Module 16

Second Declension Nouns

Nouns

Nouns in Greek are defined just like nouns are in English; but the way they create meaning is different. As in English, Greek nouns (ὀνόματα) refer to people, places, things, and ideas. Greek nouns have endings. English nouns can change form when they show possession, as in Jada’s book, where the ’s is added as a suffix and indicates that the book belongs to Jada. English nouns also change form when expressing the plural: two suns, three oxen, four mice. The endings on Greek nouns, as we have seen previously, create the same meanings that English does through form change, word order, and the use of prepositional phrases.

Second Declension Nouns

The nominative singular of nouns of the second declension ends in -ος or –ον. Most second declension nouns whose nominative ends in -ος are masculine in gender and a few are feminine. Second declension nouns whose nominative ending is –ον are neuter in gender. Memorize these endings, know how to obtain the noun’s stem, and know how to decline the nouns.

Declining Second Declension Nouns in -ος or -ον

To decline second declension noun endings in -ος or –ον, first get the stem by removing the genitive singular ending. For sets 7 and 8, the genitive singular ending is -ου. For sets 9 and 10, the genitive singular ending is -ος. For sets 1 and 2, the genitive singular is -ης or -ᾱς. What remains is the stem. To the stem add the following endings:

ἥλιος, ἡλίου, ἀδελφός, ἀδελφοῦ, ἔργον, ἔργου

To decline the noun ἥλιος, ἡλίου ὁ sun, take the genitive singular ἡλίου, remove the genitive singular ending -ου to get the stem: ἡλί-, and add the masculine/feminine endings from above.

To decline ἀδελφός, ἀδελφοῦ ὁ brother, take the genitive singular ἀδελφοῦ, remove the genitive singular ending -ου to get the stem: ἀδελφ-, and add the masculine/feminine endings from above.

To decline ἔργον, ἔργου τό work, take the genitive singular ἔργου, remove the genitive singular ending -ου to get the stem: ἔργ-, and add the neuter endings from above.

ἥλιος:

1. Note that the vocative singular is different from the nominative singular. As in all nouns, the vocative plural is the same as the nominative plural.
2. The accent does not shift to the ultima in the genitive plural as it does in the first declension.
3. Final -αι and -οι count as short for purposes of accentuation except in the optative, a mood that you’ll learn in Part II of the 21st-Century series. Thus the accent remains on the antepenult in ἥλιοι.

ἀδελφός:

1. When first and second declension nouns have an acute accent on the ultima in the nominative singular, the accent changes to a circumflex in the genitive and dative, singular and plural.
2. ἄδελφε is an exception for the rules of accent.

ἔργον:

1. In all neuter nouns, the accusative and vocative are the same as the nominative, both in the singular and in the plural.
2. The nominative and vocative plural ending of all neuter nouns is -α.

Practice Translating. Translate the sentences below adapted from the prologue of Euripides’ Bakkhai (Βάκχαι). Remember the meanings and functions of the cases presented in Module 7. Nominative case endings are bolded; genitive endings are italicized; dative endings are highlighted; and accusative endings are underlined. Note that the third declension increases the number of possible endings for the nominative singular. Check your understanding with the translations in the Answer Key. Now go back and read each sentence two or three times, noticing with each rereading how much better your understanding of the sentence becomes. Make this a habit and you will improve quickly.

ἥκω Διὸς παῖς τὴν Θηβαίων χθόνα, Διόνυσος. ἐμὲ μὲν τίκτει ποθ’ ἡ Κάδμου κόρη, Σεμέλη· ἐμὲ δὲ ἀστραπηφόρον λοχεύει πῦρ. μορφὴν δʼ ἀμείβω ἐκ θεοῦ βροτείαν· ὁράω δὲ μητρὸς μνῆμα καὶ δόμων ἐρείπια. τὰ δὲ ἔτι τύφεται, Δίου πυρὸς φλόξ, ἀθάνατος Ἥρας μητέρα εἰς ἐμὴν ὕβρις. αἰνέω δὲ Κάδμον. ὁ δὲ γὰρ ἄβατον τὸ πέδον τίθησι, θυγατρὸς σηκόν. λείπω δὲ ἐγὼ Λυδῶν γύας Φρυγῶν τε, Περσῶν τε πλάκας Βάκτριά τε τείχη τήν τε χθόνα Μήδων. καὶ δὲ ἐπέρχομαι Ἀραβίαν τ’ Ἀσίαν τε. ἡ δὲ Ἀσία παρ’ ἅλα κεῖται καὶ ἔχει μιγάδας Ἕλλησι βαρβάροις θʼ ὁμοῦ πόλεις. ἐκεῖ μὲν ἤδη χορεύω καὶ καθίστημι τὰς τελετάς. ἐγὼ δὲ νῦν ἔρχομαι εἰς Ἑλλήνων πόλιν ὅτι εἰμὶ ἐμφανὴς δαίμων βροτοῖς. πρώτας δὲ θήβας τῆς γῆς Ἑλληνίδος ἀνολολύζω, καὶ νεβρίδα ἐξάπτω χροὸς θύρσον τε δίδωμι ἐς χεῖρα, κίσσινον βέλος.

Adverbs and Verbs

Adjectives, Nouns, Pronouns

1. The asterisk indicates the top 250 most frequently occurring vocabulary, which you are to memorize.

Practice Parsing Greek Sentences. Parse each word of the sentence found below. For nouns and pronouns, give case and function. For verbs, give person, number, tense, mood, and voice. For adverbs and conjunctions, identify them. For prepositional phrases, give the preposition and the preposition’s object. For adjectives, tell what noun they agree with in gender, number, and case.

καὶ νεβρίδα ἐξάπτω χροὸς θύρσον τε δίδωμι ἐς χεῖρα, κίσσινον βέλος.

Check your answers with those in the Answer Key.

Classics and Our Modern World: Tom Palaima

In his article “Songs of the ‘Hard Traveler’ from Odysseus to the Never-Ending Tourist,” Classicist and professor Tom Palaima studies themes connected with traveling and existing away from home from the Iliad and Odyssey of Homer through the modern folk song tradition as performed and transformed by Bob Dylan, including songs by the Stanley Brothers, Charley Patton, Skip James, Muddy Waters, Stephen F. Foster, Martin Carthy and Dionysis Savvopoulos. Ancient Greek serves as the first recorded examples of songs exploring these experiences.

To read the article, follow this link:

Songs of the Hard Traveler.1

Module 16 Top 250 Vocabulary to be Memorized. Like learning the alphabet and endings, memorizing vocabulary is essential to acquiring language. The better you memorize the top 250 most frequently occurring words, the greater mastery of the language you will have.

Nouns

ἄνθρωπος, ἀνθρώπου ἡ ὁ human, person

ἔργον, ἔργου τό deed, task, work; building; ἔργον in truth, in deed

θεός, θεοῦ ἡ ὁ god, goddess, deity

λόγος, λόγου ὁ word, speech, story; reason, account

νόμος, νόμου ὁ law, custom

πόλεμος, πολέμου ὁ war

χρόνος, χρόνου ὁ time

Verb

νομίζω believe, think, have the custom of, hold as custom