Adjective – -υς

ObjectivesLearning objectives

• The morphology of adjectives ending in -υς
• Comparing open scale and closed scale adjective interpretations

VocabularyVocabulary

MorphologyMorphology: Adjective – -υς

• For masc/neut, the nom and acc sg have a stem ending in υ, while all other forms have a stem ending in ε
• The forms with an υ-stem take the same endings as 3rd declension -υς nouns (see 40.2.3.1)
• The forms with an ε-stem take the same endings as 3rd declension nouns like βασιλεύς (see 17.2.3.1)
• For the fem, the final υ is replaced with ει, and 1st declension endings in -α are attached (see 6.4.4.1)

SemanticsSemantics: Adj – Regular (6 – Open vs. closed scale)

Adjective – Regular: all 3 parts on one page →Also in Lesson 32.2, Lesson 41.2

Besides being a precise way to describe adjectives of all different sorts, one may ask why we introduced the scalar interpretation of adjectives at all. Many adjectives have different senses based on the nature of the scale, particularly whether the scale is open or closed. To illustrate, the sentence Isaac’s hands are dry is ambiguous. In one reading, Isaac’s hands are currently dry and they are currently not wet. In this reading, dry has a closed scale, since a maximum amount of dryness is referred to, namely not having any liquid on it. In the second reading, Isaac’s hands have the propensity to be dry, i.e. they are not clammy. In this reading, Isaac’s hands can perpetually become drier – they can always develop more cracks. This is an open scale reading of dry because there is no limit to how dry hands can be in this sense. (It is, therefore, more accurate to speak of open or closed scale readings or senses of adjectives rather than open or closed scale adjectives.)

In Greek, δίκαιος represents an exegetically-significant example. It may mean either ‘righteous’ or ‘innocent.’ The meaning of ‘righteous’ refers to someone who is generally good morally:

In Luke 1:6, obeying God’s commandments explains how Zechariah and Elizabeth are δίκαιοι, suggesting that it means they are morally good people. In contrast, δίκαιος also sometimes means something more like ‘innocent’:

In Rom 5:7, to be δίκαιος ‘innocent’ is not as good as being ἀγαθός ‘good,’ since no one would die for the former, but they might die for the latter. When δίκαιος has an open scale (in Luke 1:6), it means to be morally good, since there is no natural maximum to being good. However, when it has a closed scale (in Rom 5:7), δίκαιος means to meet a standard of behavior, or to be ‘innocent’ without having fault (not necessarily good). These examples suggest that δίκαιος is not specified for the type of scale structure. It is compatible with both open-scale and closed-scale interpretations, and its ambiguity in meaning is based on its scalar ambiguity.