express (a) a fact, "as," "than"; (b) a supposition, "as if," "than if". In the latter case they are really Protases in B. and C., with the Apodosis suppressed (see Conditionals, § 398).
1. As if (a supposition).
Quasi (= quam si), tanquam si, ut si, with Subjunctive:
Assimulabo quasi nunc exeam.
TER.I will pretend to be just going out (viz., I will look as [I should look] if I were to go out: B.).
Note. So tanquam, velut, ceu, with si omitted :
Tanquam regum arcanis interesset, omnia scit.
LIV.He knows everything just as [he would] if he were privy to the secrets of kings. (C. 1.)
(These words, without the "if," are often used with Participles: Tanquam furatus. TAC. As if he had stolen.)
2. As (a fact).
Ut (often with ita), sicut (= sic ut), with Indicative:
Ut sementem feceris, ita metes.
CIC.As you sow, so shall you reap.
(Observe the tenses, § 210.)
Note.—The Indefinite Conjunctions, utcunque, however, prout, according as (often with quisque), also take the Indicative:
Id, prout cujusque ingenium erat, interpretabantur.
LIV.They interpreted the matter according to their respective characters.
Observe the frequent introduction of similes, as in English, by the phrase "as when":
Sicut ubi, with Indicative (as is the case when).
Observe the idiom in Protestations, and its translation :
Ita me dii ament, ut ego nunc laetor.
PLAUT.May heaven confound me if I'm not pleased.
Note 1.—Expressions denoting agreement, identity, difference, show the same distinction of fact and supposition.
Idem ac, perinde ac, aliter ac, aliter quam, etc.
Longe alia nobis ac tu scripseras narrantur.
CIC.A far different version is given me to what you had sent.
If si is added, they take the Subjunctive as in § 447.
Obs. Any of these words may take either quam or ac; but aeque quam is rare, similiter quam is not used; idem, perinde take also ut.
(With nihil aliud quam the Main Verb is often omitted :
Venter nihil aliud quam datis voluptatibus fruitur.
LIV.The belly does nothing else but enjoy the pleasures ministered to it.)
Note 2.—Comparison of Quantity.
(a) Superlatives. These necessarily deal only with facts. Contrast the position of the Superlative in English.
Quam, as, Indicative:
Jugurtha quam maximas potest armat copias.
SALL.Jugurtha arms as large a force as he can.
(The Verb "to be able" is often omitted: hence the common Superlative phrases, "as big as possible" (§ 73).)
Note also the phrase "quam qui maxime," as much as a man can, lit. "as much as a man who can most do it".
The same idiom occurs with phrases which are Superlative in sense, though not in form:
Tenuit locum tam diu quam ferre potuit laborem.
CIC.He held the position as long as he could bear the strain.
(b) Comparatives. These differ, as before, according as they represent fact or supposition.
Viz., quam, than, Indicative; quam si, than if, Subjunctive.
Obs. Quam ut, than as, takes the Indicative, like ut (§ 449). Quam ut, than to, takes the Subjunctive—Consequence (§ 388):
Isocrates majore ingenio est quam ut cum Lysiâ comparetur.
CIC.Isocrates is too great a genius to be compared with Lysias (lit., greater than so as to be).
Quam qui is used with the Subjunctive in the same sense:
Malum gravius est quam quod ferri possit. The evil is too great to bear.
(Potius quam takes the Subjunctive like quam quod, § 411.)
When two Comparatives are compared, the more—the more, the above Particles are not used, but
eo—quo, tanto—quanto, Ablatives of Degree (§ 267):
Tanto brevius omne, quanto felicius tempus.
PLINY.Time passes more quickly, the happier it is.
ADJECTIVAL CLAUSES. Viz. Relative Clauses.
Relative Clauses differ according as they express
(1) A fact, when they are in the Indicative; or
(2) A purpose, consequence, cause, or some idea other than mere fact, when they take the Subjunctive, like Final and Consecutive Clauses.
1. Qui with Indicative: of a fact:
Quis fuit horrendos primus qui protulit enses?
OV.Who was the man who first invented terrible swords?
Note. So with the Indefinite quisquis, quicunque :
Sequimur te, sancte deorum, quisquis es.
VIRG.We follow thee, thou holy one of god, whoe'er thou art.
But here, as in Temporal Clauses, the Perfect, Pluperfect or Future-Perfect Indicative are often used of Indefinite frequency (§ 217):
Imitamur quoscunque visum est.
CIC.We imitate whomever we like.
2. Qui with Subjunctive: Final, Consecutive, etc.:
(a) Final: qui with Subjunctive (cf. § 384):
Scribebat Aelius orationes quas alii dicerent.
CIC.Aelius used to compose speeches for other people to deliver.
(N.B. In this Final use the Relative cannot refer to the Subject of the Main Verb, e.g., "messengers came to announce".)
(b) Consecutive: qui with Subjunctive (cf. § 388):
Ea est Romana gens quae victa quiescere nesciat.
CIC.The Roman nation is one which cannot acquiesce in defeat (lit., is such that it cannot).
The following idioms are also Consecutive in character:
1. Sunt qui, quis est qui (nemo est quin, § 515): lit., "there are some people such that":
Quis est cui non possit malum evenire?
CIC.Who is there to whom evil does not happen?
(Where qui is definite the Indicative must be used:
Sunt qui non habeant, est qui non curat habere.
HOR.Some have it not, one [the writer] does not want it.)
2. Quam qui, than to, is Consecutive; see § 456.
3. Dignus, indignus, aptus, idoneus, qui with Subjunctive:
Dignus est qui imperet.
CIC.He is worthy to rule.
7. CONCESSIVE CLAUSES.
Useful to women, but much more so to men.
Sc., οὐ (λέγω) ὅπως, μὴ (λέγε) ὅπως. Such Clauses are therefore really Substantival.
8. Comparative Clauses: As, as if, than, than if.
By a Comparative Clause, as the name shows, one statement is compared with another.
Such Clauses fall under two heads, according as they express (a) a fact, "as," "than"; (b) a supposition, "as if," "than if". In the latter case they are really Protases in B. and C., with the Apodosis suppressed (see Conditionals, § 398).
1. As if (a supposition).
ὡς εἰ, ὥσπερ εἰ, with Optative (B.) or Historic Indicative (C.):
λαοὶ ἕπονθ᾽, ὡς εἴ τε μετὰ κτίλον ἕσπετο μῆλα.
HOM.The host followed, like sheep following after a ram (viz., as they would have followed if they had been sheep, etc.: C.).
Note. ὡσπερανεί. Sometimes the ἄν of the suppressed Apodosis is retained, imbedded in the ὥσπερ εἰ:
ὡσπερανεὶ εἴποι.
PLAT.Just as if he were to say (viz., ὥσπερ ἂν ποιοίη, εἰ εἴποι).
(These words, without the "if," are often used with Participles: ὥσπερ εἰδότες. PLAT. As if they knew.)
2. As (a fact).
ὡς, ὥσπερ, ὅπως, with Indicative (often with οὕτως):
ἔστιν γὰρ οὕτως, ὥσπερ οὗτος ἐννέπει.
SOPH.For it is so, even as he says.
Note. Indefinites, ἄν with Subjunctive, or pure Optative (§ 403):
μαντεύομαι γὰρ ὡς ἂν ἤγηται θεός.
AESCH.For I prophesy, however god directs (
οὕτως ὅπως τύχοιεν.
THUC.Whatever their condition (
Observe the frequent introduction of similes, as in English, by the phrase "as when":
ὡς ὅτε, with Indicative (as is the case when).
Observe the idiom in Protestations, and its translation :
οὕτως ὀναίμην τούτων, ὡς ἀληθῆ πρὸς σὲ ἐρῶ.
LUC.May I lose all profit from the thing if I do not tell you true.
Note 1.—Expressions denoting agreement, identity, difference, show the same distinction of fact and supposition.
ὁμοῖος καί, ὁ αὐτὸς καί, ἴσος καί, ἄλλος ἤ, etc. :
ἐνθυμεῖται γὰρ οὐδεὶς ὁμοίᾳ τῇ πίστει καὶ ἔργῳ ἐπεξέρχεται.
THUC.For no one conceives a design with only the same confidence as he carries it out.
If εἰ is added, the Clause is a Protasis in B. or C. (§ 398).
Obs. Words of difference all take ἤ; words of similarity and identity take καί, as above, or ὥσπερ.
(With οὐδὲν ἄλλο ἤ, etc., the Main Verb is often omitted :
τί ἄλλο ἢ ἱπποκένταυρος γίγνομαι;
ΧΕΝ.What am I doing but becoming a centaur?)
Note 2.—Comparison of Quantity.
(a) Superlatives. These necessarily deal only with facts. Contrast the position of the Superlative in English.
ὡς, sometimes ὅπως, as, with Indicative:
πληροῦν ναῦς ὡς δύνανται πλείστας.
THUC.To equip as many vessels as they can.
(The Verb "to be able" is often omitted: hence the common Superlative phrases, "as big as possible" (§ 73).)
Note. The Indefinite ἄν with Subjunctive or pure Optative may also be used with ὡς (§ 450).
The same idiom occurs with phrases which are Superlative in sense, though not in form:
ὡς εἶχον τάχους ἐβοήθουν.
THUC.They came to the rescue with all speed (lit., as they had of speed:
(b) Comparatives. These differ, as before, according as they represent fact or supposition.
Viz., ἤ, than, ἢ εἰ, than if, like ὡς and ὡς εἰ, supra.
Obs.—ἢ ὡς, than as, takes the Indicative, like ὡς (§ 449); ἢ ὡς, or ἢ ὥστε, than to, the Consecutive Infinitive (§ 388):
ᾔσθοντο αὐτὸν ἐλάσσω ἔχοντα δύναμιν ἢ ὥστε τοὺς φίλους ὠφελεῖν.
ΧΕΝ.They saw that he had too little power to help his friends (lit., less power than so as to).
In Poetry the ὥστε is often omitted:
τὸ γὰρ νόσημα μεῖζον ἢ φέρειν.
SOPH.The evil is too great to bear.
(See on Consecutive Clauses § 391.)
When two Comparatives are compared, the more—the more, the above Particles are not used, but
τούτῳ—ᾧ, τοσούτῳ—ὅσῳ, Datives of Degree (§ 267):
ὅσῳ μᾶλλον πιστεύω, τοσούτῳ μᾶλλον ἀπορῶ.
PLAT.The more I believe, the more at a loss am I.
ADJECTIVAL CLAUSES. Viz. Relative Clauses.
Relative Clauses differ according as they are
(1) Definite, when they take the Indicative.
(2) Indefinite, when they take ἄν with Subjunctive, or Optative (§ 403).
(οἷος, ὅσος, Consecutive may take the Infinitive, like ὥστε.)
1. Definite: ὅς with Indicative (Negative οὐ) :
ἔστιν δίκης ὀφθαλμὸς, ὃς τὰ πάνθ᾽ ὁρᾷ.
MENANDER.There is an eye of justice which sees everything.
2. Indefinite: ἄν with Subjunctive, or Plain Optative (Negative μή), (§ 403) :
ἅπας δὲ τραχὺς ὅστις ἂν νέος κρατῇ.
AESCH.(Prim.) Every ruler is severe who is new to his power.
ἐπιβαλόντες ὃν φέροιεν ἀπῄεσαν.
THUC.(Hist.) They threw on whatever they were carrying, and so departed.
Obs. The Indicative may be half-Indefinite, with Neg. μή :
ἃ μὴ οἶδα, οὐδὲ οἴομαι εἰδέναι.
PLAT.What I do not know, I do not think I know (cf. § 499, μή).
Other uses of the Relative:
(a) Final: ὅς, ὅστις, with Future Indicative (cf. § 385), Negative μή:
πέμψον τιν᾿ ὅστις σημανεῖ.
EUR.Send someone to proclaim.
(Avoid using the Subjunctive here as in Latin.)
(N.B. In this Final use the Relative cannot refer to the Subject of the Main Verb, e.g., "messengers came to announce".)
(b) Consecutive: two constructions are used, as with ὥστε (§ 388) :
1. ὅς, or ὅστις, with the Indicative (Negative οὐ) :
τίς ἔστιν οὕτω μῶρος, ὃς θανεῖν ἐρᾷ;
AESCH.Who is so foolish as to wish to die?
Observe also τίς ἔστιν ὅστις, οὐδεὶς ἔστιν ὅστις, εἰσὶν οἵ, with the Indicative (Negative οὐ).
(Often ἔστιν remains Singular, even with a Plural Relative: cf. il y a des arbres :
ἔστιν οἳ καὶ ἐτύγχανον θωράκων.
XEN.Some also hit the breastplates.)
2. οἷος with the Infinitive (Negative μή):
ἐγὼ τοιοῦτος οἷος μηδενὶ ἄλλῳ πείθεσθαι ἢ τῷ λόγῳ.
PLAT.I am so constituted as to obey no other master but reason.
(Hence the phrase οἷος τ᾽ εἰμί, with the Infinitive, I am able, lit., I am (such an one) as to; the τε being general, like the que in quicunque.)
FINAL AND CONSECUTIVE RELATIVE.
Note Quod sciam, so far as I know.
(c) Causal, “in that”: qui with Subjunctive:
Miseret tui me qui hunc facias inimicum tibi.
TER.I pity you for making this man your enemy.
This is especially common with quippe qui:
Solis candor illustrior est quippe qui tam late colluceat.
CIC.The lustre of the sun is more glorious because he shines so far.
(So qui Concessive:
Absolvite eum qui fateatur.
CIC.Acquit him though he confesses!
And qui Limitative, especially qui quidem :
Omnium quos quidem ego audiverim.
CIC.Of all the men I have ever heard of.)
(d) Conditional: qui = si quis:
Qui videret equum Trojanum introductum, urbem captam diceret.
CIC.Anyone who saw the Trojan horse brought in would say the city was taken (C. 1.).
Haec qui videat, nonne cogatur confiteri deos esse?
CIC.If anyone were to see these things, would he not be forced to admit that there were gods? (B.)
A Relative Clause is often parenthetic. Cf. in English, "what with his faults," etc.:
Quâ es prudentiâ, nihil te fugiet.
CIC.Nothing will escape a man of your perspicacity.
A Relative Clause often embodies a fresh statement (§ 140). Cf. in English, "of whom be thou also aware":
Quod etiam accidit.
LIV.And this also came to pass.
THE SUB-OBLIQUE CONJUNCTIVE.
The Subjunctive is used in sub-Oblique Clauses
(1) When subordinate to another Subjunctive:
In Hortensio memoria fuit tanta, ut quae secum commentatus esset, ea sine scripto verbis eisdem redderet.
CIC.So good was Hortensius's memory that, what he had thought out by himself, he could reproduce in the same words without a note.
(The Subjunctive, however, is rarely used in clauses subordinate to Direct Wishes: e.g., moriar, si vera non loquor, supra, § 397.)
(2) When Subordinate to the Infinitive of Oratio Obliqua:
Mos est Athenis laudari in contione eos qui sint in proeliis interfecti.
NEP.It is the custom at Athens for those who are slain in battle to be praised in the assembly.
Obs. The Future-Perfect Indicative becomes, after a Historic Tense, the Pluperfect Subjunctive:
Ibi futuros Helvetios, ubi eos Caesar constituisset.
CAES.The Helvetii would be where Cæsar settled them (erunt ubi constituerit).
So in Clauses "Virtually Oblique,” especially Causal Clauses (§ 410), but also others:
Eis qui primi murum ascendissent praemium proposuit.
CAES.He offered rewards to those who should scale the walls first (sc. se daturum).
In all these cases the Indicative is generally retained in definite statements of fact, in stereotyped phrases ("as it seems," "as they say"), and in purely descriptive or parenthetic remarks of the author.
Apud Hypanim fluvium, qui ab Europae parte in Pontum influit, Aristoteles ait bestiolas quasdam nasci, quae unum diem vivant.
CIC.Aristotle says that on the Hypanis (this river flows into the Euxine on the European side) certain little animals come into existence only to live a single day.
Obs. On the retention of the Present Indicative with dum, while, see § 424.
Remark.—The Tense of the Subjunctive in sub-Oblique Clauses, as in ordinary sub-Clauses, follows the law of Sequence (§ 344).
ORATIO OBLIQUA.
The rules for short sentences in Oratio Obliqua have been given already under Substantival Clauses, viz., (1) Indirect Statement (§ 348); (2) Indirect Command (§ 355); (3) Indirect Question (§ 360); and on Sub-Clauses, see the last Article (§ 474).
See also § 216 on the Tenses of the Infinitive; § 344 on Sequence of the Conjunctive; § 351 on the Pronouns.
The same rules apply also to continuous Oratio Obliqua. But there the Main Verb is not repeated before each separate Clause; and, consequently, Statement, Command and Question are distinguished only by the internal structure of these Clauses themselves, and are subject to a few peculiarities, while, owing to the length of the period, the difference of the Pronouns assumes a fresh importance.
Note. An Oratio Obliqua often starts suddenly without any introductory Verb of Speaking whatsoever :
Sese omnes flentes Caesari ad pedes projecerunt: non se id contendere, etc.
CAES.
Note also ὅσον γ᾽ ἔμ᾽ εἰδέναι, so far as I know.
(c) Causal, “in that”: ὅς, ὅστις, with Indicative (Neg. οὐ):
θαυμαστὸν ποιεῖς ὃς ἡμῖν οὐδὲν δίδως.
ΧΕΝ.You are behaving curiously in giving us nothing.
This is especially common with ὅς γε, ὅστις γε :
πῶς φέρεις γάρ, ὅς γ᾽ ὀχεῖ;
AR.For how are you carrying, seeing you are being carried?
Note the idiom with οἷος :
τὴν μητέρα ἐμακάριζον, οἵων τέκνων ἐκύρησε.
HDT.They congratulated the mother on having such children (ὅτι τοίων).
(ὅς γε, οἷος γε, ὅσος γε, may all be Limitative: πάντων ὧν γ᾽ ἐγὼ οἶδα, οἷόν γέ μοι φαίνεται, etc.)
(d) Conditional: ὅς = εἴ τις (Negative μή) :
οὐκ ἂν ἀποδοίην οὐδ᾽ ἂν ὀβολὸν οὐδενὶ, ὅστις καλέσειε κάρδοπον τὴν καρδόπην.
AR.I would not give, no, not an obol to a man who called a cardopé (kneading-trough) a cardopos.
(ἀλλ᾽, ὃν πόλις στήσειε, τοῦδε χρὴ κλύειν.
SOPH.But we should obey the man whom the city should set up (viz., δικαίως ἂν κλύοιμεν : § 402).)
A Relative Clause is often parenthetic. Cf. in English, "what with his faults," etc.:
οἷος ἐκείνου θυμὸς ὑπέρβιος, οὐκ ἐθελήσει.
HOM.With his proud spirit he will not care.
A Relative Clause often embodies a fresh statement (§ 140). Cf. in English, "of whom be thou also aware":
ὅπερ καὶ ἐγένετο.
THUC.And this also came to pass.
The Optative is used in sub-Oblique Clauses
(1) For ἄν with Subjunctive, when subordinate to another Optative:
ἐπορεύοντο, ὅπως, ἐπειδὴ γένοιντο ἐπὶ τῷ ποταμῷ, παρὰ τὸν ποταμὸν ἴοιεν.
THUC.They marched on, in order that, when they reached the river, they might proceed along its banks (ὅταν γένωνται, ἴασιν).
So still more with the Optative of Direct Wishes:
ὡς ἀπόλοιτο καὶ ἄλλος, ὅ τις τοιαῦτα γε ῥέζοι.
HOM.So perish all who dare such deeds as he.
(2) For the Indicative, or ἄν with Subjunctive, when Subordinate to Historic Oratio Obliqua, Indirect Speech, Command, or Question. Thus for the Indicative:
εἶπεν ὅτι ἄνδρα ἄγοι ὃν εἶρξαι δέοι.
XEN.He said that he was bringing a man whom they ought to imprison (ἄνδρα ἄγω ὃν εἶρξαι δεῖ).
For ἄν with Subjunctive:
ἤλπιζον ὑπὸ τῶν παίδων, ἐπειδὴ τελευτήσειαν τὸν βίον, ταφήσεσθαι.
LYS.They hoped to be buried by their children, when they died (ἐπειδὰν τελευτήσωσι ταφήσονται).
So in Clauses "Virtually Oblique,” especially Causal Clauses (§ 410), but also others:
ᾤκτειρον εἰ ἁλώσοιντο.
ΧΕΝ.They pitied them (thinking what they would suffer) if they were captured.
Obs. In both (1) and (2) the Vivid Sequence always may be retained (§ 346).
In sub-Clauses of Indirect Speech, Command or Question, the Historic Tenses of the Indicative must be retained (§ 347):
ἐκέλευσέ με τὴν ἐπιστολὴν δοῦναι ἣν ἔγραψα οἰκάδε.
ΧΕΝ.He ordered me to give up the letter which I had written home (not ἣν γράψαιμι).
Remark.—In the sub-Clauses, as in the Main Clauses (§ 354), of Or. Obl., the Tense of the Speaker must be retained, whichever Sequence be used.
ORATIO OBLIQUA.
The rules for short sentences in Oratio Obliqua have been given already under Substantival Clauses, viz., (1) Indirect Statement (§ 348); (2) Indirect Command (§ 355); (3) Indirect Question (§ 360); and on Sub-Clauses, see the last Article (§ 474).
See also § 216 on the Tenses of the Infinitive; § 344 on Sequence of the Conjunctive; § 351 on the Pronouns.
In Greek the original Verb cannot, as in Latin, be carried on in sense to a subsequent Indirect Command or Indirect Question; but either
(1) Indirect Command and Indirect Question must in some way be twisted into the form of an Indirect Statement; or
(2) A new Verb expressing Command or Question must be inserted before each Clause.
(3) There is even sometimes a sudden return to Or. Rect.
Note. An Oratio Obliqua often commences without an actual introductory Verb of Speaking:
Ἄγις τοὺς πρέσβεις ἐς Λακεδαίμονα ἐκέλευσεν ἰέναι· οὐ γὰρ εἶναι κύριος αὐτός.
XEN.
RULES FOR ORATIO OBLIQUA.
They all cast themselves weeping at Cæsar's feet: they did not want (they said), etc.
Obs. Unless otherwise stated, Oratio Obliqua is always understood to be after dixit—a Third Person and a Past Tense.
In turning from Oratio Recta into Oratio Obliqua and vice versa, it is always advisable to first alter into the required English. E.g., O. R., hoc feci ("I have done this"), becomes O. O., "he had done that"—se illud fecisse.
The constructions peculiar to continuous Oratio Obliqua, as distinguished from shorter Indirect Statement, etc., are marked with an asterisk (*).
After dixit (Historic Sequence):—
1. Statement: Accusative and Infinitive.
(* As the Verb of Speaking is not repeated, a negative statement is not rendered by nego, but by non.)
2. (a) Command: Second or Third Person, Imperfect Subjunctive (Negative ne).
* But ut is omitted with a Positive Command.
(This does not of course refer to a command dependent on a verb inside the Oratio Obliqua: e.g., Se illis imperasse ut abirent, he had told them to depart.)
(b) Exhortations in the First Person are best rendered by debere, or the Gerund with esse.
3. Questions (a) real questions: Subjunctive.
(b) * Rhetorical questions, expecting no answer, usually in First or Third Person, are often, though not necessarily, Infinitive.
(In both cases the Pronouns and Particles follow the rules of Indirect Questions, § 360.)
Subordinate Clauses of all kinds: Historic Subjunctive.
Note. Relative Sentences containing a fresh statement of fact are expressed by the Accusative and Infinitive: E.g., Ex quo consequi. CIC. And from this it follows.
Pronouns: none but Third Persons occur:
First Person: ego, nos, meus, noster, become se, suus.
Second Person: tu, vos, tuus, vester, become ille, illi, illius, illorum, or is, ii, ejus, eorum.
Third Person: hic, iste, become ille, is. (So hîc, nunc, hodie, usually become ibi, tunc, illo die.)
(Vocatives either disappear or are altered into some convenient case.)
Obs. 1.—Ille is stronger than is.
Obs. 2.—Se may refer also to the Subject of the last Verb.
Obs. 3.—Se, ille, is, ipse. The Pronouns must be kept clear; if is is used for Second Person, ille must be used for the Third, etc.
(Sometimes for clearness a Noun must be substituted, or the Pronoun may sometimes be omitted.)
These rules are illustrated in their order in the following piece :
(Statement.)
O. R.—"The enemy are watching an opportunity for battle: they have surrounded the camp, and will soon make their attack: indeed, but for an unforeseen chance, they would even now be upon us."
O. O.—Imperator dixit hostes facultatem pugnandi opperiri, castra circumvenisse, mox impetum facturos esse: immo, nisi res quaedam improvisa intervenisset, futurum fuisse ut etiam tunc adessent.
(Command.)
O. R.—"Get ready your arms and think not of surrender. Let us either conquer or die."
O. O.—Ergo expedirent arma, neve deditionem cogitarent: aut enim vincendum esse aut moriendum.
(Question.)
O. R.—"Why do you hesitate? Does God forget the righteous? What ground have we for fear?”
O. O.—Quid tandem cunctarentur? Num deos justorum hominum oblivisci? Quam se causam timoris habere?
(Subordinate Clauses.)
O. R.—"The man who has espoused the cause of justice need never tremble at death; but whatever shall prove the issue of the day, he will at least not die ingloriously, and will deserve well of his country; who, while the fates allow, cherishes the memory of her bravest citizens to the end of time."
O. O.—Qui enim justitiam sibi sociam adscivisset, illum debere nunquam mortem pertimescere, sed, quoquo modo proelium evenisset, tum non sine gloria saltem periturum esse, tum bene meriturum de patria; quam quidem, dum fata sinunt, fortissimi cujusque civium semper memoriam fovere.
(Pronouns.)
O. R.—"I then will do my part; you, my men, will not fail in yours and desert me at this great crisis; and, as for our allies, they will assuredly prove themselves worthy of the great trust which I have ever placed in them. But, most of all, you, Hipparchus, must be ready to follow me with your cavalry at the given signal."
O. O.—Itaque et se suas partes acturum, et illos proprias ipsorum suffecturos esse, neque ipsum illo in discrimine deserturos; quod vero ad socios attineret, eos etiam fiducia illa, quam de se semper habuisset, sine dubio tum se dignos praestituros; praecipue autem Hipparchum debere signo dato cum equitibus suis ad sequendum ducem paratum esse.
THE NEGATIVE.
Non denies facts; ne denies wishes.
(b) In Subordinate Clauses: Final Clauses: including Clauses after Verbs of commanding, fearing, taking care, preventing. Note also dum, modo, dummodo, ne, provided that not, and nedum, much less, all final.
Haud is used only to qualify Adjectives and Adverbs, and in Haud scio an, I do not know if.
(Observe also male, minus, parum, in the sense of "not".)
Otherwise non is used (and non may be used even in the above, (a) and (b), to qualify particular words, and in antitheses).
Agis told the ambassadors to go to Sparta, for he was not himself competent (he said), etc.
Obs. A long continuous Oratio Obliqua is usually Infinitival in form; but sometimes the Optative after ὅτι is used.
In dealing with long Oratio Obliqua, the remark made on shorter sentences should be remembered: whatever the Sequence and whether the Clause be Main or Subordinate, the Tense used by the speaker in Oratio Recta must always be retained.
The following rules and examples illustrate long Oratio Obliqua on the two systems mentioned above.
After ἔφη (generally Vivid Sequence):—
1. Statement: generally Accusative and Infinitive; but if the speaker be the Subject, the Nominative and Infinitive (§ 351).
(The Negative is οὐ.)
2. Commands and Exhortations:
(1) δεῖν, χρῆναι, or a Verbal Adjective in -τέων with εἶναι: e.g.,
Λάμαχος ἔφη χρῆναι πλεῖν ἐπὶ Συρακούσας.
THUC.Lamachus said: "Let us sail against Syracuse".
(2) A fresh Verb, e.g., ἐκέλευσε δέ, with Infinitive; or
(3) A return to the Oratio Recta.
3. Questions: e.g., "who does not know?"
(1) Infinitive: e.g., ἀπορεῖν αὐτὸς ὅστις οὐκ οἶδε; or simply οὐδένα οὐκ εἰδέναι.
(2) Or a fresh Verb: e.g., ἐπήρετο δὲ ὅστις οὐκ οἶδεν.
(3) Or a return to Oratio Recta: τίς δέ, ἔφη, οὐκ οἶδεν;
(On the Pronouns, see § 360.)
Subordinate Clauses: usually Vivid Sequence (§ 477).
Note. Relative Clauses, whether expressing a new fact or not, are often drawn into the Infinitive:
ἐπειδὴ οὗ ἐκβῆναι τὴν ψυχήν, πορεύεσθαι.
PLAT.And when his soul departed, it went.
Pronouns: First Persons become αὐτός, αὐτοί, σφᾶς, σφῶν, σφίσιν.
Second and Third Persons become ἐκεῖνος, ἐκεῖνοι, αὐτόν, αὐτούς.
(ἑαυτόν, ἑαυτούς, σφᾶς αὐτούς may refer emphatically to the speaker, or to the Subject of their own Clause. σφέτερος may refer, as Indirect Reflexive, to either.)
οὗτος, οὕτως, νῦν, are generally left unchanged.
Obs. 1.—ἐκεῖνον is stronger than αὐτόν.
Obs. 2.—αὐτοί and αὐτούς must be carefully distinguished in long Oratio Obliqua :
τοῦ δ᾽ ἄλλου λιμένος αὐτοὶ κρατήσειν, καὶ συμφερομένους αὐτοὺς ταράξεσθαι.
THUC.We shall be masters of the rest of the harbour, while the enemy will be crowded together and thrown into confusion.
(Sometimes for clearness a Noun must be substituted, or the Pronoun may sometimes be omitted.)
These rules are illustrated in their order in the following piece :
(Statement.)
O. R.—"The enemy are watching an opportunity for battle: they have surrounded the camp, and will soon make their attack: indeed, but for an unforeseen chance, they would even now be upon us."
O. O.—ὁ δὲ στρατηγὸς ἔφη τοὺς πολεμίους καιρόν τε τοῦ μάχεσθαι ἐπιτηρεῖν καὶ τὸ στρατόπεδον κύκλῳ περιεστάναι καὶ προσβολὴν οὐ διὰ μακροῦ ποιήσεσθαι· εἰ μὲν οὖν μὴ ἀπροσδόκητόν τι αὐτοῖς ἐμποδὼν ἐγένετο, ἤδη ἄν σφισιν ἐμπίπτειν.
(Command.)
O. R.—"Get ready your arms and think not of surrender. Let us either conquer or die."
O. O.—ὥστε ἐκέλευσεν αὐτοὺς τὰ ὅπλα ὡς ἐπὶ μάχῃ παρασκευάζεσθαι, μηδὲ τὰ περὶ τοῦ ἐνδοῦναι φρονεῖν· χρῆναι γὰρ ἢ νικῆσαι ἢ καὶ ἀποθανεῖν.
(Question.)
O. R.—"Why do you hesitate? Does God forget the righteous? What ground have we for fear?”
O. O.—τί δ᾽ οὖν πότ᾽, ἔφη, οὕτως, ὦ ἄνδρες, ἀποκνεῖτε; μῶν γὰρ ἐπελήσθησαν οἱ θεοὶ τῶν δικαίων; ἢ τίς αἰτία ὑπεστιν ἡμῖν τοῦ κατέχεσθαι τῷ φόβῳ;
(Subordinate Clauses.)
O. R.—"The man who has espoused the cause of justice need never tremble at death; but whatever shall prove the issue of the day, he will at least not die ingloriously, and will deserve well of his country; who, while the fates allow, cherishes the memory of her bravest citizens to the end of time."
O. O.—ὅτῳ γὰρ ἂν συμπαραστῇ ἡ δίκη, τοῦτον οὐ δεῖν ὀῤῥωδεῖν τὸν θάνατον, ἀλλ᾽, ὅπως ἂν ἐκβῇ τὰ πράγματα, οὐκ ἄνευ γε τιμῆς αὐτὸν ἀποθανεῖσθαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἄξια πράξειν τῆς πόλεως· ἥνπερ, ὅσον γε ἔξεστι χρόνον, τοσοῦτον τῶν ἀνδρειοτάτων πολιτῶν ἀείμνηστον τὴν δόξαν ἀεὶ σώζειν.
(Pronouns.)
O. R.—"I then will do my part; you, my men, will not fail in yours and desert me at this great crisis; and, as for our allies, they will assuredly prove themselves worthy of the great trust which I have ever placed in them. But, most of all, you, Hipparchus, must be ready to follow me with your cavalry at the given signal."
O. O.—αὐτὸς μὲν οὖν ἔφη ἐκτελεῖν τὰ ἑαυτοῦ, ἐκείνους δὲ τά τε σφῶν αὐτῶν ὑποστήσειν οὔθ᾽ ἑαυτὸν ἐν τούτῳ τῷ χρόνῳ προδώσειν, τοὺς δ᾽ αὖ συμμάχους τὴν πίστιν ἣν ἀεὶ περὶ αὐτῶν ἔχει, ταύτην δὴ νῦν οὐδ᾽ ὁπωσοῦν σφαλεῖν. μάλιστα δὲ ἁπάντων δεῖν τὸν Ἱππαρχον τοὺς ἱππέας ἔχοντα παρεσκευασμένον εἶναι ὡς ἑαυτῷ ἑψόμενον.
THE NEGATIVE.
οὐ denies facts; μή denies conceptions.
(b) In Subordinate Clauses:
(1) Final Clauses: including Final Relatives, and Clauses after φοβοῦμαι and φυλάσσομαι.
(2) Hypothetic Clauses: including Participles used hypothetically, Indefinite Relatives (ὅστις = εἴ τις), and Indefinite Substantives or Substantival Phrases implying a hypothesis.
(3) The Infinitive (except in Oratio Obliqua).
Otherwise οὐ is used (and οὐ is used, even in the above, where the Negative coalesces with a particular word, and in antitheses).
Note 1.—In Questions nonne expects "yes," num "no"; "or not" is annon, Direct, necne, Indirect.
Note 2.—Where ne is used, neve must be used for "and not"; ne unquam for nunquam, etc.
Instances are given in the Syntax of the Sentence; note also the following contrasts:
Main Sentences :
Non dicat, he would not say (statement).
Ne dicat, let him not say (command).
Subordinate Clauses :
Sic castra munivit ut ea hostes expugnare non possent. He fortified the camp so strongly that the enemy could not take it. (Consequence.)
Sic castra munivit ne ea hostes expugnare possent. He fortified the camp in this way that the enemy might not take it. (Purpose.)
Observe ne with dum, modo, dummodo, provided that :
Dum ne tibi videar, non laboro.
CIC.Provided I do not seem so to you, I do not trouble myself.
Note. In all clauses, Main or Subordinate, where ne is used, neve, ne quid, ne unquam, etc., must also be used; not neque, nihil, nunquam, etc.:
Ne unquam peccaveris, never do wrong.
Curavit, ne quid detrimenti respublica caperet.
He took care that the state should suffer no harm.
Haud: in the phrase Haud scio an, I almost think; otherwise only with Adjectives and Adverbs:
Haud ignota loquor.
VIRG.I say what is not unknown.
Male, parum, minus, as a mild Negative, chiefly with Adjectives and Adverbs—minus also with Verbs: male sanus, not in his senses; parum concinne, not neatly; minus sapiens, not wise :
Nonnunquam ea, quae praedicta sunt, minus eveniunt.
CIC.Predictions sometimes do not quite come true.
So often, Sin minus, as a sentence, but if it is not so.
Obs. 1. “Non” for “ne" (1) coalescing, (2) in antithesis:
(1) Et sit humus cineri non onerosa tuo. OV. And may the earth lie lightly on thy ashes!
(2) Aut non tentaris aut perfice. OV. Either do not try, or succeed.
So neque for neve in antithesis after a Positive:
Transque caput jace nec respexeris.
VIRG.Cast it over thy head nor look behind thee.
Obs. 2.—Ne is not used for non except in the phrase ne—quidem, not even, and in compounds, nescio, nequeo, necopinatus, etc.
(Instances of the use of ne for ut non are only apparent. Thus:
Id ne fieri posset, oppidi circummunitione fiebat.
CAES.This was being rendered impossible by the circumvallation of the town.
Ne shows that the result was also Cæsar's object.)
In Poetry there is some licence in the use of non for ne in Direct Commands and Wishes:
Non Teucros agat in Rutulos.
VIRG.Let him not lead the Rutulians against the Teucrians.
So, still more often, in the use of neque for neve:
Nemo me dacrumis decoret neque funera fletu faxit.
ENNIUS.Let no one honour me with tears, nor celebrate my funeral with weeping. (Faxit = faciat.)
In Prose nemo also would be ne quis. (On the redundant Negative in neque see § 508.)
Position of the Negative.
The Negative is often thrown back on the Main Verb, where in English it is attached to the Subordinate Verb: E.g., nego, I say not (§ 348), not dico non.
The Negative impress is usually stamped on a sentence as soon as possible, e.g., with the copula: neque, and not; nec quisquam, and no one.
But with possum the non is often reserved :
Pompeius munitiones Caesaris prohibere non poterat.
CAES.Pompey could not stop Cæsar's circumvallation.
Repetition of the Negative.
(1) As a rule, both Negatives count, as in English:
Nemo non, every one; non nemo, some one; nihil non, everything; nonnihil, something; nonnulli, some (non ulli, none); non possum non, I cannot help—; (non modo sometimes = non modo non, not only not).
(2) But redundancy occurs if a Negative is followed by (a) Ne—quidem or non modo:
Quid praeterea sit bonum, negat Epicurus se posse ne suspicari quidem.
CIC.Epicurus says he cannot even guess what further good there is.
(b) Neque—neque, or even one neque :
Nemo unquam neque poeta neque orator fuit.
CIC.There was never either a poet or an orator.
(So, neque faxit, § 503.)
Obs. 1.—Nemo non, non possum non, should be compared with nemo est quin, facere non possum quin (§ 514).
Obs. 2.—Observe ne non after Verbs of Fearing :
Timeo ne non venerit. I fear he has not come.
(See supra, § 371.)
Quominus.
Quominus is used with the Subjunctive after Verbs of hindering and abstaining: e.g.,
Non recusabo quominus omnes mea legant.
CIC.I shall not object to every one reading what I write.
Observe the idiom, per aliquem stat quominus :
Per Afranium stetit quominus dimicaretur.
CAES.It was through Afranius that no battle was fought.
Note. These Verbs may also take ne and Subjunctive, or the Infinitive; prohibeo prefers the Infinitive. (With quominus a Negative need not precede.)
Note 1.—In Questions οὐ = nonne, μή = num. μή is also used in Deliberative Questions.
Note 2.—The rules which apply to οὐ and μή apply also to their compounds, οὐδέ, μηδέ, οὔπω, μήπω, etc.
Instances are given in the Syntax of the Sentence; note also the following contrasts:
The Participle :
οὐκ εὐτυχοῦσαι δόξετ᾽ οὐχὶ δυστυχεῖν.
EUR.You shall seem to be not unfortunate, though you are not fortunate (fact). (Hence οὐ with καίπερ.)
οὐκ ἂν δύναιο, μὴ καμών, εὐδαιμονεῖν.
EUR.You could not be happy if you did not toil (
The Infinitive:
ἔλεγον οὐκ εἶναι αὐτόνομοι.
THUC.They said they were not independent (
ἔλεγον αὐτοῖς μὴ ἀδικεῖν.
THUC.They told them not to do wrong (
(τὸ μὴ γενέσθαι τῷ θανεῖν ἴσον λέγω.
EUR.I account not-to-be-born the same as to be dead. μή, regular
The chief difficulty occurs with Substantival and Adjectival Phrases (with μή an "if" may always be traced):
γράψας τὴν τῶν γεφυρῶν οὐ διάλυσιν.
THUC.Mentioning the fact of the non-destruction of the bridge (fact).
δεινὸν δ᾽ ἐστὶν ἡ μὴ ἐμπειρία.
ARIST.Want of skill is a terrible thing (if anyone wants).
αἱ οὐκ ὀρθαὶ πολιτεῖαι αὗται. PLAT. These incorrect forms of government (a definite lot).
οἱ μὴ καθαροὶ τὰς χεῖρας. ANTIPH. Those who are not clean-handed (if any are not).
So with Relatives, etc. :
ἃ μὴ οἶδα οὐδὲ οἴομαι εἰδέναι.
PLAT.What I don't know, I do not think I know (if I don't know).
οὐκ ἔστι τοῖς μὴ δρῶσι σύμμαχος τύχη.
Fortune does not help those who do not help themselves (if they don't, etc.).
(ἃ οὐκ οἶδα, τοῖς οὐ δρῶσι, would refer to definite things and definite people.)
In all these μή has an Indefinite, Generic force.
Obs. 1. οὐ for μή (1) coalescing, (2) in antithesis :
(1)
εἰ ἀποστῆναι ᾿Αθηναίων οὐκ ἠθελήσαμεν, οὐκ ἠδικοῦμεν.
THUC. If we were unwilling to revolt from Athens, we were not doing wrong. (μή is usual in "if" clauses.)(2) κελεύει οὐκ ἐν τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ ἀλλ᾽ ἐν τῷ θεάτρῳ τὴν ἀνάρρησιν γίγνεσθαι.
AESCHIN.He ordered the proclamation to be made not in the public assembly, but in the theatre. (μή is usual with
Obs. 2.—μή is sometimes used where we should expect οὐ:
(1) In Oratio Obliqua, regularly with Future Infinitive after ἐλπίζω; sometimes also with Verbs of Perception, e.g., οἶδα. In all these not only a fact, but the mere idea of it is denied.
(2) Often in Indirect Questions after εἰ, including the alternative ἢ μή, or not. This is from false analogy with εἰ, hypothetic.
(Apparent exceptions can usually be explained: e.g., δίδασκέ μ᾿ ὡς μὴ εἰδότα (SOPH.), (Imperative affects it). χρῆν οὐ σ᾽ ἁμαρτάνειν (EUR.), (from the usual οὐ χρή, § 505).
Note.—οὐδείς, μηδείς, οὐδέν, μηδέν, are peculiar. οὐδείς often = “a nobody,” μηδείς of "the dead”; οὐδέν what is really nothing, μηδέν what is practically nothing. Thus, τὸ μηδὲν εἰς οὐδὲν ῥέπει (EUR.). On the whole μηδέν is preferred; but rhythm, metre, etc., often decide alone.
Position of the Negative.
The Negative is often thrown back on the Main Verb, where in English it is attached to the Subordinate Verb: E.g., οὐ φημί, I say not; οὐκ οἴομαι, I think not.
The Negative thus sometimes becomes οὐ, where, if left to the Infinitive, it would have been μή: e.g., οὐκ ἀξιῶ, I beg not; οὐ χρή, we ought not; οὐκ ἐῶ, I forbid. But with ὤφελον in Wishes (§ 333) it remains μή:
μή ποτ᾽ ὤφελον λιπεῖν τὴν Σκύρον.
SOPH.Would I had never left Scyros!
Repetition of the Negative.
(1) If a simple Negative comes second, both count:
οὐδεὶς οὐκ ἔπασχε (ΧΕΝ.), everyone suffered; lit., (there was) no one (who) did not suffer.
οὐδεὶς οὐκ and οὐ μόνον οὐ are almost the only instances; for the latter οὐ μόνον is sometimes used.
(2) If a compound Negative comes second, it is redundant:
ἀκούει δ᾽ οὐδὲν οὐδεὶς οὐδενός.
EUR.And no one obeys any one in anything.
μηπότ᾽ ἀσεβὲς μηδὲν μήτε ποιήσητε μήτε βουλεύσητε.
ΧΕΝ.Never do or think anything unholy.
(A redundant Negative sometimes follows οὐ μᾶλλον ἤ :
ἥκει γὰρ ὁ Πέρσης οὐδέν τι μᾶλλον ἐφ᾽ ἡμᾶς ἢ οὐ καὶ ἐφ᾽ ὑμᾶς.
HDT.The Persian has come no more against us than you. Cf. Plus vite que tu ne penses.)
Note. If the Negatives differ in kind, both count: e.g.,
οὐ δύναμαι μὴ γελᾶν.
ΧΕΝ.I cannot help laughing.
φοβοῦμαι μὴ οὐκ ἀληθὲς ᾖ.
I fear lest this may not be true.
(The uses of μή and μὴ οὐ which follow are exceptional.)
Redundant μή.
μή may precede the Infinitive after verbs with a negative idea:
(a) Verbs of preventing and abstaining: e.g.,
θνητούς γ᾽ ἔπαυσα μὴ προδέρκεσθαι μόρον.
AESCH.I stopped mortals from foreseeing their destiny.
(b) Verbs of denying, doubting, distrusting, forbidding :
ὁ Πρηξάσπης ἔξαρνος ἦν μὴ ἀποκτεῖναι Σμέρδιν.
HDT.Prexaspes denied that he had killed Smerdis.
Note.—Verbs of Preventing may take (1) Infinitive; (2) μή and Infinitive; (3) τοῦ with Infinitive; (4) τοῦ μή with Infinitive.
VERBS OF PREVENTING AND DOUBTING.
Quin.
Quin with Subjunctive is used only after a Negative or quasi-Negative (e.g., such words as vix, aegre, "hardly," or questions expecting the answer "no") :
(1) (a) With Verbs of preventing and abstaining (cf. § 510):
Aegre sunt retenti quin oppidum irrumperent.
CAES.They were hardly prevented from breaking into the town.
(b) Verbs of doubting and denying :
Quis dubitat quin in virtute divitiae positae sint?
CIC.Who doubts that true wealth lies in virtue?
So non dubium est, nihil dubii est, quin, there is no doubt that. (Distinguish dubito with Infinitive, I hesitate to do a thing: like timeo with Infinitive.)
(2) Any phrase, when Negatived, may be followed by a Consecutive quin, as an alternative for ut non, "that not":
Nunquam tam male est Siculis quin aliquid facete dicant.
CAES.The Sicilians are never in such a bad way that they cannot say something witty.
Note. Observe the phrases, facere non possum quin, I cannot but; fieri non potest quin, it cannot but be that; nihil abest quin, it is almost the case that :
Facere non possum quin cotidie literas ad te mittam.
CIC.I cannot but send you a letter every day.
Nihil abest quin sim miserrimus.
CIC.Nothing is wanting to complete my misery.
(This is the Negative of tantum abest ut, so far from, § 444.)
(3) Observe the phrase, nemo est quin, there is no one who—not:
In castello nemo fuit militum quin vulneraretur.
CAES.There was not a man in the fort who was not wounded.
Obs. 1.—Quin after Verbal phrases, as in (1) and (2), is an Adverb, quî-ne, how not; quin after nemo est, as in (3), is a Relative, qui-ne, who not. In this use it is mainly Nominative, qui-ne, quae-ne, quod-ne: for the Accusative, quem non or quin eum is preferred.
Obs. 2.—Contrast the English of non dubito quin, "I do not doubt that," and nemo est quin, "there is no one that not". In both quin may be translated “but”.
Beside its use with the Subjunctive, quin has other uses :
(1) Quin, why not: Interrogative: usually Present Indicative:
Quin potius pacem aeternam exercemus?
VIRG.Why do we not rather engage in eternal peace? (For Tense, see § 201.)
So with Statements, especially in the phrase quinetiam, moreover :
Ausus quin etiam voces jactare per umbram.
VIRG.Daring moreover to shout aloud through the gloom.
μὴ οὐ.
Any Verb which, for any reason, when Positive takes μή with Infinitive may when Negatived take μὴ οὐ.
(1) Verbs which take redundant μή with Infinitive, § 510.
(a) With Verbs of preventing and abstaining :
οὐ δυνατοὶ αὐτὸν ἴσχειν εἰσὶν ᾿Αργεῖοι μὴ οὐκ ἐξιέναι.
HDT.The Argives cannot prevent him from going out.
(b) Verbs of denying, doubting, distrusting, forbidding:
τίνα οἴει ἀπαρνήσεσθαι μὴ οὐχὶ ἐπίστασθαι τὰ δίκαια;
PLAT.Who do you think will deny that he knows what is right?
So with phrases like τί ἐμποδὼν μὴ οὐ; What is to prevent, etc.?
(The Questions in these last two are quasi-Negative.)
(2) Any Verb, with μή and Infinitive, where μή means "not": e.g.,
οὗτος μ᾽ ἂν πείσειε μὴ ἐλθεῖν. He would persuade me NOT to come. Becomes, when Negatived:
οὐδεὶς μ᾽ ἂν πείσειε μὴ οὐκ ἐλθεῖν.
ARISTOPH.No one would persuade me NOT to come.
In this sense μὴ οὐ occurs with a hypothetic Participle:
δυσάλγητος γὰρ ἂν εἴην μὴ οὐ κατοικτείρων.
SOPH.I should be hard-hearted if I did not pity (δυσάλγητος, quasi-Negative).
(3) From these uses must be distinguished μή and μὴ οὐ with Subjunctive, after a Verb of Fearing understood (§ 371):
μὴ ἀγροικότερον ἢ τὸ ἀληθὲς εἰπεῖν.
PLAT.(I am afraid lest) it may be rather blunt to speak the truth.
ἀλλὰ μὴ οὐ τοῦτ᾽ ᾖ χαλεπόν, θάνατον ἐκφυγεῖν.
PLAT.(I am afraid lest) it may not be difficult to escape death.
Obs. Three uses of μὴ οὐ must therefore be distinguished:
(1) (a) and (b), prevent, deny, with Infinitive; both οὐ and μή redundant.
(2) Any Verb, with Infinitive or Participle: οὐ alone redundant. (Allied to (1).)
(3) μὴ οὐ with Subjunctive: neither Negative redundant.
οὐ μή.
(1) With the Aorist Subjunctive (less often First or Third Person of Future Indicative) expresses a strong denial :
οὐ μὴ παύσωμαι φιλοσοφῶν.
PLAT.I will assuredly not cease the pursuit of philosophy.
(ἀλλ᾽ εἴσιθ᾽· οὔ σοι μὴ μεθέψομαί ποτε.
SOPH.But enter: I will never follow thee.)
(2) With the Second Person Future Indicative, Interrogative, expresses a strong prohibition (οὐ may be continued to a second Clause) :
οὐ μὴ προσοίσεις χεῖρα, μήδ᾽ ἅψει πέπλων;
EUR.Do not lay hand on me or touch my robes (sc. οὐ μὴ ἅψει).
(Here οὐ μή is the Negative form of οὐ: e.g., οὐ πράξεις; will you not do it? i.e., do it! οὐ μὴ πράξεις; will you not not-do it? i.e., do not do it!)
Obs. The Subjunctive use may be employed in Prose; the Future Indicative, in both senses, is poetic. (See Excursus, § 600.)
APPENDIX TO SYNTAX.
FIGURES OF SPEECH.
1. Alliteration.
The repetition of the same consonantal sound: e.g., "The wisdom of many and the wit of one":
O Tite tute Tati tibi tanta tyranne, tulisti?
ENNIUS.O Titus Tatius, hast thou taken so much on thee, thou tyrant?
Distinguish "Assonance"—the repetition of the same vowel sounds (see inf., § 542, “Paronomasia'").
2. Analogy.
"Comparison": e.g., an Intransitive Verb often takes an Accusative, on the "analogy" of another Verb, which is Transitive:
Ardebat Alexin.
VIRG.He loved Alexis (sc., amabat).
So Ardet abire fugâ
(VIRG.)he burns to fly (sc., cupit).
3. Anakoluthon
(An, "not"; akoloutheo, "follow"). "Non-sequence" of construction. This is especially common with the Nominativus Pendens—Nominative without a Verb:
Galea alta Chimaeram sustinet, efflantem ignes, tam magis illa fremens.
VIRG.His lofty helmet bears the Chimæra, breathing flames, but now raging yet the more.
4. Antiptosis
Or Attic Construction (anti, "before"; ptosis, "falling"). The "anticipation," as Object in the Main Clause, of a Noun which is Subject in the Subordinate Clause :
Nosti Marcellum, quam tardus sit.
CIC.You know Marcellus, how slow he is. (Cf. in English: “I know thee who thou art”.)
(This construction is not so common in Latin as in Greek.)
5. Antithesis
(Anti, "against"; tithēmi, “I set”). The contrast of "opposites," whether in two clauses or in one. In clauses Latin usually omits the Conjunctive Particle :
Solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellant.
TAC.They make a solitude and call it peace.
6. Aposiopesis
(Aposiopao, “I am silent"). The sudden cessation of a Sentence before its conclusion: e.g., "Bertrand is what I dare not name" (SCOTT).
Quos ego—sed motos praestat componere fluctus.
VIRG.I'll soon—but now I must allay the troubled flood.
7. Asyndeton
(A, "not"; syndeo, "bind together"). The omission of the Conjunctive Particle: cf., "Ah, miserable, false, unkind, untrue!" (TENNYSON); see further § 325:
Abiit, excessit, evasit, erupit.
CIC.He departed, he went out, he hastened out, he dashed out.
8. Attraction.
The "drawing" of one word into the construction of another: see under Attraction, §§ 551-558: also Optative, § 345.
9. Brachylogy
(Brachys, "short"). The suppression of part of a phrase especially common in comparisons (Comparatio Compendiaria) :
Aetas parentum pejor avis.
HOR.The age of our fathers worse than (that of) our grandfathers.
10. Chiasmus
(Greek letter chi: X). The cross-wise arrangement of contrasted terms, so that the means and extremes correspond respectively together :
Ratio consentit, repugnat oratio.
CIC.Reason consents, but rhythm is opposed.
12. Ellipse
(Elleipsis, “omission”). The omission of a word: e.g., "St. Paul's" (Cathedral); "out with thee!" sc., "go out":
Ad Vestae, to Vesta's (temple); calda, sc., aqua, warm water.
So entire clauses may be omitted, e.g., in Wishes: "If only this were true!" (sc., I should be glad). But explanation of construction by ellipse should be regarded with caution.
1. Alliteration.
The repetition of the same consonantal sound: e.g., "The wisdom of many and the wit of one":
Σῶσος μὲν σωθείς, Σωσὼ δ᾽ ὅτι Σῶσος ἐσώθη.
SIMONIDES.Sosos being saved; Soso, because Sosos was saved.
Distinguish "Assonance"—the repetition of the same vowel sounds (see inf., § 542, “Paronomasia'").
2. Analogy.
"Comparison": e.g., an Intransitive Verb often takes an Accusative, on the "analogy" of another Verb, which is Transitive:
κίνδυνον ὑπεξέστη.
THUC.He avoided danger (sc., ὑπέφυγεν).
(So ἔχω λέγειν, sc., δύναμαι λέγειν.)
3. Anakoluthon
(An, "not"; akoloutheo, "follow"). "Non-sequence" of construction. This is especially common with the Nominativus Pendens—Nominative without a Verb:
λόγοι δ᾽ ἐν ἀλλήλοισιν ἐρρόθουν κακοί, φύλαξ ἐλέγχων φύλακα.
SOPH.Hard words were bandied among them, guard blaming guard.
4. Antiptosis
Or Attic Construction (anti, "before"; ptosis, "falling"). The "anticipation," as Object in the Main Clause, of a Noun which is Subject in the Subordinate Clause :
ἀνήρετ᾿ ἄρτι Χαιρεφώντα Σωκράτης ψύλλαν, ὁπόσους ἄλλοιτο τοὺς αὑτῆς πόδας.
ARISTOPH.Socrates asked Chaerephon the other day about a flea, how many of its own feet it jumped.
5. Antithesis
(Anti, "against"; tithēmi, “I set”). The contrast of "opposites," whether in two clauses or in one. Greek generally points the antithesis with μέν and δέ:
λόγῳ μὲν δημοκρατία, ἔργῳ δὲ ἀρχή.
THUC.In theory a democracy, in reality a despotism.
6. Aposiopesis
(Aposiopao, “I am silent"). The sudden cessation of a Sentence before its conclusion: e.g., "Bertrand is what I dare not name" (SCOTT).
εὐδαιμονοίης, Τηλέφῳ δ᾽ ἁγὼ φρονῶ.
ARISTOPH.To you all happiness! to Telephus—I won't say what I think.
7. Asyndeton
(A, "not"; syndeo, "bind together"). The omission of the Conjunctive Particle: cf., "Ah, miserable, false, unkind, untrue!" (TENNYSON); see further § 325:
εὕδομες εὖ μάλα μακρὸν ἀτέρμονα νήγρετον ὕπνον.
MOSCH.We sleep well that long, unending, unawaking sleep.
8. Attraction.
The "drawing" of one word into the construction of another: see under Attraction, §§ 551-558: also Optative, § 345.
9. Brachylogy
(Brachys, "short"). The suppression of part of a phrase especially common in comparisons (Comparatio Compendiaria) :
κόμαι Χαρίτεσσιν ὁμοῖαι.
HOM.Hair like unto (that of) the Graces.
10. Chiasmus
(Greek letter chi: X). The cross-wise arrangement of contrasted terms, so that the means and extremes correspond respectively together :
ἡδονὴ βραχεῖα μακρὰν τίκτει λύπην.
PLAT.Brief pleasure breeds long pain.
12. Ellipse
(Elleipsis, “omission”). The omission of a word: e.g., "St. Paul's" (Cathedral); "out with thee!" sc., "go out":
εἰς Ἅιδου, to (the house of) Hades; οὐκ ἐκτός (sc., εἶ); away!
So entire clauses may be omitted, e.g., in Wishes: "If only this were true!" (sc., I should be glad). But explanation of construction by ellipse should be regarded with caution.
FIGURES OF SPEECH.
13. Epithets (Special uses of).
Passive for Active: cf. Milton, "The sleepy drench of that forgetful lake," of the effect produced :
Rugosum piper.
PERS.Wrinkled pepper.
Active for Passive: cf. Shakespeare, “Upon the sightless couriers of the air" (viz., unseen) :
Merentes poenas.
VIRG.Deserving punishments.
Compound Adjectives are specially variable in this way:
Velivolae naves.
OV.Sail-flying ships.
Velivolum mare.
VIRG.The sail-flown sea.
Attributive Epithet: viz., Adjective for Possessive Genitive; cf. "Above the flight of Pegasean wing" (MILTON) :
Hectoreum ad tumulum.
VIRG.At Hector's tomb.
Literary Epithet: giving the place most famous for a thing:
Hyblaeis apibus.
VIRG.Bees of Hybla.
On "Transferred Epithet" see Hypallage, § 534; on the Proleptic use of Adjectives see Prolepsis, § 545.
14. Hendiadys
(Hen, "one"; dia duoin, “through two "). The expression of a Noun and Attribute by two Nouns and a Copulative Conjunction:
Pateris libamus et auro.
VIRG.We pour from golden cups.
15. Hypallage
(Hypo, allasso, "change"). The transference of an Epithet from one word to another; or the interchange of construction between two words:
Nemeaeus hiatus leonis. LUCR. (I.e., Hiatus Nemeaei leonis.)
Sese tulit obvia mater. VIRG. (I.e., Sese tulit obviam.)
Dare classibus austros. VIRG. (I.e., Dare classes austris.)
Cf., "With the innumerable sound of hymns and sacred songs" (MILTON). (This use is also called Metathesis.)
16. Hyperbaton
(Hyper, "over"; baino, "go"). The trespassing of a word from its own phrase or clause into another:
Ajax cum immeritos occidit desipit agnos.
HOR.Ajax is mad while he slays the harmless lambs.
Hyperbaton is specially common of the Personal Pronoun in adjurations:
Per te deos oro.
HOR.I entreat thee by the gods.
17. Hysteron Proteron
("Last first"). The placing first of an idea which is last in point of time: cf. "I die, I faint, I fail" (SHELLEY), (also called Prothusteron):
Moriamur et in media arma ruamus.
VIRG.Let us die and rush into the midst of the battle.
18. Litotes
(Leios, "smooth"). Rhetorical understatement. Frequent in colloquial English: "just a little," i.e., very much.
Illaudatus Busiris.
VIRG.Unpraised Busiris (viz., accursed).
19. Metaphor
("Transference”: Translatio verborum (CIC.)). The transference of a term from its literal meaning to one derived—especially from a physical to a mental sense:
Mens exaestuat irâ.
VIRG.The mind surges with wrath.
(A metaphor is, in its first use, a compressed similé; thus "The moon sails across the sky" means literally, "As a ship sails across the sea, so the moon passes across the sky". But when such a phrase has been long absorbed into a language, it almost ceases to be metaphorical; thus "sail" has almost passed into a commonplace for "move".)
A word on the border-land of Metaphor is often qualified by some saving phrase:
E.g., Quasi, tanquam, quidam, ut ita dicam:
Philosophia artium quasi parens.
CIC.Philosophy, the parent of all arts.
20. Onomatopoeia
(Onoma, “a name” or "word"; poioumai, “represent”). The representation of sense by sound; e.g., "Myriads of rivulets hurrying through the lawn" (TENNYSON):
Quadrupedante putrem sonitu quatit ungula campum.
VIRG.His hoof with fourfold trampling paws the soil to dust (of a horse).
21. Oxymoron
(Oxus, "sharp"; moros, "dull"). The combination of conflicting words; e.g., "And faith unfaithful kept him falsely true" (TENNYSON):
Impietas pia.
OV.Pious impiety.
22. Paraprosdokian
(Para, etc., "contrary to expectation"). An unexpected turn to a sentence, especially in the form of a sudden bathos at the end (also called παρ᾽ ὑπόνοιαν):
Nullis aconita propinquis miscuit—Troica non scripsit.
JUV.He never mixed poison for his relatives, he never wrote a poem like the Troica.
This use is common in Elizabethan Poetry: "Where thou, great Anna, whom three realms obey, Dost sometimes counsel take and sometimes—tea”.
23. Paronomasia
(Para, "alongside"; onoma, "word"). The juxtaposition of words of similar sound, especially frequent in proverbs and epigrams (cf. Assonance, § 1):
Urbem fecisti quod prius orbis erat.
PROP.Thou hast made into a city what was a world before.
24. Periphrasis
I.e. Circumlocution (N.B. circuitus verborum (CIC.) means a period in Prose).
With Substantives this is especially common of a Noun and Genitive: cf. "The might of Gabriel fought" (MILTON):
Venit et Crispi jucunda senectus.
JUV.There comes, too, the genial old age of Crispinus (viz., the old man C.).
(The "Periphrastic Tenses" (§ 211) are so called as being a circumlocution for the simple tenses.)
25. Pleonasm
(Pleon, "more," i.e., than is required). Redundancy of expression—the use of superfluous words; e.g., "we have seen with our eyes":
Insonuere cavae gemitumque dedere cavernae.
VIRG.Its cavernous hollows echoed and moaned again.
26. Prolepsis
I.e., Anticipation (pro, "before"; lambano, "take"). The use of an Adjective, Participle, or Preposition, before its sense is due: cf. "So those two brothers and their murdered man Rode past fair Arno" (KEATS). A Proleptic Adjective often expresses the effect of a Verbal Action :
Montes umbrantur opaci.
VIRG.The hills are veiled in darkness.
Virgil is specially fond of this use.
27. Syllepsis
(Syllambano, "take together"). The use of a word with two others, to both of which it applies properly but in a different sense (contrast Zeugma): cf. Pope, "This general is a great taker of snuff as well as of towns":
Regnator, coelum et terras qui numine torquet.
VIRG.The monarch, who rules the (revolving) sky and the land with his divine will. (Coelum torquet, "revolves the sky".)
28. Tmesis
The breaking of a word into two parts (Greek, temno, I cut). This is rare in Latin, but instances occur:
Saxo cere comminuit brum.
ENN.He broke his head with a stone (cerebrum comminuit).
29. Zeugma
("A yoking together"). The use of a word with two others, to one of which alone it applies properly (contrast "Syllepsis"): cf. Pope, "See Pan with flocks, with fruits Pomona crowned" (i.e., surrounded with flocks):
Audis quo strepitu janua remugiat Et positas ut glaciet nives Juppiter?
HOR.Dost thou hear how loudly the door creaks, and (see) how the god of heaven turns the fallen snow to ice?
30. Certain Metrical and Other Terms.
A Spondaic Hexameter is one which has a Spondee instead of a Dactyl in the Fifth Foot:
Armatumque auro circumspicit Oriona.
VIRG.He looks round and sees Orion armed with gold.
FIGURES OF SPEECH.
13. Epithets (Special uses of).
Passive for Active: cf. Milton, "The sleepy drench of that forgetful lake," of the effect produced :
χλωρὸν δέος.
HOM.Pale fear.
Active for Passive: cf. Shakespeare, “Upon the sightless couriers of the air" (viz., unseen) :
ναυσὶν ἐμπείροις.
THUC.Vessels proved by use.
Compound Adjectives are specially variable in this way:
ἄγελαι βούνομοι.
SOPH.Herds of grazing kine.
βούνομον ἀκτάν.
SOPH.A shore grazed on by kine.
Attributive Epithet: viz., Adjective for Possessive Genitive; cf. "Above the flight of Pegasean wing" (MILTON) :
Τελαμώνιος Αἴας.
HOM.Ajax, son of Telamon.
Perpetual Epithet: e.g., γῆ πουλυβότειρα (HOM.), the fertile earth (used even of level land selected for a chariot-race).
On "Transferred Epithet" see Hypallage, § 534; on the Proleptic use of Adjectives see Prolepsis, § 545.
14. Hendiadys
(Hen, "one"; dia duoin, “through two "). The expression of a Noun and Attribute by two Nouns and a Copulative Conjunction:
βότα καὶ λείαν.
SOPH.Plundered kine.
15. Hypallage
(Hypo, allasso, "change"). The transference of an Epithet from one word to another; or the interchange of construction between two words:
ὄγκον ὀνόματος μητρῷον.
SOPH.Motherly boast of a name (i.e., ὄγκον ὀνόματος μητρώου, the boast of a mother's name).
γραῖαι ὄσσων πηγαί, aged fountains of eyes.
16. Hyperbaton
(Hyper, "over"; baino, "go"). The trespassing of a word from its own phrase or clause into another:
ὥσπερ με τὸν ᾿Αθάμανθ᾽ ὅπως μὴ θύσετε.
ARISTOPH.Mind you do not sacrifice me like Athamas.
Hyperbaton is specially common of the Personal Pronoun in adjurations:
πρός νύν σε πατρὸς ἱκνοῦμαι.
SOPH.I pray thee by thy father.
17. Hysteron Proteron
("Last first"). The placing first of an idea which is last in point of time: cf. "I die, I faint, I fail" (SHELLEY), (also called Prothusteron):
τὰς μὲν ἄρα θρέψασα τεκοῦσα τε.
HOM.Having nourished them and borne them.
18. Litotes
(Leios, "smooth"). Rhetorical understatement. Frequent in colloquial English: "just a little," i.e., very much.
οὐχ ἥκιστα, i.e., μάλιστα, very much.
19. Metaphor
("Transference”: Translatio verborum (CIC.)). The transference of a term from its literal meaning to one derived—especially from a physical to a mental sense:
πόλις σαλεύει.
SOPH.The city is tossed upon a sea of troubles.
(A metaphor is, in its first use, a compressed similé; thus "The moon sails across the sky" means literally, "As a ship sails across the sea, so the moon passes across the sky". But when such a phrase has been long absorbed into a language, it almost ceases to be metaphorical; thus "sail" has almost passed into a commonplace for "move".)
A word on the border-land of Metaphor is often qualified by some saving phrase:
Viz., ὡς, ἅτε, ὡσπερανεί, τις, ὡς εἰπεῖν :
E.g., Σκύλλα τις. A very Scylla.
(Such qualification is not so common in Greek as in Latin.)
20. Onomatopoeia
(Onoma, “a name” or "word"; poioumai, “represent”). The representation of sense by sound; e.g., "Myriads of rivulets hurrying through the lawn" (TENNYSON):
πολλὰ δ᾽ ἄναντα, κάταντα, πάραντά τε, δόχμιά τ᾽ ἦλθον.
HOM.Oft up and down, sideways, aslant, they went (of jolting carts).
21. Oxymoron
(Oxus, "sharp"; moros, "dull"). The combination of conflicting words; e.g., "And faith unfaithful kept him falsely true" (TENNYSON):
γάμος ἄγαμος.
SOPH.A marriage that is no marriage.
22. Paraprosdokian
(Para, etc., "contrary to expectation"). An unexpected turn to a sentence, especially in the form of a sudden bathos at the end (also called παρ᾽ ὑπόνοιαν):
Frequent in Aristophanes:
ἀνὴρ ἀμείνων περί σε καὶ τὴν γαστέρα.
AR.(Sc., τὴν πόλιν.) A man who does better for you and your constitution.
23. Paronomasia
(Para, "alongside"; onoma, "word"). The juxtaposition of words of similar sound, especially frequent in proverbs and epigrams (cf. Assonance, § 1):
παθήματα μαθήματα.
HDT.I.e., "one learns by experience" (cf. Eng. "might is right").
24. Periphrasis
I.e. Circumlocution (N.B. circuitus verborum (CIC.) means a period in Prose).
With Substantives this is especially common of a Noun and Genitive: cf. "The might of Gabriel fought" (MILTON):
τοῦ δ᾽ ἤκουσ᾽ ἱερὴ ἴς Τελεμάχοιο.
HOM.And the mighty prince Telemachus heard him (lit., "great might of").
(The "Periphrastic Tenses" (§ 211) are so called as being a circumlocution for the simple tenses.)
25. Pleonasm
(Pleon, "more," i.e., than is required). Redundancy of expression—the use of superfluous words; e.g., "we have seen with our eyes":
πανύστατον δὴ κοὔποτ᾽ αὖθις ὕστερον.
SOPH.For the last time and never more again.
26. Prolepsis
I.e., Anticipation (pro, "before"; lambano, "take"). The use of an Adjective, Participle, or Preposition, before its sense is due: cf. "So those two brothers and their murdered man Rode past fair Arno" (KEATS). A Proleptic Adjective often expresses the effect of a Verbal Action :
τῶν σῶν ἀδέρκτων ὀμμάτων τητώμενος.
SOPH.Reft of thine eyes that ne'er shall see again.
27. Syllepsis
(Syllambano, "take together"). The use of a word with two others, to both of which it applies properly but in a different sense (contrast Zeugma):
ἕλεν δ᾽ Οἰνομάου βίαν παρθένον τε σύνευνον.
PIND.He o'ercame the might of Oenomaus, and (won) the virgin for his bride.
(Frequent in Aristophanes.)
28. Tmesis
The breaking of a word into two parts (Greek, temno, I cut). Occurs chiefly with the Prepositions of Compound Verbs :
ἂν δ᾽ Ὀδυσεὺς πολύμητις ἀνίστατο.
HOM.And up the wary Odysseus rose.
29. Zeugma
("A yoking together"). The use of a word with two others, to one of which alone it applies properly (contrast "Syllepsis"):
᾿Ανδροφάγοι ἐσθῆτα φορέουσι τῇ Σκυθικῇ ὁμοίην, γλῶσσαν δὲ ἰδίην.
HDT.The Androphagi wear raiment like the Scythian, but (speak) a language of their own.
30. Certain Metrical and Other Terms.
A Spondaic Hexameter is one which has a Spondee instead of a Dactyl in the Fifth Foot:
ἑσταότες παρ᾿ ὄχεσφιν, ἐΰθρονον ἠῶ μίμνον.
HOM.Standing beside the chariots, they awaited the golden dawn.
A short syllable is sometimes made long in arsi, viz., if the accent of the foot falls on it (arsis, a "raising," i.e., of the voice) :
Dona dehinc auro gravia sectoque elephanto.
VIRG.
A long syllable is sometimes made short in thesi, viz., where the accent does not fall (thesis, a "lowering," i.e., of the voice) :
Obstipui, steteruntque comae: vox faucibus haesit.
VIRG.
Sometimes a line, so to speak, overflows. This is called Hypermeter ("over-measure"). The extra syllable always ends in an open vowel, which elides before an open vowel at the beginning of the next line:
Quos super atra silex jamjam lapsura cadentique Imminet adsimilis.
VIRG.(Of the rock of Tantalus.)
Crasis, the "mixing," or coalition, of two words in one, usually with a modification of them both :
Rare in Latin, except viden' = videsne, audin' = audisne.
Synizesis, the "settling together" of two syllables in the same word into one; especially found with a "y" sound: e.g., Abiete, as a dactyl, abyětě.
Excursus 1. ATTRACTION.
The Syntax of the Concords is considerably affected by Attraction:
(1) The Concord of the Verb.
A Copulative Verb is sometimes attracted to the Number of the Predicate: cf. "the wages of sin is death":
Amantium irae amoris integratio est.
TER.The quarrels of lovers are a renewal of love.
(2) The Concord of the Relative.
(a) Attraction of the Relative to the Gender and Number of the Predicate, with Copulative and Factitive Verbs:
Thebae, quod Boeotiae caput est.
LIV.Thebes, which is the capital of Boeotia (§ 51).
(b) Attraction of the Relative to the Case of its Antecedent:
Chiefly with the Ablative Absolute:
Quibus quisque poterat elatis.
LIV.Every man carrying out what he could.
Obs. Quivis, quilibet, whoever: the Relative is attracted to the Case of its Antecedent: in quivis, from the Accusative, is quem vis; in quilibet, from the Nominative, is qui libet.
(c) Attraction of the Antecedent to the Case of the Relative: "Inverse Attraction":
Urbem, quam statuo, vestra est.
VIRG.The city which I am founding is yours.
(d) The bodily Attraction of the Antecedent into the Relative Clause (see § 138).
(3) The Concord of the Adjective and Substantive (Vocative Attraction).
The Predicate of a Copulative Verb is sometimes attracted into the Vocative of the Person addressed :
Macte nova virtute, puer.
VIRG.Go on in thy youthful valour, O my son (sc., mactus esto).
(Many cases, however, of "Vocative Attraction" are doubtful: cf. "Or hearst thou rather, pure etherial stream" (MILTON) :
Matutine pater, seu Jane libentius audis.
HOR.O Father of the morning, or, O Janus, if thou wouldst be rather so addressed.)
(Note the common attraction to the Dative in names :
Volitans, cui nomen asilo.
VIRG.An insect, whose name is asilus.)
Excursus II. SENSE CONSTRUCTION.
The Syntax of the Concords is also much affected by considerations of sense:
(1) The Concord of the Verb. A Noun of Multitude may take a Plural Verb (see § 49).
(2) The Concord of the Adjective.
Capita conjurationis securibus percussi sunt.
LIV.The ringleaders of the plot were beheaded.
An Adjective sometimes agrees with a Noun, especially a Pronoun, contained in another word:
Respublica meâ unius operâ salva erat.
CIC.The state was saved by the help of me alone.
(3) The Concord of the Substantive (Apposition).
A Substantive sometimes stands in Apposition to a Substantive contained in another word:
Tuum, hominis simplicis, pectus vidimus.
CIC.We have seen the heart of you, a simple man.
Apposition is often loose in kind—sometimes referring in sense to the sentence rather than to a given Noun :
Sed puer est, aetas mollis et apta regi.
OV.But he (Cupid) is a boy—an age malleable and easy to control.
Ingenti subiere feretro, triste ministerium.
VIRG.They shouldered the huge bier, a melancholy service.
(In such instances as the last a Neuter Noun is generally used, and the case is probably a Nominative, not an "Accusative in Apposition to the Sentence," as it is sometimes called: the Nominative being exclamatory (§ 238). But, owing to the gender, it is hard to decide the case.)
(4) The Concord of the Relative.
Ubi est scelus qui me perdidit?
TER.Where is the villain who has ruined me?
(5) The Composite Subject.
Quibus ipse meique vescor.
HOR.Whereon I myself feed, with my family. (Sc. ipse cum meis.)
Bocchus cum peditibus aciem invadunt.
SALL.Bocchus and his infantry attack the line. (Sc. Bocchus et pedites.)
Excursus III. THE CASES.
The Nominative.
Audi tu, populus Albanus.
LIV.Hearken thou, people of Alba (
(See also Nominativus Pendens, § 522; Nominative Attraction, § 351; Nominative and Infinitive, § 179.)
The Vocative
(See Attraction, § 556).
The Accusative.
For the Direct Accusative after Intransitive Verbs used Transitively, see § 147. Note also:
Egressis urbem Albanis.
LIV.When the Albans had left the city.
Atilium suâ manu spargentem semen convenerunt.
CIC.They found Atilius sowing seed with his own hand.
The Direct Accusative which follows the Active is sometimes retained after the Passive:
Nascuntur flores inscripti nomina regum.
VIRG.Flowers are born inscribed with names of kings.
(Note that the Passive Participle here conceals what would be a Dative of the Indirect Object in the Active phrase.)
The Direct Accusative sometimes follows Verbal Nouns and Adjectives:
Vitabundus classem hostium.
SALL.Wishing to avoid the fleet of the enemy.
Quid tibi hanc tactio est?
PLAUT.What do you mean by touching her?
(See also Gerund, § 184; Anticipatory Accusative, § 523.)
The Cognate Accusative may express the sphere or the effect of an action, suggest resemblance, or show the character of an action in other ways:
Equus vicit Olympia. ENN. The horse won in the Olympia.
Nec vox hominem sonat. VIRG. Nor doth thy voice sound human.
Cyclopa moveri. HOR. To dance like a Cyclops.
Resonant acalanthida dumi. VIRG. The thickets are loud with goldfinches.
Rumpere vocem. VIRG. To break into utterance.
The Adverbial Accusative is sometimes Neuter Plural:
Stabat acerba fremens.
VIRG.He stood there in the bitterness of his rage.
A short syllable is sometimes made long in arsi, viz., if the accent of the foot falls on it (arsis, a "raising," i.e., of the voice) :
ἠέλι, ἤτοι μὲν σὺ μετ᾿ ἀθανάτοισι φάεινε.
A long syllable is sometimes made short in thesi, viz., where the accent does not fall (thesis, a "lowering," i.e., of the voice) :
ἀλλ᾽ ἴομεν, κεινοὺς δὲ κ.τ.λ.
HOM.(sc. ἴωμεν, let us go).
In Greek this is almost confined to δ᾽ in Tragedy, the two lines being treated as one: Synaphea, "a binding-together".
Crasis, the "mixing," or coalition, of two words in one, usually with a modification of them both :
E.g., κἀγώ = καὶ ἐγώ, τἀνδρί = τῷ ἀνδρί, θάτερον = τὸ ἕτερον.
Synizesis, the "settling together" of two syllables in the same word into one; especially found with a "y" sound: e.g., πόλεως, as an iambus, πολ-ψῶς.
Excursus 1. ATTRACTION.
The Syntax of the Concords is considerably affected by Attraction:
(1) The Concord of the Verb. A Copulative Verb is sometimes attracted to the Number of the Predicate: cf. "the wages of sin is death":
αἱ Θήβαι Αἴγυπτος ἐκαλεῖτο.
HDT.Thebes used to be called Egypt.
(2) The Concord of the Relative.
(a) Attraction of the Relative to the Gender and Number of the Predicate, with Copulative and Factitive Verbs:
ὁ φόβος, ἣν αἴδω εἴπομεν.
PLAT.The fear which we called shame.
(b) Attraction of the Relative to the Case of its Antecedent:
From the Accusative, § 51 :
ἀμαθέστατοι ἔστε ὧν ἐγὼ οἶδα Ἑλλήνων.
THUC.You are the most ignorant of all the Greeks I know.
Obs. With οἷος this occurs even from the Nominative:
χαριζόμενος οἷῳ σοὶ ἀνδρί.
XEN.Doing a favour to a man like you (τοιούτῳ ἀνδρὶ, οἷος σὺ εἶ).
(c) Attraction of the Antecedent to the Case of the Relative: "Inverse Attraction":
τὴν οὐσίαν, ἣν κατέλιπεν, οὐ πλείονος ἀξία ἐστίν.
LYS.The inheritance, which he last left, is not worth more.
(d) The bodily Attraction of the Antecedent into the Relative Clause (see § 138).
(3) The Concord of the Adjective and Substantive (Vocative Attraction).
The Predicate of a Copulative Verb is sometimes attracted into the Vocative of the Person addressed :
ὄλβιε, κῶρε, γένοιο.
THEOCR.O boy, mayst thou be happy.
(Many cases, however, of "Vocative Attraction" are doubtful: cf. "Or hearst thou rather, pure etherial stream" (MILTON) :)
ἀντὶ γὰρ ἐκλήθης Ἴμβρασε Παρθενίου.
CALLIM.For thou wert addressed "O Imbrasus,” instead of “Parthenius”.
(Note the attraction to an Adverbial form in
θαυμασίως ὡς ἄθλιος.
PLAT.Wonderfully wretched (viz., θαυμάσιόν ἐστιν ὡς, it is wonderful how).)
Excursus II. SENSE CONSTRUCTION.
The Syntax of the Concords is also much affected by considerations of sense:
(1) The Concord of the Verb. A Noun of Multitude may take a Plural Verb (see § 49).
(2) The Concord of the Adjective.
φίλε τέκνον. HOM. Dear child.
Common with Diminutives:
κολλικοφάγε Βοιωτίδιον.
AR.Little roll-eating Bœotian.
An Adjective sometimes agrees with a Noun, especially a Pronoun, contained in another word:
τἀμὰ δυστήνου κακά.
SOPH.The woes of me wretched. (Sc. ἐμοῦ δυστήνου.)
(3) The Concord of the Substantive (Apposition).
A Substantive sometimes stands in Apposition to a Substantive contained in another word:
᾿Αθηναῖος ὤν, πόλεως τῆς μεγίστης.
PLAT.Being a citizen of Athens, the greatest city.
Apposition is often loose in kind—sometimes referring in sense to the sentence rather than to a given Noun :
εὐδαιμονοίης, μισθὸν ἡδίστων λόγων.
EUR.May you be happy, as a reward for your good news.
(This is usually called "the Accusative in Apposition to the Sentence: strictly speaking it is half Adverbial or Cognate. More commonly there is some Noun to which the word may in grammar, however loosely, be referred; and the word differs in case accordingly: e.g.,
Ἑλένην κτάνωμεν, Μενέλεῳ λύπην πικράν.
EUR.Let us slay Helen, a bitter grief to Menelaus.
τῆς Σικελίας ἁπάσης, μεγάλου ἔργου, ἐφίεσθαι.
THUC.To have designs on all Sicily, an ambitious plan.)
(4) The Concord of the Relative.
φίλον θάλος, ὃν τέκον αὐτή.
HOM.Dear scion, whom I myself did bear.
(5) The Composite Subject.
ἐπύθετο τὸν Στρομβιχίδην καὶ τὰς ναῦς ἀπεληλυθότα.
THUC.He heard that Strombichides had departed with his ships.
Δημοσθένης μετὰ τῶν ξυστρατηγῶν σπεύδονται.
THUC.Demosthenes and his colleagues make all speed.
Excursus III. THE CASES.
The Nominative.
ὦ παῖ Πηλέως, πατήρ δ᾽ ἐμός.
O son of Peleus, father mine (
(See also Nominativus Pendens, § 522; Nominative Attraction, § 351; Nominative and Infinitive, § 179.)
The Vocative
(Chiefly with Relative Clauses.)
The Accusative.
For the Direct Accusative after Intransitive Verbs used Transitively, see § 147. Note also:
στάντες δ᾽ ὅθ᾽ αὐτοὺς οἱ τεταγμένοι βραβῆς κλήρους ἔπηλαν.
SOPH.And standing where the appointed umpires had allotted them their place (κλήρους ἔπηλαν = ἔταξαν).
The Direct Accusative which follows the Active is sometimes retained after the Passive:
οἱ τῶν ᾿Αθηναίων ἐπιτετραμμένοι τὴν φυλακήν.
THUC.Those of the Athenians who had been entrusted with the watch.
The Direct Accusative sometimes follows Verbal Nouns and Adjectives:
πόλεμος ἄπορα πόριμος.
AESCH.War making possible the impossible.
Σωκράτης τὰ μετέωρα φροντιστής.
PLAT.Socrates, a student of the things of heaven.
(See also Verbals, § 189; Anticipatory Accusative, § 523.)
The Cognate Accusative may express the sphere or the effect of an action, suggest resemblance, or show the character of an action in other ways:
Ὀλύμπια νικᾶν. THUC. To win the Olympia.
δίκην ὀφλεῖν. DEM. To lose in a law-suit.
ψήφισμα νικᾶν. AESCHIN. To carry a decree.
βλέπειν νᾶπυ. AR. To look mustard.
ἔαρ θ᾽ ὁρῶσα Νυχεία. THEOC. Nycheia with her April eyes (A. Lang).
ῥῆξαι φωνήν. AR. To break into utterance.
The Adverbial Accusative is sometimes Neuter Plural:
δεινὰ δ᾽ ὑπόδρα ἰδών.
HOM.With dreadful looks askance.
(So the Superl. Adv. ῥᾷστα, etc.)
NOTES ON THE CASES.
The Genitive.
The Objective Genitive generally represents the Direct Accusative after a Verb; sometimes it is more loosely used :
Ira inritata deorum.
VIRG.Incensed with anger against the gods.
Many instances are Greek. Note also the following:
Da noctis mediae. HOR. Pour a libation in honour of midnight (Objective, Greek: Cause).
Justitiaene prius mirer belline laborum? VIRG. Am I to admire him most for his goodness, or his toils in war? (Cause: Greek.)
Qua Daunus agrestium regnavit populorum. HOR. Where Daunus reigned over rural peoples (Objective, Greek).
Fies nobilium tu quoque fontium. HOR. You shall become (one) of noble fountains (Partitive, Greek).
Desine mollium tandem querelarum. HOR. Cease at length from unmanly plaint (Ablative, Greek).
The Possessive Genitive is sometimes emphasised by Adjectives, "peculiar to," "common to," "sacred to":
Viz., proprius, communis, sacer (sacer, also Dative):
Terra sacra deorum omnium est.
CIC.The earth is sacred to all the gods.
The Ablative.
Assiduo ruptae lectore columnae.
JUV.Columns broken by perpetual reciters (
C. Fleginatem Placentia. CAES. C. Fleginas of Placentia (Origin, § 261, with Substantives).
Neve putes alium sapiente bonoque beatum.
HOR.And do not consider any one else than the wise and good to be happy (in Prose alius ac, Separative
The Dative.
Invitum qui servat, idem facit occidenti.
HOR.Any one who preserves another against his will, does the same as if he killed him (Indirect
It clamor coelo.
VIRG.A cry goes up to heaven (
Carmina quae scribuntur aquae potoribus.
HOR.Poems written by water-drinkers (
Quibus volentibus bellum erat.
TAC.Who wished for war? (lit., "to whom, not wishing it," Greek).
Note. Scribo ad te is more common than scribo tibi.
Note.—The "Dative of the Thing" is used with (a) the Verb to be (§ 288); (b) Verbs of imputing, e.g., Vitio vertere alicui, to impute as a fault to any one; (c) Verbs of going, sending, giving, with auxilio, praesidio, subsidio. Sometimes with Substantives, e.g.,
Signum receptui.
CIC.The signal for retreat.
On its use with Gerunds and Gerundives, see § 600.
Place where, whither, whence.
Note 1.—The Plain Ablative of Place Where is used (a) with the words parte, regione, loco, dextra, laeva, medio, terra marique; (b) in the sense of "on" or "over," with an epithet, especially medius and totus.
Other instances are probably Instrumental (§ 266), e.g., manu tenens, holding in (viz., with) the hand, or of the Road by which, e.g., Missa Pado (VIRG.), sped down the Po.
(In Poetry there is some licence, but not in the sense of "in".)
Note 2.—Domus, when qualified, may have a Preposition: e.g.,
In domum veterem e novâ.
CIC.From a new house to an old one.
Notice the combination:
Milites Albae constiterunt, in urbe opportuna.
CIC.The troops halted at Alba, a convenient city.
In Poetry the Preposition is sometimes omitted, where we should expect one, of Place Where, Whither, Whence :
(1) Italiam venit. VIRG. He came to Italy.
(2) Carceribus missos currus. VIRG. Cars sped from the barriers.
(3) Pagasaeis collibus. OV. On Pagasæan hills.
Excursus IV. THE MOODS.
Indicative, Imperative, Conjunctive.
Pollio amat nostram, quamvis est rustica, Musam.
VIRG.Pollio loves my Muse, though she is but a country-maid.
(Quamvis with Indicative; frequent in Poetry, § 441.)
Tityre, dum redeo, brevis est via, pasce capellas.
VIRG.Feed my she-goats till I return.
Dum fugeret, hydrum non vidit.
VIRG.While flying from thee she saw not the serpent.
(Dum redeo perhaps "while I am on my way back," viz., dum absum, purely temporal (§ 424); dum fugeret perhaps really purpose—in her hurry to escape (§ 426).)
Rediit paullo post quod se oblitum nescio quid diceret.
CIC.He returned shortly after, because he said he had forgotten something.
(Subjunctive of Virtual Or. Obl. (§ 476) transferred to Verb of speaking itself (§ 410).)
Ut ne is used sometimes for ne in Final Clauses:
Ad me velim scribas, ut prorsus ne quid ignorem.
CIC.I should like you to write to me that I may not be utterly ignorant of anything.
Quemcunque lictor prehendisset, tribunus mitti jubebat.
LIV.Whomever the lictor seized the tribune would order to be set free.
(Prehendisset, Frequentative Conjunctive: Greek. Latin generally uses the Perfects Indicative (§ 217).)
Conditionals:
Quid, si hostes ad urbem veniant, facturi estis?
LIV.What would you do if the enemy were to come to the city? (Facturi estis, periphrasis for faciatis, § 402.)
Si fractus illabatur orbis, impavidum ferient ruinae.
HOR.If the earth should crack and crumble away, the blow of ruin will leave him undismayed (vivid
Solus eram, si non saevus adesset amor.
OV.I was alone, had not cruel love been with me (Vivid
Et faceret, si non aera repulsa sonent.
TIB.And would do so, did not the clashing cymbals sound. (Tibullus often uses this irregular combination of primary and historic.)
Delitui dum vela darent, si forte dedissent.
VIRG.I lay hid till they should sail, in case they should do so (= in
Commands:
At tu dictis, Albane, maneres.
VIRG.You should have abided by your words, O man of Alba.
Quid facere debuisti? Frumentum ne emisses, sumpsisses id nummorum.
CIC.What ought you to have done? You ought not to have bought the corn, you ought to have taken that amount of money.
(Maneres, emisses, sumpsisses are Past Jussive.)
Observe, moreover, the following ways of expressing a Direct Command, beside those given § 330:
(a) Present Subjunctive (you = anyone, vague): audias; ne audias.
(b) Future Indicative (strong command, "thou shalt"): audies; non audies.
(c) Imperative in -to (legal): audito; ne audito.
(On cura, cave, see § 370.)
Remark.—The Primary and Historic Sequence are sometimes found combined, especially in long Oratio Obliqua, either for variety or for the sake of vividness. This is very common in Cæsar, even after a Historic Tense: e.g., B. G., i., 14: Cæsar respondit...quod teneret...quominus...intulerint...accidissent. Cum sint...quas si...satisfaciant.
So in Final Clauses, sometimes for variety, sometimes to distinguish the nearer consequence from the more remote :
Mago nuntios Carthaginem ad senatum mittit, qui hortentur ut auxilia mitterent.
LIV.Mago sent messengers to the senate at Carthage to exhort them to send further help.
Excursus V. INFINITIVE AND PARTICIPLE.
The Infinitive.
The Infinitive as a Noun:
Hoc ridere meum nullâ tibi vendo Iliade.
PERS.This laugh of mine I will not sell you for an Iliad.
Inter optime valere et gravissime aegrotare nihil prorsus dicunt interesse.
CIC.They say there is no difference whatever between the best of health and serious illness.
(Not usually qualified by an Attribute, hoc, meum; with Prepositions the Gerund is usual.)
The Genitive.
The Objective Genitive generally represents the Direct Accusative after a Verb; sometimes it is more loosely used :
τὸ τῶν Μεγαρέων ψήφισμα.
THUC.The decree about the Megarians.
σπεῖσον ἀγαθοῦ δαίμονος.
AR.Pour libation in honour of the good genius (
ὦ δυσθέατον ὄμμα καὶ τόλμης πικρᾶς.
SOPH.O sight cruel and of fatal rashness (
μέγα χρῆμα συός. HDT. A monster of a boar (Definition).
βέβασιν ἄρτι δωμάτων ὑπόστεγοι.
SOPH.They have just passed within the shelter of the house (
ἀλλ᾽ ἔστι τοῦ λέγοντος, ἢν φόβους λέγῃ.
SOPH.But is swayed by the speaker, if he counsel fear (
The Possessive Genitive is sometimes emphasised by Adjectives, "peculiar to," "common to," "sacred to":
Viz., οἰκεῖος, ἴδιος, κοινός, ἱερός (all these also, Dative):
γῆ ἱερὰ πάντων θεῶν.
PLAT.The earth is sacred to all the gods.
Note the Gen. of Ablation in:
κεῖσαι σᾶς ἀλόχου σφαγεὶς Αἰγίσθου τε.
EUR.Thou liest slain by thy wife and Ægisthus (
Occasionally the Genitive Absolute is expressed by two Nouns (cf. Latin Abl. Abs.) :
ὄρνις ὧν ὑφηγητῶν ἐγὼ κτενεῖν ἔμελλον πατέρα τὸν ἐμόν.
SOPH.The birds by whose augury I was to slay my father.
The Dative,
τὸν αὐτὸν χῶρον ἐκλιπὼν ἐμοί.
AESCH.Leaving the same place as I. (On the analogy of ὅμοιος: usually ὁ αὐτὸς καί.)
πολλὰς δ᾽ ἰφθίμους ψυχὰς Ἄϊδι προΐαψεν.
HOM.And many a brave spirit did he hurl to Hell (
τῷ πλήθει τῶν Πλαταιῶν οὐ βουλομένῳ ἦν τῶν ᾿Αθηναίων ἀφίστασθαι.
THUC.The populace of Platæa did not wish to revolt from the Athenians (
Note. The Dative of Interest is not infrequently used with Participles, as above: lit., "to revolt was not to them wishing it," viz., not in accordance with their wishes. It is also used absolutely: e.g.,
ὡς γ᾽ ἐμοὶ κριτῇ. In my judgment.
συνελόντι εἰπεῖν.
ΧΕΝ.To speak briefly (
Place where, whither, whence.
Note. A Genitive of Place Where sometimes occurs in Poetry. The Genitive must be here considered as expressing an antecedent condition from which the notion of the Verb originates (cf. the Genitive with πρός and with ἀκούω): e.g.,
ἐσχάτης ὁρῶ πυρᾶς νεωρῆ βόστρυχον τετμημένον.
SOPH.On the edge of the pyre I behold a lock of new-cut hair.
So of Place over which":
ἡμερεύοντας ξένους μακρᾶς κελεύθου.
AESCH.Strangers spending the day on a long journey.
(The following Prose instances are either Partitive, Possessive, or of Respect: ἐπετάχυνον τῆς ὁδοῦ. THUC. They hurried them on their way. (Part.) Οἰνόη τῆς Ἀττικῆς. THUC. Oenoe (of) in Attica. (Possess.) προκόπτειν τῆς ἀρχῆς (THUC.), "in respect of," or after πρό.)
In Poetry the Preposition is sometimes omitted, where we should expect one, of Place Where, Whither, Whence :
(1) πύργους ἔπλευσε. EUR. She sailed to the towers.
(2) νεὼς ἄγοντα. SOPH. Bringing from the ship.
(3) μέγας οὐράνῳ Ζεύς. SOPH. Zeus is great in heaven.
Excursus IV. THE MOODS.
Indicative, Imperative, Conjunctive.
ἀνωλόλυξε πρίν γ᾽ ὁρᾷ.
EUR.She cried out before she saw.
(After a Positive πρίν usually takes a vague Infinitive, § 429: the Indicative here marks an actual fact.)
ἡδέως ἂν Καλλικλεῖ διελεγόμην, ἕως ἀπέδωκα.
PLAT.I would gladly have conversed with Callicles till I had repaid it.
(ἕως, Indefinite, with the Indicative. The Optative would be usual (§ 426).)
The Relative with Subjunctive of Purpose (cf. Latin):
πρέσβεις ἄγουσα οἵπερ φράσωσιν.
THUC.Conveying ambassadors who were to announce (§ 462).
ὅπως with Future Indicative of Purpose: poetic (§385):
θέλγει ὅπως Ἰθάκης ἐπιλήσεται.
HOM.She charms him so that he shall forget Ithaca.
The Future Indicative used like the Present and Aorist Indicative (§ 372) of a fear that amounts to a belief or opinion:
φοβοῦμαι μὴ εὑρήσομεν.
PLAT.I am afraid that we shall find.
On the omission of ἄν with Subjunctive after ἕως, πρίν, μέχρι, see § 217. Note also the poetic usages with ὅς:
γέροντα δ᾽ ὀρθοῦν φλαῦρον, ὃς νέος πέσῃ.
SOPH.'Tis an idle thing to uplift in old age a man who falls in youth.
Conditionals:
ἡ πόλις ἐκινδύνευσε πᾶσα διαφθαρῆναι, εἰ ἄνεμος ἐπεγένετο.
THUC.The city was in danger of being destroyed, had a wind sprung up (ἐκινδ. διαφ., periphrasis for διεφθάρη ἄν, § 402).
δυστάλαινα τἄρ᾽ ἐγὼ, εἴ σου στερηθῶ.
SOPH.Unhappy then am I, if I am to be deprived of thee (probably deliberative, suggesting the question, ἆρά σου στερηθῶ; Am I to be deprived? (§ 396)).
εἰ θέλοιμεν σκοπεῖν τὰς φύσεις τὰς τῶν ἀνθρώπων, εὑρήσομεν.
ISOCR.If we cared to consider the natures of men we shall find (Irregular combination of
εἰ γὰρ οὗτοι ὀρθῶς ἀπέστησαν, ὑμεῖς ἂν οὐ χρεὼν ἄρχοιτε.
THUC.If these had a right to secede, it follows that your empire would be unjust (= συμβαίνει ὥστε, εἰ χρεὼν πράττοιτε, οὐκ ἂν ἄρχοιτε).
Ν.Β.—πῶς ἂν θάνοιμι; would I could die: a Wish.
Commands:
φέρ᾽, ὦ τέκνον, μάθῃς.
SOPH.Come, my son, learn.
μὴ φεῦσον ἐλπίδος. ARIST. Balk me not of my hope.
μήδ᾽ ἡ βία σε νικησάτω.
SOPH.Let not force o'ercome thee.
(The Subjunctive is rare of a Positive Command, the Aorist Imperative of a Negative Command (§ 330), though less so in the Third Person.)
Observe, moreover, the following ways of expressing a Direct Command, beside those given § 330:
(a) Optative with ἄν (polite): λέγοις ἄν, kindly speak (Neg. οὐ).
(b) Future Indicative statement (thou shalt): ποιήσεις, οὐ ποιήσεις.
(c) Imperative in -to (legal): question with οὐ and οὐ μή (§ 516).
(On ὅπως with Fut. Ind. see § 370.)
Remark.—The Primary and Historic Sequence are sometimes found combined, especially in Oratio Obliqua, sometimes for variety, sometimes with a difference in sense—the Indicative expressing the more certain or more important fact:
οὗτοι ἔλεγον ὅτι Κῦρος μὲν τέθνηκεν, ᾿Αριαῖος δὲ πεφευγὼς ἐν τῷ σταθμῷ εἴη.
XEN.They said that Cyrus was dead and that Ariæus had fled and was in the camp.
So in Final Clauses, sometimes for variety, sometimes to distinguish the nearer consequence from the more remote :
παρανῖσχον δὲ φρυκτοὺς, ὅπως ἀσαφῆ τὰ σημεῖα τοῖς πολεμίοις ἢ καὶ μὴ βοηθοῖεν.
THUC.They displayed beacons that the enemy might be confused as to the signals, and so might not come to the rescue.
Excursus V. INFINITIVE AND PARTICIPLE.
The Infinitive.
The Infinitive as a Noun:
αὐτὸ μὲν γὰρ τὸ ἀποθνήσκειν οὐδεὶς φοβεῖται.
PLAT.For of mere dying no one is afraid.
ἀντὶ μὲν δούλων ἐποίησας ἐλευθέρους Πέρσας εἶναι, ἀντὶ δὲ ἄρχεσθαι ὑπ᾿ ἄλλων, ἄρχειν ἁπάντων.
HDT.You made the Persians to rule all instead of being ruled by others.
(No other word but αὐτό can qualify an Infinitive; after Prepositions the Article τό is usually prefixed.)
IV. APPENDIX TO SYNTAX.
Poetic Infinitives, where Prose would use ut and Subjunctive:
Stabant orantes primi transmittere cursum.
VIRG.They stood there praying to be the first to cross.
Impulerat ferro Argolicas foedare latebras.
VIRG.He had driven us to probe the hiding-place of the Argives with our swords.
Legati veniunt speculari.
LIV.Ambassadors come to reconnoitre.
(Here transmittere and foedare are less noticeable, owing to the ordinary Prolative Infinitive after cupio and cogo (§§ 357, 366); speculari and visere are the more irregular as expressing separate purpose (§ 384).)Proteus pecus egit altos visere montes.
HOR.Proteus drove his flock to visit the high mountains.
With Substantives and Adjectives: see § 177.
Notice also Amor cognoscere (VIRG.), desire to know; Prose, cognoscendi. Cantari dignus (VIRG.), worthy to be sung; Prose, qui cantetur (§ 465). And the Greek Infinitives: Blandus ducere (HOR.), cunning at leading; Niveus videri (HOR.), snowy to look upon (Epexegetic). Horace is specially fond of these.
NOTES ON THE MOODS.
The Participle.
The Neuter Participle is sometimes used practically as a Substantive:
So also Ante expectatum (VIRG.), before it could be expected (sc. antequam expectari posset).Notumque furens quid femina possit.
VIRG.And the knowledge of what a frenzied woman can do.
Ablative Absolute without a Noun:
(So also in the phrases, Explorato, after exploring; augurato, the auguries being taken; necopinato, contrary to expectation, etc.: these are frequent in Livy.)Excepto quod non simul esses, caetera laetus.
HOR.Except for the fact that you were not with me, happy in all else.
Note. The Supplementary Participle occurs commonly in Latin with certain Verbs, e.g., video, audio, nuntio, invenio, see § 198; in Poetry its use goes further. With both the Participle and the Infinitive the Nominative Attraction is found in Poetry, in imitation of the Greek:
Sensit medios delapsus in hostes.
VIRG.He felt him fallen into the midst of foes.
(Note also Gaudent perfusi sanguine fratrum (VIRG.), they rejoice to be bedewed in a brother's blood; ne falleret incedens (LIV.), lest he should march undiscovered; fallit sorte beatior (Hor.), sc. λανθάνει ὀλβιωτέρα οὖσα τῇ τύχῃ, lit., escapes his notice being happier in its lot: all of which are imitations of the Supplementary Participle in Greek.)Phaselus ille ait fuisse navium celerrimus.
CATUL.That pinnace avows that he was once the swiftest of ships.
The Tenses of the Infinitive and Participle (§ 216).
The want of a Present Participle Passive and Past Participle Active led to some irregularities:
Prae se actam praedam ostentantes.
LIV.Showing the booty they were driving before them.
(The first—the use of the Past Participle Passive as a Present—is common; the other rarer.)Eum prius incertis implicantes responsis.
LIV.Having first involved him in ambiguous answers.
The Infinitive with Verbs of Command, etc., is sometimes preceded by ὥστε (§ 355):
οὐ γὰρ ἔπειθε τοὺς Χίους ὥστε ἑωυτῷ δοῦναι νέας.
HDT.For he did not persuade the Chians to give him ships.
So the Prolative Infinitive has sometimes the Article:
τὸ δρᾶν οὐκ ἠθέλησαν.
SOPH.They did not wish to do it.
So the Absolute Infinitive (§ 176):
τὸ ἐπὶ σφᾶς εἶναι.
THUC.So far as they were concerned.
The Infinitive sometimes expresses purpose:
μανθάνειν γὰρ ἥκομεν.
SOPH.For we are come to learn.
The Subject of the Absolute Infinitive of Command is generally Accusative, as the Object of, e.д., κελεύω (§ 176); sometimes it is Vocative or Nominative, ἔθελε being understood:
ὦ ξεῖν, ἀγγέλλειν Λακεδαιμονίοις.
SIMON.Stranger, go tell the Spartans.
The Epexegetic Infinitive sometimes explains Substantives (§ 183):
χρυσήλατον γὰρ ἄνδρα τευχηστὴν ἰδεῖν.
AESCH.A warrior to look upon, in golden armour clad.
NOTES ON THE MOODS.
The Participle.
(Sc. τὸ τὴν νῆσον ἐμπρηθῆναι, cf. Latin, Caesar occisus. So μετὰ Σολῶνα οἰχόμενον (HDT.), after Solon's departure; ἐς ἥλιον καταδύντα, to sunset.)καὶ αὐτῷ ἔτι ῥώμην καὶ ἡ νῆσος ἐμπρηθεῖσα παρέσχε.
THUC.The conflagration of the island also helped him further.
Note the Neuters in Thucydides: τὸ θαρσοῦν, the confident party; τὸ δεδιὸς αὐτοῦ, the fact that he was afraid.
Note, beside δέον, etc., the Accusative Absolute, εἰρημένον, γεγραμμένον, δυνατὸν ὄν. (The Accusative Absolute never has a Substantive: e.g.,
; αἷμα is in Apposition to φόνον.)φόνον λύοντας, ὡς τόδ' αἷμα χείμαζον πόλιν
SOPH.atoning for the murder, as it is this deed of blood that troubles the city
Note.-Verbs that commonly take the Participle are sometimes found with the Infinitive, and vice versa (§§ 348, 350), when either class approaches the other in sense:
ἀλλ᾽ ἴσθι τοι τὰ σκλήρ᾽ ἄγαν φρονήματα πίπτειν μάλιστα.
SOPH.But know that too proud spirits most often fall.
(Cf. English, "I saw him run"—I saw him running.)πότερόν σε φῶμεν σπουδάζοντα ἢ παίζοντα;
PLAT.Are we to conceive of you as being in earnest or jesting?
Sometimes the Accusative is used of the Subject of the Main Verb:
.Κροῖσος ἐνόμισε ἑωυτὸν εἶναι ὀλβιώτατον
HDT.
Note the omission of the Participle in εἰδὼς εὐτρεπεῖς ἡμᾶς (DEM., 45); νῦν δ᾽ ἀγροῖσι τυγχάνει (SOPH., El., 313).
Note ἄν with Participle:
χωρὶς τῆς περιστάσης ἂν ἡμᾶς αἰσχύνης, εἰ καθυφείμεθά τι τῶν πραγμάτων.
DEM.Apart from the disgrace which would attach to us, if we were to let go any of our interests.
The Tenses of the Infinitive and Participle (§ 216).
The want of a separate Participle and Infinitive for the Imperfect led to some irregularities:
τίνας ποτ᾿ εὐχὰς ὑπολαμβάνετ᾽ εὔχεσθαι τὸν Φίλιππον, ὅτ᾽ ἔσπενδεν;
DEM.What prayers do you think Philip was offering when he was pouring libation?
οἱ συμπρεσβεύοντες καὶ παρόντες καταμαρτυρήσουσιν.
DEM.Those who were his colleagues, and who were present at the time, will witness against him.
NOTES ON THE MOODS.
With memini the Present Infinitive is often Imperfect:
Ego Metellum memini puer bonis esse viribus.
CIC.I remember as a boy that Metellus was hale and strong.
Excursus VI. Gerund and Gerundive (§ 184).
(Gerund as pure Substantive, solutionis; used partly to avoid the double -arum.)Poenarum solvendi tempus.
LUCR.Time for payment of penalty.
(Greek Genitive of Purpose: τοῦ γιγνώσκειν, § 186).Germanicus Aegyptum proficiscitur cognoscendae antiquitatis.
TAC.Germanicus set out for Egypt with the object of studying its antiquities
Observe the Gerund and Gerundive expressing the Dative of the Thing (§ 288):
Solvendo non erat Magius.
CIC.Magius was insolvent (lit., was not for paying).
Xviri agris dandis dividundis.
A commission of ten men for the assignment and distribution of land.
(The phrase solvendo esse is common; so too is the Gerundive in official phrases after Substantives, Xviri, etc.; the Gerundive with esse, as in the last instance, is rare.)Dedit huic aetas vires onerique ferendo est.
Ov.Age has given him strength and he is (fit) for bearing burdens.
IV. APPENDIX TO SYNTAX.
The Gerundive is sometimes used as a Present Participle Middle: e.g.,
(cf. volventibus annis, in the same book, 234).Volvendis mensibus
VIRG., A., i., 269with revolving months
Transitive use of the Gerund of Obligation: Poetic, cf. Greek Verbals in -τέον, § 189:
Aeternas quoniam poenas in morte timendum est.
LUCR.Since we must fear eternal pains in death.
Note 1. Apparently Passive use of the Gerund: due to the detachment of the Gerund from the Subject of the Main Verb. Observe the stages:
-
Caesar oppidum ad diripiendum militibus concessit.
CAES.Caesar handed the town over to his soldiers to pillage.
-
(Gerund as Abstract Noun).Audendo atque agendo res Romana crevit.
LIV.The power of Rome grew through courage and energy
-
(really, “by one's nurturing it"; "by nurture," alimento.)Ulcus enim vivescit et inveterascit alendo.
LUCR.For a wound quickens and grows old by being nurtured
NOTES ON THE MOODS.
Note 2. The Gerundive grew out of the Gerund from several reasons combined:
- The frequent detachment of the Gerund from the Subject, obscuring the Active character of the Gerund.
- The frequent importance of the Object of the Gerund, as contrasted with the Gerund itself: e.g., instead of, legatos miserunt pacem petendi causâ, we might say, with little loss to the sense, pacis causâ.
- The awkwardness of having two words, a Main Verb and a Verbal Noun, in the same sentence, both governing an Accusative.
- The half Adjectival termination of the Gerund, resembling a Participle in -ens, -entis, or an Adj. in -undus.
As a result, the construction was thrown on to the Object of the Gerund; and the Gerund itself, a Substantive and Active, was drawn into agreement as an Adjective and Passive: viz., became a Gerundive. This process is called "Gerundival Attraction".
Note 3. The Gerund and Gerundive as expressing Obligation. — Just as Opus est mihi, there is a work for me, came to mean "there is a work for me to be done"; so, e.g., operandum est mihi, "there is some working for me," came to have a sense of Obligation. And once this sense attached to the Gerund, it soon attached to the Gerundive, which had grown out of the Gerund.
IV. APPENDIX TO SYNTAX.
Observe that this account explains also the use of the Dative of the Agent commonly used with the Gerund and Gerundive of Obligation: viz., it is a Dative of Interest. And the Dative, thus used for agency with the Gerund and Gerundive, was afterwards so used with the Passive Participles, as being most akin to the Gerundive; and, finally, its original character being forgotten, came also to be used even with Finite Verbs (§576).(See Roby, Vol. II., p. lxi sqq.: from which the above is mainly drawn.)
NOTES ON THE MOODS.
With μέμνημαι and οἶδα this last is frequent:
μέμνημαι δὲ ἔγωγε καὶ παῖς ὢν Κριτίᾳ τῷδε ξυνόντα σε.
PLAT.I remember as a boy your consorting with Critias here.
οὐ μή (§ 517).
Other instances of οὐ μή expressing prohibition are:
οὐ σῖγ᾽ ἀνέξει, μηδὲ δειλίαν ἀρεῖ;
SOPH.Keep silent, and do not be a coward (sc. οὐ μὴ ἀρεῖ).
οὐ μὴ λαλήσεις, ἀλλ᾽ ἀκολουθήσεις ἐμοί;
AR.Prate not, but follow me (sc., οὐκ ἀκολουθήσεις).
οὐ μή, of denial, may be represented in Oratio Obliqua by the Future Infinitive or Optative:
σαφῶς γὰρ εἶπε Τειρεσίας οὐ μή ΠΟΤΕ σοῦ τήνδε γῆν οἰκοῦντος εὖ πράξειν πόλιν.
EUR.Teiresias clearly said that while you inhabited this land the state could never prosper.
τὰ δ᾽ ἄλλα πάντ᾽ ἐθέσπισεν καὶ τἀπὶ Τροίας πέργαμ᾽ ὡς οὐ μή ΠΟΤΕ πέρσοιεν, εἰ μὴ τόνδ᾽ ἄγοιντο.
SOPH.He prophesied all else, and that
IV. APPENDIX TO SYNTAX.
they would never sack the towers of Troy, unless they brought this man.
Note. MSS. have been arbitrarily altered to suit the distinction of denial and prohibition, but both constructions are found with either force and probably admit of one explanation.
Three explanations are possible:
-
That there is an ellipse of δέος ἐστί between οὐ and μή. This explains denial, and is supported by, e.g.,
. But explanations by ellipse are suspicious; it is inadequate for Prohibitions with οὐ μή, and does not touch those with οὐ alone.οὐ φόβος μή σε ἀγάγω
ΧΕN., Mem., ii., 1. 25 -
That οὐ μή is one strong Negative and the phrase a Statement. This explains denial and fuller prohibitions, e.g., οὐ μὴ προσοίσεις. But there is no evidence of the redundancy of different Negatives οὐ and μή; and this,
NOTES ON THE MOODS.
like the first, does not touch οὐκ ἀνέξει. Both these explanations, in fact, require a different explanation for the separate Negatives οὐ σῖγ᾽ ἀνέξει and μηδὲ ἀρεῖ : e.g., as two separate questions in which οὐ = nonne and μή = num. -
That οὐ μή was in its origin interrogative. This starts with the advantage of recognising the parallelism between οὐ ποιήσεις, a Command, and οὐ μὴ ποιήσεις, a Prohibition; and covers Prohibitions generally. It covers Denials also, if we suppose an original connexion between the Aorist Subjunctive as a mild Future and the Future Indicative—a supposition necessary also to explanation (2): though in (3) it is not even necessary, for the Subjunctive may, as a Question, be Deliberative. Thus οὐ μὴ μεθέψομαι; “shall I not decline to follow?”; οὐ μὴ παύσωμαι; "shall I not decline" or "am I not to decline to cease?"; viz., “I will not follow," "I will not cease". With regard to Denials in Oratio Obliqua, we must suppose that the phrase
IV. APPENDIX TO SYNTAX.
had become stereotyped and its Interrogative character obscured. One point remains. If the two idioms were the same in origin, how was it they came to differ, as they do as a rule, in meaning? Probably this is due to the inherent differences of Mood and Person, the Future Indicative being stronger than the Aorist Subjunctive, and the Second Person being naturally the Person of Command; viz., the two differ like the English "shall" and "will": "shall I not stop fighting?" = "I will not fight," Denial; "will you not stop fighting?" = "do not fight," Prohibition. And just as for the last we might sometimes say "shall you not stop fighting?" so the Aorist Subjunctive might sometimes, though rarely, be used for Prohibition:οὐ μὴ σκώψῃς ἀλλ᾽ εὐφήμει.
AR.Do not scoff, but keep quiet!