通用希腊语中级：1-1动词基本元素
根据黄锡木《词形变化总览》改编。
是我的中级课程的讲义。
Biblical Greek Grammar: Beyond Basics
Contents
Unit 1 Verbs
Unit 2 Nouns, Pronouns, Adjectives
Unit 1 Verbs
1.1 Basic elements
In this chapter, we have a review of the 5 grammatic properties of verbs: tense, voice, mood, person, number
And you should have known that a form of verb might constists of:
prefix + stem + suffix + ending
1.1.1 7 Tenses of verbs
There are 7 tenses of verbs: present, imperfect, future, aorist, perfect, pluperfect, future perfect
In our beginner’s lesson, we have learned 5 of them: present, imperfect, future, aorist, and perfect
The other 2 – pluperfect and future perfect – are seldom used.
1.1.2 2 Tenses
According to the endings, verbs can be categrized into: primary tenses and secondary tenses
Primary tenses (present-future tenses): present, future, perfect, future perfect
Secondary tenses (past tenses): imperfect, aorist, pluperfect
Other categrization will be discussed in the future.
1.1.3 3 Aspects
Recent studies show that Greek verbs don’t convey the message of traditional “tense”, but the view of the speaker – “aspect”.
There are 3 aspects:
a Perfective aspect: a finished act in the view of the speaker, aorist & future
b Imperfect aspect: an ongoing act, present & imperfect
c. Static aspect (perfect aspect): the outcome of an act, perfect & pluperfect & future perfect
1.1.4 3 Voices
There are 3 voices: active, passive, middle
Some passive/middle voiced verbs only conveys the active meaning, and they are called “deponent”.
1.1.5 4 Moods
There are 4 moods: indicative, imperative, subjunctive, optative
They are called finite moods, since they are bounded by person and number.
There are another 2 moods: infinitive, participle
They are called non-finite moods, although to be strict, they don’t convey the meaning of a mood.
1.1.6 Indicative mood
It is the only mood that has 7 tenses. And it is also the most widely used mood.
Pluperfect only appears in indicative mood. And it primarily appear in narrative texts - Gospels and Acts. Similarly, future perfect only appears in indicative mood and in the peripheric form (be + participle).
Luke 12.52 ἔσονται διαμεμερισμένοι
Matthew 16.19 ἔσται δεδεμένον, 18.18 ἔσται δεδεμένα, 2.13 ἔσομαι πεποιθώς
1.1.7 Subjunctive mood
It appears in 4 tenses, primarily in present and aorist, but also in perfect and future. It expresses something uncertain.
According to the standard of classical Greek, future subjunctive is not a regular form.
Present subjunctive only has οἶδα (1 Corinthians 2.12, 13.2) or in the periphrastic form πεποιθότες ὦμεν (2 Corinthians 1.9).
1.1.8 Imperative mood
Imperative appears in 3 tenses: present, aorist and perfect, primarily the first 2.
1.1.9 Optative mood
Optative apprears in 5 tenses, primarily present and aorist, but also future, perfect and future perfect.
It was disappearing in the era of the New Testament, substituted by subjunctive mood.
1.1.10 Participle
Participle appears in 5 tenses, primarily present, aorist and perfect, but also future and future perfect. According to the standard of classical Greek, the future participle is regarded as irregular, but it appears more often in the New Testament than in the Classical Age (500 BCE - 300 BCE). And future perfect only appears in the New Testament.
1.1.11 Infinitive
Infinitive appears in 5 tenses, primarily present, aorist and perfect, but also future and future perfect.
Verbs, such as δύναμαι (I can), θέλω (I want) usually employs infinitive to serve as complements.
Future infinitive only appears in alternative texts:
χωρέω (I contain) -> χωρήσειν (John 21.25)
κατατάω (I gain) -> καταντήσειν (Acts 26.7)
Summary of tenses in different tenses
It marks only those the tenses appear primarily:
present
imperfect
future
aorist
perfect
pluperfect
future perfect
indicative
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
imperative
*
*
*
subjunctive
*
*
*
optative
*
*
participle
*
*
*
*
infinitive
*
*
*
1.1.12 Persons & numbers
Persons only exist in finite moods – indicative, imperative, subjunctive, optative
3 moods – indicative, subjunctive, optative – have 3 persons: 1st person, 2nd person, 3rd person
1 mood – imperative – has 2 persons: 2nd person and 3rd person
All moods have numbers.
1.1.13 Conjugation
It is the inflected change of verb in a combination of “tense-voice-mood”.
Participle has also the change of nouns. Infinitive doesn’t have the change of person or number.
According to the dictionary entry, present active indicative 1st person singular has 2 different endings: ω or μι
And they are called Ω-Conjugation (also First Conjugation) and ΜΙ-Conjugation (also Second Conjugation).
The endings in present and imperfect tenses differ a lot. But in other tenses, they are quite similar.
1.1.14 Periphrastic construction
Most verbs works on itself alone. But some consist of 2 units, called “periphrastic construction”, like in English, “is going”, “has gone”, “has been working”.
This construction usually consists of “link verb εἰμί + main verb in participle form”.
The link verb shows the mood, person, and number. The participle shows the voice.
And The tense is shown by those two working together.
link verb
main verb
tense
present
present
present
imperfect
present
imperfect
present
aorist
aorist
imperfect
aorist
pluperfect
present
perfect
perfect
imperfect
perfect
pluperfect
future
perfect
future perfect
1.1.15 Parsing
a Parsing finite moods (indicative, imperative, subjunctive, optative)
7 pieces of information: tense, voice, mood, person, number, dictionary entry, meaning
λέγει: present active indicative 3rd person singular, λέγω, he says
b Parsing participle
8 pieces of information: tense, voice, mood, gender, number, dictionary entry, meaning, case
λέγων: present active indicative masculine singular, λέγω, saying
c Parsing infinitive
5 pieces of information: tense, voice, mood, dictionary entry, meaning
λέγειν: present active infinitive, λέγω, to say
