You will be able to—
1.   identify syllables for pronunciation;
2.   identify the three Greek accents;
3.   recognize the basic rules of Greek accents;
4.   identify proclitics and enclitics;
5.   identify rough/smooth breathings, apostrophes, and diaeresis markings;
6.   identify four Greek punctuation marks;
7.   remember English grammar (parts of speech, noun declension, and verb parsing), and
8.   gain a mastery of ten more Greek vocabulary words.

1.   A consonant or pronounceable consonant cluster (i.e., any consonant combination that can begin or end a Greek word) goes with the vowel that follows it.

2.   Split two consonants if they are the same letter or if they create an unpronounceable combination (i.e., any consonant combination that cannot begin or end a Greek word).

3.   Split two vowels (except for diphthongs), allowing only one vowel or diphthong per syllable.

4.   Split compound words into their original parts before applying the rules of syllable division.

Check a Greek lexicon to determine whether or not a particular consonant cluster can begin or end a word. If you can find a word that begins with that cluster, it is safe to assume that it is a pronounceable cluster and should not be divided. The following examples illustrate the rules for word division. The four rules are briefly:  1) consonants go with following vowel, 2) split consonants (except clusters), 3) split vowels (except diphthongs), and 4) split words. 

(1) A consonant or pronounceable consonant cluster goes with what follows:

	Syllables		Meaning
ἀμήν	ἀ	μήν	truly, verily	μ goes with following vowel
δόξα	δό	ξα	glory, fame	ξ goes with following vowel
ἐγώ	ἐ	γώ	I	γ goes with following vowel
λέγω	λέ	γω	I say	γ goes with following vowel
λόγος	λό	γος	word, statement	γ goes with following vowel
κύριος	κύ	ρι  ος	Lord	ρ goes with following vowel
κόσμος	κό	σμος	world	σμ is a cluster vid. Σμύρνα
Πέτρος	Πέ	τρος	Peter	τρ is a cluster vid. τρεῖς
Χριστός	Χρι	στός	Christ	στ is a cluster vid. στολή

 
(2) Split two consonants: Consonant clusters are divided if they are the same letter or if they create an unpronounceable combination:

	Syllables			Meaning
ἄγγελος	ἄγ	γε	λος	angel, messenger (γ/γ)
ἀδελφός	ἀ	δελ	φός	brother (λ/φ)
ἄνθρωπος	ἄν	θρω	πος	man (θρ is a pronounceable cluster)
καρδία	καρ	δί	α	heart (ρ/δ)
ἔρχεται	ἔρ	χε	ται	he/she/it comes (ρ/χ)
μαρτυρέω	μαρ	τυ	ρέ   ω	I testify (ρ/τ)
βάλλω	βάλ	λω		I throw (λ/λ)

(3) Split two vowels (except for diphthongs), allowing only one vowel or diphthong per syllable:

	Syllables				Meaning
ἀκούω	ἀ	κού	ω		I hear, obey (ου is a diphthong)
θεός	θε	ός			God (ε/ο)
καρδία	καρ	δί	α		heart (ι/α)
κύριος	κύ	ρι	ος		lord, Lord (ι/ο)
υἱός	υἱ	ός			son (υι is a diphthong) (υι/ο)
Φαρισαῖος	φα	ρι	σαῖ	ος	Pharisee (αι is a diphthong) (αι/ο)

 
(4) Split compound words into their original parts before applying the rules of syllable division:

Example: When the preposition σύν (“with”) combines with the verb ἄγω (“I lead”), the syllable breaks are συν-ά-γω, not συ-νά-γω as rule 2 would require.

Antepenult	Penult	Ultima
	κό	σμος	world
προ	φή	της	prophet
ἀ	δελ	φός	brother

      1.   Acute ( ´ ) angles upward (left to right), originally indicating a rising pitch. Today we use the accents to specify syllable emphasis, not tone or pitch variation.
            λέγω (I say)

      2.   Grave ( ` ) angles downward, originally indicating a falling pitch.
            ἀδελφὸς (brother)

      3.   Circumflex ( ῀ ) angles upward then downward, originally indicating a rising then falling pitch.
            αὐτοῦ (his)

1.   Acute may occur on any of the last three syllables (antepenult, penult, ultima).

Acute on Any of the Last Three Syllables

Syllables			Meaning
ἄγ	γε	λος	angel, messenger (antepenult acute)
	δό	ξα	glory, fame (penult acute)
	ἐ	γώ	I (ultima acute)

2.   Circumflex may occur only on the last two syllables (but only if the vowel or diphthong is long).

Circumflex on Either of the Last Two Long Syllables

Syllables				Meaning
Φα	ρι	σαῖ	ος	Pharisee (penult circumflex)
		αὐ	τοῦ	his (ultima circumflex)

Diphthongs are considered long except for οι or αι in a final syllable.

3.   Grave may occur only on the last syllable.

Grave on the Last Syllable

Syllables			Meaning
ἀ	δελ	φὸς	brother (ultima grave)
	ἀ	μὴν	truly, verily (ultima grave)

Potential Placement Chart

	Antepenult	Penult	Ultima
Acute	´	´	´
Circumflex		῀	῀
Grave			`

man, human
ἄνθρωπος	antepenult acute
ἀνθρώπου	penult acute; long ultima causes change
ἀνθρώπῳ	penult acute; long ultima causes change
ἄνθρωπον	antepenult acute; short ultima, no change
ἄνθρωπε	antepenult acute; short ultima, no change

λύω	λύ ω	I loose (penult acute)
λύεις	λύ εις	you loose (penult acute)
λύει	λύ ει	he/she/it looses (penult acute)
λύομεν	λύ ο μεν	we loose (antepenult acute)
λύετε	λύ ε τε	you (pl.) loose (antepenult acute)
λύουσι	λύ ου σι	they loose (antepenult acute)

ἄνθρωπος	antepenult acute
ἀνθρώπου	penult acute; cannot accent antepenult because of ου
ἀνθρώπῳ	penult acute; cannot accent antepenult because of ῳ

 

ἀνθρώπου	penult acute; long ultima ου causes change
ἀνθρώπῳ	penult acute; long ultima ῳ causes change
λύω	I loose (penult acute)
λύεις	you loose (penult acute)
λύει	he/she/it looses (penult acute)

ἦλθεν	ἦλ θεν	he went (short ultima; long penult) (Jn. 1:7)
ἐκεῖνος	ἐ κεῖ νος	that (short ultima; long penult) (Jn. 1:8)
πρῶτος	πρῶ τος	first, earlier (short ultima; long penult) (Jn. 1:15)

πρὸς τὸν θεόν	two graves and an acute (Jn. 1:1)
καὶ θεὸς ἦν	two graves and a circumflex (Jn. 1:1)

1.   Proclitic comes before the word that carries the accent.

Proclitic (before the accented word)

ὁ Χριστός	the Christ (Jn. 1:20) (ὁ has no accent; the  ‛ is a breathing mark, not an accent—see below)
ὁ λόγος	the word (Jn. 1:1) (ὁ has no accent)
Ἐν ἀρχῇ	in the beginning (Jn. 1:1) (  Ἐν has no accent)
οὐ κατέλαβεν	it did not understand/overcome (Jn. 1:5) (οὐ has no accent)

 

2.     Enclitic comes after the word that carries the accent.

Enclitic (after the accented word)

πρῶτός μου	before me (Jn. 1:15) (μου has no accent) Note the accent added to the ultima of πρῶτός
Ἐγώ εἰμι	I am (Jn. 6:35) (εἰμι has no accent)

1.   Smooth breathing (  ᾽ ) does not affect pronunciation.

Smooth breathing (  ᾽ )

ἀδελφός	brother
ἄγγελος	angel, messenger
ἀμήν	truly, verily
ἀπόστολος	apostle
ἐγώ	I

2.   Rough breathing ( ‛ ) adds an “h” sound before the sound of the initial vowel.

Rough breathing ( ‛ )

ἕξ	six as in hexagon
υἱός	son, descendant (note breathing goes on the second vowel of the diphthong initial word)
ὑπέρ	in behalf of, above
ἵνα	that, in order that (note the breathing mark beside the acute accent)

Note: an initial rho (ρ) always takes a rough breathing (ῥῆμα word). It has no effect on the pronunciation, however. Initial υ always takes a rough breathing, too.

1. Period ( . )	λόγος.
2. Comma ( , )	λόγος,
3. Colon ( · )	λόγος·
4. Question Mark ( ; )	λόγος;

διά + αὐτοῦ becomes δι᾽ αὐτοῦ

(Note that the omitted alpha is replaced by an apostrophe; Jn. 1:3, 7; cf. Jn. 1:39)

καί [and] + ἐγώ [I] becomes κἀγώ (“and I,” Jn. 1:31, 33)

1.   Noun names a person, place, thing or idea (e.g., book).

2.   Adjective is a word used to qualify the meaning of the noun (e.g., good book).

3.   Definite Article is a word that specifies a particular noun (e.g., the good book). The indefinite article is “a” (e.g., a book).

4.   Pronoun is a word used instead of a noun (e.g., the book, it).

5.   Preposition is a relational word that connects an object (often a noun) to its antecedent (e.g., in the book).

6.   Verb is often an action or state-of-being word that makes a statement, asks a question, or gives a command (e.g., read the book).

7.   Adverb qualifies the meaning of the verb (e.g., read quickly).

8.   Particle is a small indeclinable word expressing some general aspect of meaning, or some connective or limiting relation (see chapter 27).

The sentence is divided into two parts:

1.   Subject, about which something is said.

Simple subject:	Terry went to the store.
	The big red truck moved slowly.
Complete subject:	The big red truck moved slowly.
Compound subject:	Terry and Dawn went to the store.
Understood subject:	Please close the door (“you” is understood).

2.   Predicate is that which is said about the subject.

Simple predicate:	Joy walked home.
Complete predicate:	Joy walked home.
Compound predicate:	Joy walked home and raked leaves.

Predicate nominative: It is I (rather than “It is me”). A predicate nominative completes the idea of the subject. It will most often occur with an “is” verb.

Perhaps the most common is the prepositional phrase:

The book by the bed is my textbook (the phrase acts like an adjective modifying “book”).
He held the book over his head (the phrase acts like an adverb modifying “held”).

Infinitive phrases often act as nouns, adverbs or adjectives:

With work you can expect to master Greek (as a noun).
He played to win (as an adverb).
He had plenty of water to drink (as an adjective modifying water).

Phrase: The great big strong man (an adjective phrase)
Clause: The man who owns the store (an adjectival/relative clause)

A main clause expresses a complete thought and can stand alone.

A subordinate clause is dependent on the main clause and cannot stand alone. Note the following subordinate clauses.

When the store opened, the people pushed through the front door.
He knew that power had gone out of him.

It is crucial for students of Greek to gain mastery over (conquer, vanquish) verbs.

Tense generally describes the time of action of the verb (present, future, past), although the time/tense connection has been hotly contested recently (vid. S. Porter, R. Decker, D. Mathewson, et al.).  Some see the Greek tense forms as being used to denote Aktionsart (how the action takes place [punctiliar, durative, iterative, inceptive...]) and others stress aspect (the writer’s view or portrayal of the action as opposed to when/how the action actually happened).  You should be aware of all three perspectives.

Tense=time:  Time is

• Kathy walks everyday (present tense).
• Kathy walked yesterday (past tense).
• Kathy will walk tomorrow (future tense).
• Horses gallop across the prairie (omnitemporal/gnomic; what they usually do).
• God loves you (timeless).

The Greek verb forms (present/aorist/perfect) are not directly indicative of the time an event actually happened.  Hence the present tense form can be used for events that are past, present, future, omnitemporal or timeless.

Aktionsart denotes the type of action, how it happens:  These types of features are better understood as a result of the discourse level or based on the lexical meanings of particular verbs and combinations rather than to try to force such “meanings” onto the morphological tense forms (present, aorist, perfect).

Continuous/durative action (the event as a process), He is cooking.

Iterative (happens repeatedly) He kept shooting the ball.

Inceptive (event is beginning) She is leaving now.

Omnitemporal/gnomic: Horses gallop across the prairie (omnitemporal/gnomic; what they usually do)

Timeless: God loves you.

Aspect:  the writer’s portrayal of an action (Porter/Decker/Mathewson) the time is indicated more from adverbials, prepositions or time words            than from the “tense” of the verb. 

Present/Imperfect:  immediacy, details, in progress, descriptive, foreground material (can be used to portray present, past, future, omnitemporal or timeless action; so it is not time locked)

Aorist: wholistic, complete, undifferentiated, background material

Perfect/Pluperfect:  state of affairs, frontground form 

Mathewson defines background, foreground and frontground as follows:

1. background:  this does not refer to material that is non-essential or unimportant, but to material that serves a supporting role.

2. foreground: this refers to material that is selected for more attention and often consists of the main characters and thematic elements in a discourse.

3. frontground: elements that are frontgrounded are singled out for   special attention, are presented in a more well-defined way, and stand out in an unexpected manner in the discourse (Mathewson, 27).

Voice shows who does or receives the action of the verb. Voice indicates how the subject is related to the action of the verb.

Active: Subject does the action.
Middle: Subject does action for itself or emphasizing the subjects participation in the action of the verb (most often the Greek is translated into an English active or for him/her/itself [benefit])
Passive: Subject receives the action.

Mathewson has described it visually as: 

• • Active:   Subject  ----> Verb  (object)
  • Middle:  Subject <--> Verb
  • Passive:  Subjects <--- Verb (agent)

Examples of verb voice:

Zachary shot the ball (active)—Zach does the action.

The ball was shot by Zachary (passive)—ball receives action.

Zachary himself passed the ball (middle)—Zach did it for himself.

Verbal mood shows how something is said.

Indicative:	Portrayal of reality
Subjunctive:	Desire, possible
Imperative:	Command, entreaty
Optative:	Wish, remote possibility

Examples of Verb Mood:

Indicative:	He learned Greek well.
Subjunctive:	In order that he might learn Greek well . . .
	If he studies, he may learn Greek well.
Imperative:	Learn Greek well!
Optative:	Oh that you might learn Greek.
	(Hopefully, this will not be a remote possibility.)

 

Nouns in Greek have gender, number, and case.

Gender: The Greek masculine, feminine, and neuter genders are often indicated by the endings attached to the noun. Abstract nouns and objects that are neither male nor female in English are often marked as either masculine or feminine in Greek (The boat, she left port).

Number: As an “s” often ends an English word that is plural, Greek likewise, has endings that mark whether a noun is singular or plural (e.g., book, books).

Case: In English we have three cases that are seen in how we use our pronouns. Case will be an important feature in Greek and often difficult to grasp initially.

1.   Subjective or nominative case:  She = subject (She did it.)

2.   Objective or accusative case:      Her = object (The car hit her.)

3.   Possessive or genitive case:       Hers = possessive (The car was hers.)

Greek adds two more:

4.   Dative case: The case marking the indirect object. (I told the story to the apostles.)

5.   Vocative case: The case of direct address. (O Lord, save me.)

Endings will be added to the Greek nouns to indicate gender, number and case.

ἀδελφός	brother (343)
ἀκούω	I hear, obey (428)
δόξα	glory, fame (166)
ἔχω	I have, hold (708)
κόσμος	world (186)
κύριος	lord, Lord, sir (717)
λόγος	word (330)
Πέτρος	Peter (156)
υἱός	son (377)
Φαρισαῖος	Pharisee (98)