Ancient Greek verbs often alter the stem in the present (progressive) system with a variety of markers. These markers are best understood as markers of the continuous and progressive aspects, rather than of the present tense.
For verbs with progressive markers, the present progressive system is not the best guide to the true stem, which is often more clearly manifested in the aorist or future tense forms. Note that none of these markers was productive in the Classical period, although many verbs had alternate forms with and without the markers even into the Hellenistic period and later. Many of these markers date back to Proto-Indo-European and have clear parallels in other Indo-European languages. However, some Ancient Greek grammars and textbooks list and discuss these markers to help students grappling with the confusing morphology of Ancient Greek verbs.
Ancient Greek has no consonant that makes the Y sound, similar to the Latin consonantal I in words like (judge), (door) (yoke), but it was part of Indo-European phonology, and it left detectable marks.[1] The *y progressive marker has several manifestations, of which this chart is an incomplete overview:
| Dentals (τ,δ,θ) | + y = | ζ | |
| Velar/Palatals (κ,γ,χ) | + y = | ττ- /σσ- | |
| Lambda (liquid)(λ) | + y = | λλ- | |
| Labials (β,π,φ,ψ) | + y = | πτ- | |
| ν | + y = | ιν (I is added to stem vowel) | |
| ρ | + y = | ιρ (I is added to stem vowel) |
| stem | marker | progressive | aorist | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| θαυματ- (wonder) | y | ἐθαύμασα | ||
| ἐλπίδ- (hope) | y | ἤλπισα | ||
| ἅλ- (jump ) | y | ἡλόμην | ||
| πραγ- (make) | y | / πράττω | ἔπρᾱξα | |
| ταραχ- (disturb) | y | / ταράττω | ἐτάραξα | |
| ταγ- (arrange) | y | / τάττω | ἔταξα | |
| τεν- (stretch) | y | τενῶ (future) | ||
| χαρ- (rejoice) | y | ἐχάρην | ||
| βλαβ- (hurt) | y | ἔβλαβον | ||
| καλυβ- (cover) | y | ἐκάλυψα | ||
| κλεπ- (steal) | y | ἔκλεψα | ||
| σκεπ- (look, spy) | y | ἐσκεψάμην | ||
| ἅφ- (touch) | y | ἧψα | ||
| θαφ- (bury) | y | ἔθαψα |
"The I Class", p. 201-227 sections 292-330 in Curtius, Georg. The Greek Verb: Its Structure and Development. Translated by Augustus S Wilkins and E. B England. London: J. Murray, 1880.
This marker appears to be an Indo-European root for beginning an action, changing into a condition, an inchoative marker.[2]
| stem | marker | progressive | aorist | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| πάθ- (suffer) | σκ | ἔπαθον | ||
| εὑρ- (find) | σκ | ηὗρον | ||
| δά- (teach) | σκ | (also reduplicated) | ἐδίδαξα | |
| θαν- (die) | σκ | ἔθανον | ||
| μνα- (remind) | σκ | ἔμνησα |
Compare Latin verbs with similar inchoative SC markers
Ancient Greek often adds an N in the progressive forms of verbs. So often, in fact, that the most common verbs have N added twice into the stem.
Note that a N in Ancient Greek often expands to αν (as in alpha privatives anarchy, anorexia, anesthetic)
| stem/root | marker | progressive | aorist | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ταμ- (cut) | ν | ἔταμον | ||
| αἰσθ- (perceive) | ν | ᾐσθόμην | ||
| δακ- (bite) | ν | ἔδακον | ||
| ἱκ- (arrive) | ν | , | ἱκόμην | |
| κυ- (kiss) | ν | ἔκυσα | ||
| αὐξ- (grow) | ν | ηὖξον |
| stem/root | marker | progressive | aorist | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| λαβ- (take) | 2ν | ἔλαβον | ||
| λαθ- (hide) | 2ν | ἔλαθον | ||
| μαθ- (learn) | 2ν | ἔμαθον | ||
| τυχ- (happen) | 2ν | ἔτυχον | ||
| πυθ- (hear) | 2ν | ἐπυθόμην | ||
| λαχ- (get by lot) | 2ν | ἔλαχον |
See "The Nasal Class", p.169-186 sections 246-269 in Curtius, Georg. The Greek Verb: Its Structure and Development. Translated by Augustus S Wilkins and E. B England. London: J. Murray, 1880.
"Verben auf ω, deren reiner Stamm im Praes. und Impf. durch Einfuegung eines ν ... verstaerkt ist" in Kühner, Raphael. Ausführliche Grammatik Der Griechischen Sprache. Edited by Friedrich Blass and Bernhard Gerth. 3. Aufl. ed. Hannover: Hahnsche Buchhandlung, 1890, vol 1 part 2, p. 173
Ancient Greek progressive forms will sometimes add an E into the vowel of the root. The first four verbs in the following list lengthen the vowel with an epsilon in progressive forms.
In an unrelated phenomenon, Ancient Greek will sometimes add an epsilon at the end of the root in the progressive forms. Many verbs have two progressive forms in Homer and other poets, one with and without the added epsilon, such as κυρέω and κύρω, ξύρω and ξυρέω, αἰδέομαι and αἴδομαι.
| stem/root | marker | progressive | aorist | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| λιπ- (leave) | ε | ἔλιπον | ||
| φυγ- (flee) | ε | ἔφυγον | ||
| πιθ- (persuade) | ε | ἔπιθον | ||
| στιχ- (step) | ε | ἔστιχον | ||
| δοκ- (seem, think) | ε | ἔδοξα | ||
| γαμ- (marry) | ε | ἔγημα |
"The E-Class and the Related Formations", p. 258-274, sections 376-398 in Curtius, Georg. The Greek Verb: Its Structure and Development. Translated by Augustus S Wilkins and E. B England. London: J. Murray, 1880.
„Verben, deren reinem Stamme im Praes. und Impf. ε zugefügt ist", p. 179 section 273 in Kühner, Raphael. Ausführliche Grammatik Der Griechischen Sprache. Edited by Friedrich Blass and Bernhard Gerth. 3. Aufl. ed. Hannover: Hahnsche Buchhandlung, 1890, vol 1 part 2, p. 179
Some Ancient Greek verbs have a tau added to the root in the progressive tenses. Most of these are best understood as a reflex of roots ending in a labial plus the yod/iota progressive marker.
| stem/root | marker | progressive | aorist | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| βλαβ- (hurt) | y | ἔβλαβον | ||
| καλυβ- (cover) | y | ἐκάλυψα | ||
| κλεπ- (steal) | y | ἔκλεψα | ||
| σκεπ- (look, spy) | y | ἐσκεψάμην | ||
| ἅφ- (touch) | y | ἧψα | ||
| θαφ- (bury) | y | ἔθαψα |
Reduplication is a hallmark of the perfect aspect system in both Latin and Ancient Greek, but some Ancient Greek verbs reduplicate the root in the progressive tenses. Reduplication can cause a lot of sound changes, including loss of aspiration, or loss of a vowel (γεν into γν in the case of γίγνομαι).
| stem/root | marker | progressive | aorist | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| δρα- (run) | δι | ἀπέδραν | ||
| δυ- (get into) | δι | ἔδυσα | ||
| γνω- (know) | γι | ἔγνων | ||
| γεν- (become) | γι | ἐγενόμην | ||
| βρω- (eat) | βι | ἔβρων | ||
| τειν- (stretch) | τι | ἐτεινάμην | ||
| δά- (teach) | δι | (also with σκ marker) | ἐδίδαξα | |
| μνα- (remind) | μι | ἔμνησα |