Conditional Sentences
A conditional sentence is a main clause (called the apodosis) accompanied by an “if clause” (called the protasis). An “if clause” is simply a clause introduced by the conjunction “if” (εἰ in Greek):
| εἰ λέγεις, ἀκούω |
| “If you are speaking (protasis, “if clause”), I am listening (apodosis, main clause).” |
Textbooks regularly present nine types of conditional sentences from most securely past (“If you had spoken, I listened”) to most securely future (“If you will speak, I will listen”). This is unhelpful for three reasons:
- There is a relatively simple pattern to most conditions if you divide them into three categories based on degrees of reality: simple or real, general, and less real or unreal. Then, within each category there is a past, present, and future version of that type of condition.
- Many conditions are mixed, meaning that they don’t fit nicely into any of the categories, however we organize them.
- In many instances identifying the type of condition at hand is unnecessary for translating the words correctly. That is, with a few exceptions if you simply translate each clause independently, your translation will be correct.
Simple Conditions
Simple conditions are those that state straightforward facts (for instance, “if you are speaking, I am listening”). As such, they use the indicative and with one exception can be translated as is, without regard for the type of condition it is. The present simple condition uses present time indicative verbs, the past simple condition uses past time indicative verbs, and the future simple condition (also called the “future most vivid”) uses future time indicative verbs:
| εἰ τὴν αἶγα θύσεις, τὴν πόλιν καταλύσω. If you sacrifice the goat, I will destroy the city.1 | future |
| εἰ τὴν αἶγα θύουσι, τὴν πόλιν καταλύουσι. If they are sacrificing the goat, they are destroying the city.2 | present |
| εἰ τὴν αἶγα ἔθυσαν, τὴν πόλιν κατέλυσαν. If they sacrificed the goat, they destroyed the city.2 | past |
1 We translate the future time indicative in the future most real condition as a present simply because that’s how English does it. We don’t say, for instance, “if you will …” The future simple / most vivid condition is usually used for threats.
2 Imagine a situation in which we are unsure whether they succeeded at destroying the city. However, we know that they will sacrifice a goat if they do. This is a context in which these two sentences should make sense.
General Conditions
A general condition expresses a hypothetical situation in which, if the protasis (“if clause”) comes true, so will the apodosis (main clause). The general nature of the condition is found in the protasis, where εἰ is accompanied by the particle ἄν (ἐάν, “if ever,” which can contract to ἤν or ἄν), and the verb is subjunctive of any aspect. It is in the past general condition that the only difficulty with conditions arises:
| ἐὰν τὴν αἶγα θύσῃς, τὴν πόλιν καταλύσω. If ever you sacrifice the goat, I will destroy the city. | future1 |
| ἐὰν τὴν αἶγα θύσῃς, τὴν πόλιν καταλύουσι.2 If ever you sacrifice the goat, they are destroying the city. | present |
| εἰ τὴν αἶγα θύσαις, τὴν πόλιν κατέλυσαν. If ever you sacrificed the goat, they destroyed the city.3 | past |
1 The future general condition is called the “future more vivid.”
2 A context that helps make sense of this and the following sentence is if you agree to sacrifice a goat if the city is being destroyed. Thus one may determine the status of the city by whether you are or are not sacrificing the goat.
3 Really the only difficulty with conditions is found here, in the past general condition. To make the general condition past, the subjunctive has to be given past time. Of course, there is no past time subjunctive, so we use the optative. However, ἄν with the optative suggests a different sort of construction: the future potential (on which see below). Thus, Greek speakers dropped ἄν to avoid the confusion. As a result, we have an optative in historical sequence representing an original subjunctive, and we must resupply ἄν in our translation. Context makes it clear that this is the case because otherwise the sentence would read illogically: “If you would (in the future) sacrifice the goat, they (in fact) destroyed the city.”
Less Real or Unreal Conditions
Less real and unreal conditions may appear to be the most complex probably because different moods and aspects are at play and we use a variety of helping verbs or modals in our English translations (for instance, “if you had sacrificed the goat, they would destroy the city”). However, if you pay careful attention to the aspect and mood of verbs, and if you know how precisely to translate each, you should find these conditions as straightforward as the previous. It is here where translating each clause independently should make life loads easier, so let’s start there.
Less real and unreal conditions are constructed by combining a potential clause, like “they would destroy the city,” with a desiderative clause, “if only you were to sacrifice the goat.” The result is: “they would destroy the city if you were to sacrifice the goat.”
Potential Statements
Potential statements use ἄν, which is translated as “would” (or “should” or “could,” depending on context, but let’s stick with “would”), to state a possibility. To express a present potential, we use a past time progressive (imperfect) indicative verb with ἄν. To express a past potential, we use any past time indicative verb with ἄν. And to express a future potential, we use an optative verb of any aspect with ἄν. Pay attention to the particular way the verb is translated with ἄν:
| τὴν πόλιν καταλύσειαν ἄν they would destroy (in the future) the city | future |
| τὴν πόλιν κατέλυον ἄν they would be destroying (now) the city | present |
| τὴν πόλιν κατέλυσαν ἄν they would have destroyed the city | past |
Desiderative Statements
Desiderative statements express a wish or desire. In Greek, when used independently (that is, as the main verb of a sentence) they are introduced by εἰ, εἰ γάρ, εἴθε, or nothing. Exactly like a potential statement, to express a present desiderative, we use a past time progressive (imperfect) indicative verb. To express a past desiderative, we use any past time indicative verb. And to express a future desiderative, we use an optative verb of any aspect:
| εἰ τὴν αἶγα θύσαις if only you were to sacrifice the goat | future |
| εἰ τὴν αἶγα ἔθυες if only you were sacrificing the goat | present |
| εἰ τὴν αἶγα ἔθυσας if only you sacrificed the goat | past |
To form standard less real or unreal conditions, simply combine the above:
| εἰ τὴν αἶγα θύσαις, τὴν πόλιν καταλύσειαν ἄν. If you were to sacrifice the goat, they would destroy the city. | future |
| εἰ τὴν αἶγα ἔθυες, τὴν πόλιν κατέλυον ἄν. If you were sacrificing the goat, they would be destroying the city. | present |
| εἰ τὴν αἶγα ἔθυσε, τὴν πόλιν κατέλυσαν ἄν. If you sacrificed the goat, they would have destroyed the city. | past |
See here for a simple chart outlining the above.
Mixed Conditions
Many Greek conditions are mixed. This means that they blend the simple categories presented above. If, however, you translate each clause independently, you should be just fine:
| εἰ τὴν αἶγα ἔθυες, τὴν πόλιν καταλύσειαν ἄν. If you were sacrificing the goat, they would destroy the city. |
| εἰ τὴν αἶγα ἔθυσε, τὴν πόλιν κατέλυον ἄν. If you sacrificed the goat, they would be destroying the city. |
Conditions in Indirect Statement
<insert with ὡς / ὅτι>
<insert with participles>
…
Simple Conditions
Let’s return to the original simple past time condition we saw above:
| εἰ τὴν αἶγα ἔθυσαν, τὴν πόλιν κατέλυσαν. If they sacrificed the goat, they destroyed the city. |
To render this into an indirect statement with an infinitive construction, simply shift the indicative of the main clause (apodosis) into an infinitive, preserving the original aspect but losing the time marker. No changes are made to our translation of the original conditional sentence:
| νομίζετε, εἰ τὴν αἶγα ἔθυσαν, τὴν πόλιν καταλῦσαι. You think that if they sacrificed the goat, they destroyed the city. |
When we subordinate the whole sentence into secondary sequence, nothing changes, except that the verb of the subordinate “if clause” (the protasis) becomes optative with no change in meaning:
| ἐνομίσατε, εἰ τὴν αἶγα θύσειαν, τὴν πόλιν καταλῦσαι. You thought that if they sacrificed the goat, they destroyed the city. |
General Conditions
Let’s return to the future general condition we saw above:
| ἐὰν τὴν αἶγα θύσῃς, τὴν πόλιν καταλύσω. If ever you sacrifice the goat, I will destroy the city. |
When we render that condition into an indirect statement with the infinitive, the verb in the main clause of the condition (the apodosis) becomes an infinitive. Nothing happens to the English translation:
| νομίζουσι, ἐὰν τὴν αἶγα θύσῃς, τὴν πόλιν καταλύσειν. They think that if ever you sacrifice the goat, I will destroy the city. |
When we render the phrase into historical sequence, all that happens grammatically is the subjunctive verb in the subordinate clause becomes optative (and ἄν is lost to avoid confusion with the potential use of ἄν). In our translation, “I will destroy” becomes “I would destroy” because in English that is how we refer to the future in historical sequence:
| ἐνόμισαν, εἰ τὴν αἶγα θύσαις, τὴν πόλιν καταλύσειν. They thought that if ever you sacrifice the goat, I would destroy the city. |
Less Real or Unreal Conditions
reading morphologically 