IMPERFECT
What was going on?
What used to be?
What did Dikaiopolis and Xanthias do every day (sort of) in those days long gone by?
πρωί, ἐπεὶ πρῶτον ἀνέτελλε ὁ ἡλιος, ὁ Δικαιόπολις ἐξέβαινε ἐκ τῆς οἰκίας.
τὸν δοῦλον τὸν αἰεὶ καθεύδοντα ἐκ τοῦ οἴκου ἐξεκάλει.
ἔπειτα δὲ τοὺς βοῦς ἦγον πρὸς τὸν ἀγρόν.
εἰσήλαυνον αὐτοὺς εἰς τὸν ἀγρὸν καὶ προσῆπτον τὸ ἄροτρον.
πολὺν τινα χρόνον ἐπόνουν καὶ μάλα ἔκαμνον.
ὁ ἥλιος ἔφλεγε καὶ κατέτριβε αὐτοὺς.
πολλάκις καὶ λίθοι ἐνεπόδιζον τὸ ἄροτρον.
ἔδει τοὺς λίθους ἐκφέρειν ἐκ τοῦ ἀγροῦ.
μεγάλοι ἦσαν οἱ λίθοι καὶ πολὺν πόνον παρεῖχον.
μόλις οὖν ἐπῇρον αὐτοὺς καὶ ἐξέφερον ἐκ τοῦ ἀγροῦ.
συνέβαλλον γὰρ αὐτοὺς ἐν ἕρματί τινι .
πολλάκις οὖν ἐστέναζον καὶ ἔλεγον ὅτι χαλεπὸς ὁ βίος καὶ ἀπέραντος/ἀτέλεστος ὁ πόνος.
ἐπεὶ τέλος δὲ κατέδυνε ὁ ἥλιος χαίροντες οἴκαδε ἐβάδιζον .
The augment (syllabic or temporal) is inserted between prefix and main verb: |
εἰσβαίνομεν |
εἰσεβαίνομεν |
we were going in |
προσβαίνετε |
προσεβαίνετε |
you were walking up to |
1. So what happened here? |
ὁ ἥλιος ἀνατέλλει |
ὁ ἥλιος ἀνέτελλε |
the sun was rising |
ὁ ἥλιος καταδύνει |
ὁ ἥλιος κατέδυνε |
the sun was setting |
δεῖπνον παρασκευάζω |
δεῖπνον παρεσκεύαζον |
I was preparing a meal |
ἐπὶ ἵππους ἐπιβαίνει |
ἐπὶ ἵππους ἐπέβαινεν |
he used to mount horses |
The final vowel of the prefix is dropped before the past tense augment.
Exceptions: περί round, around
Exceptions: πρό in front, forward (though not always) |
περιμένομεν
προχωροῦμεν
|
περιεμένομεν
προεχωροῦμεν or
προὐχωροῦμεν |
we were waiting (around)
we were advancing |
2. And what happened here? |
ἐμβαίνω |
ἐνέβαινον |
I was embarking |
ἐκβαίνω |
ἐξέβαινον |
I was disembarking |
συλλέγουσιν |
συνέλεγον |
they used to collect |
συγκαλῶ |
συνεκάλουν αὐτούς. |
I was calling them together |
For reasons of pronunciation some prepositions change when fused with verbs:
- ἐν becomes ἐμ in front of β, π, φ
ἐν becomes ἐγ in front of γ, κ, χ
Now it can revert back to ἐν because the verb doesn't start with a consonant but with the past augment vowel ε:
ἐμ-βαίνω, I embark becomes ἐν-έβαινον
ἐμ-πίπτω, I fall into; fall upon, attack becomes ἐν-έπιπτον
ἐμ-φέρω, I bring in becomes ἐν-έφερον
ἐγ-γράφω, I engrave becomes ἐν-έγραφον
ἐγ-κλίνω, I bend, incline towards (cf. enclitics) becomes ἐν-έκλινον
ἐγ-χειρέω, I take in hand, undertake becomes ἐν-εχείρουν
- συν becomes συλ in front of λ
συν becomes συμ in front of μ
συν becomes συ μin front of γ , κ , χ
Now, because the past tense of all verbs starts with a vowel συν is back |
|
I've already said, on the page dealing with the verb to be, that the accent cannot precede the past tense augment because we want to clearly stress the fact that the action took place in the past.
ἔπαιρε σεαυτόν get up!
ἐπῇρε ἑαυτόν he got up
πάρεχε μοι τὸ ἄροτρον give me the plough!
παρεῖχε μοι τὸ ἄροτρον he was giving me the plough
Exercise 7: Say it used to happen or was going on in the past
Click here for answers
- λίθους συλλέγουσι καὶ ἐκ τοῦ ἀγροῦ ἐκφέρουσιν.
- ὁ μὲν ἥλιος ἀνατέλλει , οἱ δὲ ὄρνιθες ᾄδουσιν.
3rd use of the imperfect: began to
3rd use of the imperfect: started to Change to: The sun was rising and the birds started to sing
- ἐπεὶ δὲ ὁ ἥλιος καταδύνει οἱ ἄνθρωποι ᾄδοντες οἴκαδε βαδίζουσι.
- νεανίας ὢν ῥαδίως ὄρη ἀναβαίνω καὶ καταβαίνω καὶ ποταμοὺς διαβαίνω.
- ἐκβαίνω ἐκ τῆς οἰκίας
τὴν ἀδελφὴν ἐκκαλῶ .
ἀποβαίνομεν ἀπὸ τῆς οἰκίας .
προσβαίνομεν τῷ παραδείσῳ.
εἰσβαίνομεν εἰς τὸν παράδεισον.
ὀλίγον τινὰ χρόνον περιπατοῦμεν [περιπατέω, I walk about, go for a walk] ἐκεῖ.
διαβαίνομεν τὸν παράδεισον.
προσχωροῦμεν τῇ πόλει.
εἰσβαίνομεν εἰς τὴν ἀγοράν.
σῖτον ἀγοράζομεν.
τέλος δὲ οἴκαδε ἐπανερχόμεθα.
Check-up
Present or Imperfect?
a. Translate.
b. Change Present to Imperfect and vice-versa
προσηρχόμεθα
προσχωροῦμεν
ἐπιπίπτομεν
ἐνεπίπτετε
συλλαμβάνομεν
προκαλεῖτε
ἀναβαίνομεν
συμμάχεστε
συστενάζομεν (all of us together when the going gets rough)
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