top Lesson 5
GreekMeaningNotes
νῆσος (f)island 
νόσος (f)diseaseCognate: nosology - classification of diseases. Not related to the word "nausea" which comes from "nautical" = seasickness.
ἔρημος (f)wilderness, desertthis is not necessarily "sand dune" desert, but any deserted place (i.e., deserted by people).
ὁδός (f)way, road 
ἔξοδος (f)way outCognate: exodus
εἴσοδος (f)entrance, inroad 
πάροδος (f)passage, pass 
παρθένος (f)virgin, maidenCognate: parthenon - temple dedicated to Athena
ἄμπελος (f)vine 
εἰμίI am 
ἐνinalways followed by a noun in the DAT case

FEMININE
O-STEMS

  1. Feminine ο-stem nouns of the second declension are identical to the masculine ο-stem nouns in form.
  2. They are, however, modified by a feminine article and feminine adjectives.
  3. These nouns are rare.
  4. Most feminine nouns are found in what is called the first declension which will be studied in the next lesson.

PREDICATE STRUCTURE

  1. In Greek, an equality can be expressed by linking two nouns in the NOM case:
    1. ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἀπόστολος the man is (the) apostle.
    2. ἀπόστολος ὁ ἄνθρωπος the man is (the) apostle.
    3. We call this structure a copula sentence because it "couples" two expressions.
    4. You will notice that there is no Greek word "is" in these two sentences.
      1. The very fact that the two nouns in the NOM case are placed side by side indicates that the word "is" is to be understood.
      2. Greek does have a word for "is," but in this instance it is not used.
    5. Although the order of both sentences is different, they yield the same result.
      1. But why doesn't the second sentence mean apostle is the man?
      2. If both words are in the NOM case, which one is the subject?
      3. The rule in Greek states that the subject of the sentence is the noun containing the definite article.
      4. The other word is called the subject complement, predicate nominative, or subject completion.
      5. If both words have the article, it would be translated: the apostle is the man or the man is the apostle. They would be interchangeable.
      6. If neither word has the article, then they are both indefinite and either one of them could be the subject: a man is an apostle or an apostle is a man.
    6. Although there is no article in front of ἀπόστολος in the sentence ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἀπόστολος, the word is still definite. The article, in a copula sentence, not only says it is definite, but it also identifies which word is the subject.
    7. What would the Greeks say if they wanted a definite noun as the subject and an indefinite noun as the complement?
      1. They have the use of two words: "one" and "a certain one" which indicate indefiniteness.
      2. Thus they would say, The man is one of the apostles or The man is a certain apostle.
    8. Greek does have the verb to be. The sentence could have been written: ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἐστὶν ἀπόστολος.

The present indicative of εἰμί

εἰμί I am
 SINGULARPLURAL
1stεἰμίI amἐσμένwe are
2ndεἶyous areἐστέyoup are
3rdἐστί(ν)he/she/it isεἰσίthey are

  1. ἐστὶν ἀπόστολος means he is the apostle.
  2. ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἐστὶν ἀπόστολος means the man is the apostle.
    1. You don't have to repeat the pronoun "he" because you already have the subject.
    2. Thus it is not translated: the man he is the apostle.
  3. Notice that this tense is present indicative, but there is no voice (active, passive, or middle).
  4. Notice that the third person singular may be spelled with or without the final "ν".
    1. In English we say "a boy ate an apple." We change the "a" to "an" before a word beginning with a vowel.
    2. Usually ἐστί is spelled ἐστίν if the next word begins with a vowel.
    3. Because the Greeks got used to saying it with a final "ν", you will find it spelled ἐστίν even when the next word did not begin with a vowel.
  5. This verb describes a state of being, not an action.
  6. It is called a copula verb because it shows equality between two ideas.
  7. Thus, both sides of the quality are in the NOM case.
  8. Example:
    1. ὁ ἄνθρωπός ἐστιν ἀπόστολος.
    2. The man is an apostle.
    3. Both "man" and "apostle" are in the NOM case.
  9. Think of this construction as a mathematical formula where one side of the equation must equal the other side.
  10. When expressing an equality, the case of both sides must agree.

The imperfect indicative of εἰμί

εἰμί I am
 SINGULARPLURAL
1stἤμηνI wasἦμενwe were
2ndἦςyous wereἦτεyoup were
3rdἦνhe/she/it wasἦσανthey were

  1. The imperfect tense of εἰμί indicates equality in past time.
  2. Compare these two sentences:
    1. ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἐστὶν ἀπόστολος (The man is the apostle)
    2. ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἦν ἀπόστολος (The man was the apostle).

PREPOSITIONS

  1. Prepositions are words which introduce a relationship between a verb and a noun, or between a noun and another noun, e.g.,
    in the house,
    on the roof,
    over the top,
    with the man,
    for the boy,
    by the disciple.
  2. The noun which follows the preposition will never be in the NOM or VOC cases.
  3. Prepositions are followed by a noun in one of three cases: GEN, DAT, or ACC (never NOM or VOC).
  4. The preposition ἐν is always followed by a noun in the DAT case.

Translate the following:

  1. ἡ παρθένος καὶ ὁ δοῦλος βλέπουσι τὸν γάμον ἐν τῷ οἰκῳ.
  2. οἱ ἄνθρωποι ἐν τῷ πλοίῳ φυλάσσουσι τὰς νῆσους.
  3. τὰ τέκνα τοῦ ἀποστόλου ἀκούει τὸν λὸγον τοῦ νόμου.
  4. οἱ ἀδελφοὶ ἔχουσι δῶρα τῷ ὄχλῳ.
  5. ὁ υἱός τοῦ ἀγγέλου καὶ ὁ δοῦλος τοῦ ἀποστόλου ἄγουσι τὰ πρόβατα.
  6. γινώσκομεν τῆν ἔξοδον τῆς παρόδου.
  7. βάλλετε τοῦς λίθους καὶ λαμβάνω τὸν οἰκον ἐν ποτηρίῳ.