Verb – εἰμί singular

ObjectivesLearning objectives

• The meaning and forms of δύο ‘two’
• Three enclitic accenting rules
• The morphology, syntax, and semantics of the present tense copula verb εἰμί sg

VocabularyVocabulary

Table 46 (continued)

Noteδύο

The number 2, δύο, is your first number word learned (abbreviated num). Other numbers, such as ‘one,’ are declined for case and gender, but δύο is simple. The nom, acc, and gen are all δύο, and the dat is δυσί. Numbers normally come before the noun (e.g. δύο ἄνθρωποι ‘two people’), but the noun may also be left out entirely at times, especially when δύο is found with the article (e.g. ‘the two (οἱ δύο) will become one flesh’ [Mark 10:8]).

PhonologyPhonology: Enclitic rules 3–5

We have learned several proclitics and enclitics (e.g. ὁ and με), but we have not started learning the rules governing accenting them yet–other than that proclitics are accented with the following word (rule 1) and enclitics are accented with the previous word (rule 2). Enclitics are accented on occasion, and they often change the accenting of the previous word. The rules for accenting enclitics and proclitics are introduced as needed in the lessons, and they are summarized in Phonology A. The rules are primarily taken from DA Carson’s Greek Accents: A Student’s Manual where he has 9 rules for enclitics and proclitics. The three rules needed for this lesson are as follows:

• (52) Rule 3: A grave accent on the ultima of a word followed by an enclitic will change to an acute, e.g. ἡ ἀδελφὴ ἄγει τὸν ἵππον πρός με
• (53) Rule 4: A word accented with an acute or circumflex as far back as possible will receive an additional acute accent on the ultima when followed by an enclitic, e.g. ὁ ἄνθρωπός με τύπτει and ὁ δοῦλός με τύπτει
• (54) Rule 5: A word with an acute accent on the penultima will cause a following two syllable enclitic to be accented, e.g. ἡ νύμφη ἐστὶν ἀδελφή, but a following one syllable enclitic will not be accented, e.g. ἡ νύμφη με τύπτει

In the example for Rule 3, the accent on πρός is acute rather than grave. Because πρός is accented on the ultima, the last syllable, it would normally have a grave accent when followed by another word. However, because the word is an enclitic, the grave accent changes to an acute accent. In the example for Rule 4, both ἄνθρωπος and δοῦλος have accents that are as far back as possible (remember, an acute accent can go back to the antepenultima and a circumflex accent can go back to the penultima). When με is added immediately after either word, each preceding noun receives an additional accent. Rule 5 is based on the number of syllables the enclitic has as well as the placement of the accent on the previous word. If the enclitic has one syllable (such as in a word like με), the rule states that the enclitic will not have an accent on the last syllable when the prior word has an acute on the penultima. So, ‘the bride is hitting me’ with the accusative before the verb would be ἡ νύμφη με τύπτει without an accent on the enclitic. In contrast, when an enclitic has two syllables (such as in a word like ἐστί(ν), meaning ‘is,’ which you will learn in this lesson), the enclitic will have an accent on the final syllable when the preceding word has an acute accent on the penultima. So ‘The bride is a sister’ would be ἡ νύμφη ἐστὶν ἀδελφή with an accent on the final syllable of ἐστίν.

MorphologyMorphology: Verb – εἰμί singular

• The εἰμί verb is an enclitic except for the 2s form (3s exceptions are discussed in 46.4.3).
• Notice the moveable ν at the end of the 3s form.
• The 1s form εἰμί does not have the typical ω ending you are familiar with, since it patterns with a different class of verbs.

SyntaxSyntax: Verb – Copula εἰμί (word order of predicate)

The verb εἰμί ‘to be’ is called a copula. It connects a subject to another noun or adjective that identifies or describes the subject. Copulas are unique in that they do not themselves describe an eventuality the subject is engaged in, as most verbs do. To illustrate, Olivia danced means that Olivia engaged in the event of dancing at some time in the past, so the verb dance describes Olivia’s action. However, in the sentence Olivia was hungry, it is not describes. It only connects Olivia to the state hungry. This suggests that the property the subject has or the action he or she is engaging need not be the verb. The term predicate refers to the part of the sentence that describes who the subject is, a property he or she has, or what he or she is doing – regardless of whether that property is introduced by a verb, an adjective, or a noun. Copulas, then, are unique in that they are verbs that do not serve as the predicate of a sentence; they connect a subject to its predicate. In many languages, including Greek, copulas are also optional, since they seem to serve a trivial semantic function.

As for the word order of the subject and predicate in copula clauses, variation is normal, and the order at least partially depends on the nature of the predicate. If the predicate is definite, it is more likely to come after the verb than if the predicate is an adjective or a noun without the article (notice nouns being used as predicates occur in nominative case).

In Matt 3:17, the noun ‘my beloved son’ serves as the predicate and comes after the verb. In contrast, Jesus’ statement to Simon in Matt 16:17 is ‘You are blessed, Simon Bar-Jonah’ where the word blessed comes before the verb. In general, the subject will be a definite noun or pronoun.

SemanticsSemantics: Verb – Copula εἰμί (1 – Identifying predicate; 2 – Descriptive predicate)

Many different categories have been suggested for how to define the relationship between the subject and predicate in copular sentences, but we can at least distinguish between predicates that identify (with a definite as predicate) and those that describe (with an indefinite, bare singular, adjective, or PP as predicate). Identifying predicates are those like ‘This is my beloved son’ in Matt 3:17 where ‘my beloved son’ is referring to a known entity, namely God’s son, and he is being identified with ‘this person’. A descriptive predicate can be seen in the example in Matt 16:17 where Jesus says to Peter, ‘You are blessed.’ This describes Simon’s current state rather than identifying him as a certain known person.