εἰμί to be

 

Like in most languages, the verb to be is irregular in practically all its forms, tenses and moods.
Which would of course make it very difficult to learn, if it weren't used so frequently. And since we're constantly stumbling over it, we should end up knowing it very well indeed.

The complications are twofold:

  1. Its forms are irregular, to be practiced extensively
  2. It is an enclitic, i.e. mostly unstressed, except for 2nd person singular.
    These special rules apply for he, she, it is.

Compare:

Enclitic εἰμί and its regularly stressed compounds
πρειμι to be present,
πειμι, to be absent, away (from),
σνειμι to be together with.
 
 Present 
is Who? is present   is away  
  εἰμί I πρ ειμι    π ειμι
  εἶ you (sg) πρ ει π ει
  ἐστί(ν)   he, she, it    πρ εστι(ν) π εστι
  ἐσμέν we πρ εσμεν π εσμεν
  ἐστέ you (pl) πρ εστε π εστε
  εἰσίν they πρ εισι(ν) π εισι(ν)
 
 
ὁ Δικαιόπολις ὁ τοῦ Ξανθίου δεσπότης ἐστίν. ἐν ᾦ δὲ πάρεστιν ὁ δεσπότης πονεῖ ὁ Ξανθίας. νῦν δὲ (but right now) ἄπεστιν ὁ Δικαιόπολις καὶ οὐ πονεῖ ὁ δοῦλος, ἥσυχος καθεύδει ὑπὸ τῷ δένδρῶ.
In class, roll-call.
Παῦλος. - πάρειμι
Μέλιττα; - πάρειμι
Φιδίας; - ἀπεστιν.
τί οὐ πάρεστι; - μάλα κάμνει
οἱ δεσπόται σύνεισι τοῖς δοῦλοις ἐν τοῖς ἀγροῖς.
(if not, no work gets done)
 

 

 
he, she, it is
1. movable   ν  
  ἐστι  
  normal form   μακρός ἐστι καὶ χαλεπός
  ἐστιν   
  if followed by a vowel   ἔστιν αὐτουργός
  before a punctuation mark (full stop, comma...)     αὐτουργός ἐστιν.    
2. enclitic    ἐστιν
  Enclitics lean on preceding word for strength and stress.
  In (almost) all cases they are unstressed and have no written accent.
  Except as: 1st word   στιν αὐτουργός
  and after negative   οὐκ  
    as well as a few others.
  οὐκ στιν  
3rd person singular ἔστιν stressed on the first syllable while all the other forms are then accented on the last syllable
But after οὐκ opinions seem divided:
some grammarians stay with accent on last syllable whereas according to others it is the proclitic οὐκ that has the accent.
  Your choice (or your tutor's):     
  οὐκ εἰμ
  οὐκ ἐσμν
  οὐκ ἐστ
  οὐκ εἰσν
  or    οκ εἰμι
  οκ ἐσμεν
  οκ ἐστε
  οκ εἰσιν
 
 
 
There is a tree in the field. στι δένδρον ἐν τῷ ἀγρῷ
I am in the field: εἰμἐν τῷ ἀγρῷ. Or, emphatic: ἐγώ μν εἰμι ἐν τῷ ἀγρῷ.
The oxen are in the field but Xanthias is not there: οἱ μὲν βόες εἰσν ἐν τῷ ἀγρῷ, ὁ δὲ Ξανθίας οὐ πρεστι. οὐκ στιν ἐν τῷ ἀγρῷ, ἀλλὰ ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ. καθεύδει γὰρ ἥσυχος.
There is a house in the field. There are also trees (!). But there are no stones. στιν οἶκος ἐν τῷ ἀγρῷ, ἔστι καὶ δένδρα. Ἀλλὰ οὐκ εἰσ λίθοι.
We're humans, we're not oxen (Even if some of us are as strong and/or as dumb as them). ἄνθρωπο ἐσμεν, οὐκ ἐσμν βόες.
Are you (pl.) uneasy/not secure? Are you not strong? ἆρ' οὐχ ἥσυχο ἐστε; οὐκ ἐστ ἰσχυροί;
 
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