Page:The grammar of Dionysios Thrax.djvu/17

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Grammar of Dionysios Thrax.
13

the diphthong , as βοῶ, βοᾷς, βοᾷ (the ι being added in writing,[1] but not pronounced); and the Third by the diphthong οι, as χρυσῶ, χρυσοῖς, χρυσοῖ.

18. On Verbs in μι (τὰ εἰς μι).

Of Verbs ending in μι there are four conjugations, of which the First is characterized from the first of the Circumflexed Conjugations, as from τιθῶ comes τίθημι; the Second from the second, as from ἱστῶ, ἵστημι; the Third from the third, as from διδῶ, δίδωμι; and the Fourth from the sixth of the Barytone Conjugations, as from πηγνύω, πήγνυμι.

19. On the Participle (μετοχή).

A Participle is a word partaking of the nature both of nouns and verbs. It has all the accidents which belong to nouns as well as those which belong to verbs, except mood and person.

20. On the Article (ἄρθρον).

An Article is a declinable part of speech prefixed or subjoined to the various cases of nouns, taking, when prefixed, the form , and, when subjoined, the form ὅς.[2]. It has three accidents: Gender, Number, and Case. The Genders are three, as ὁ ποιητής, ἡ ποίησις, τὸ ποίημα. The Numbers are three: Singular, Dual, and Plural—Singular, as , , τό; Dual, as τώ, τά; Plural, as οἱ, αἱ, τά. The Cases are—, τοῦ, τῷ, τόν, ; , τῆς, τῇ, τήν, ; τό, τοῦ, τῷ, τό, .

21. On the Pronoun (ἀντωνυμία.)[3]

A Pronoun is a word assumed instead of a noun, and indicating definite persons. It has six accidents: Person, Gender, Number, Case, Form, and Species.


  1. It was not subscribed till the twelfth century of our era. Vid. Kühner, Ausführ. Gram. der Gr. Spr., vol. i. p. 59, note (2nd edit.) Chœroboskos (Bekker, Anec. Græca, vol. p. 1186) says: "It must be understood that grammarians, whose attention is directed to pronunciation, say that the ι is unpronounced when it is found with (follows) α long, η, or ω, * * * *; but musicians, who stickle for accuracy, say that it is pronounced, but is not distinctly heard on account of the length of the [preceding] long vowels."
  2. The ancient ἄρθρον included both the article and the relative pronoun. Cf. Lersch, Sprachphilosophie, Pt. II. pp. 132 sqq.; Steinthal, Sprachw. bei den Gr. und Röm., pp. 660 sqq.; Harris, Hermes, Bk. II., cap. i.
  3. Lersch, Pt. II. passim: Steinthal, pp. 663 sqq.; Harris, Hermes, Bk. I. cap. v.