Last updated

Preposition · Grammar concept

Preposition: Preposition ἐπί ‘on, upon’

Preposition ἐπί ‘on, upon’ is a preposition topic in Koine (biblical) Greek. This page gathers its forms, paradigms, and function, drawn from the lessons of Reading Greek Deeply.

Preposition1 lesson5 paradigms

MorphologyPreposition – ἐπί

  • ἐπί is an elision preposition (see 4.4.3.1)
Morphology: Preposition – ἐπί
ἐπί + consonantἐπὶτράπεζαν
ἐπί + smooth vowelἐπ’οἶκον
ἐπί + rough vowelἐφ’ἵππον

fromLesson 10.3

SyntaxPreposition – ἐπί + accusative, dative, genitive

Many prepositions only take nouns in a single case, but there are some, like ἐπί, that allow for multiple cases. The meaning of the preposition will normally vary depending on the case of the noun that follows it. The preposition ἐπί can take nouns in the genitive, dative, and accusative.

fromLesson 10.3

SemanticsPreposition – ἐπί + accusative, dative, genitive

As we have already said, the preposition ἐπί usually means ‘on’ something, and this basic idea holds regardless of the following noun’s case. There are, however, different nuances to the meaning of the preposition depending on the case.

fromLesson 10.3

Become a fluent reader of the biblical languages

This Greek wiki is like a bike manual - it explains the mechanics of Greek. The Biblingo app trains you to ride the bike. Spend 15 minutes a day in the app, and you will build reading fluency in Koine Greek. Start a free 10-day trial in minutes and start building reading fluency today.

Start Free Trial