Greek determiner
τις
τις, τινός
τις is a Greek determiner. In the 3 analysed lines it was read in, it means “a certain” (once), “anything” (once) and “certain” (once).
In the texts
Each line as the reader shows it: every word in its case colour with its meaning underneath, and arcs from τις to the words it goes with.
κίνησις γὰρ αὕτη μεγίστη δὴ τοῖς Ἕλλησιν ἐγένετο καὶ μέρει τινὶ τῶν βαρβάρων, ὡς δὲ εἰπεῖν καὶ ἐπὶ πλεῖστον ἀνθρώπων.
For this was indeed the greatest movement for the Greeks and a certain part of the barbarians, and, one might say, over most of mankind.
τινὶ: points out μέρει.
Ἀλώπηξ λιμώττουσα ὡς ἐθεάσατο ἐπί τινος ἀναδενδράδος βότρυας κρεμαμένους, ἠβουλήθη αὐτῶν περιγενέσθαι, καὶ οὐκ ἡδύνατο·
A fox, being hungry, when she saw grapes hanging on a certain vine, wished to get possession of them, but she could not.
τινος: points out ἀναδενδράδος.
…ὥστε μήτε λυπεῖν μήτε λίαν ἐπ’ ἐκείνῃ εἶναι ὅ τι ἂν ἐθέλῃ ποιεῖν, ἐφύλαττόν τε ὡς οἷόν τε ἦν…
For I, O Athenians, since it seemed good to me to marry and I brought a wife into the house, for all the other time I behaved so as neither to grieve nor to be overly dependent on her to do whatever she might wish, and I kept watch as much as was possible, and I paid attention as was fitting.
τι: object of ἐθέλῃ.
Forms
Every form of the word in these texts, with what it is.
| Form | Grammar | Read |
|---|---|---|
| τι | Accusative · Singular · Neuter | 1 |
| τινὶ | Dative · Singular · Neuter | 1 |
| τινος | Genitive · Singular · Feminine | 1 |
Grammar
- About the accusativeThe Greek accusative marks the direct object, motion towards after εἰς and πρός, and the subject of an infinitive. Real lines from Homer, Aesop and John.
- About the dativeThe Greek dative marks to whom or for whom, and also by what means and where. Its uses and endings, with real lines from Aesop, John and Homer.
- About the genitiveThe Greek genitive covers “of” and “from”: possession, the whole a part belongs to, prepositions and the genitive absolute. Real lines from John and Aesop.
- About agreementHow Greek articles, adjectives and participles agree with their nouns in case, number and gender, and how the article frames a phrase, shown in real lines.
- About word orderWhy a Greek adjective can stand far from its noun, as in the Odyssey’s first line: the endings carry the grammar, so order is free for emphasis.