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13. The Simple Athematic Aorist. This term includes the "2nd aorists" such as ἔ-βη-ν, ἔ-στη-ν, etc., and also those so-called 1st aorists in which the -ᾰ of the 1st singular active is added directly to the verb stem, as in ἔ-χευ-α.

Variation of quantity is rare in the active, but the stem is usually shortened in the middle. The chief forms are

ἔ-βη-ν
I went

βᾰ́-την (3rd dual)[fn]But also ἐ-βήτην.[/fn]
ὑπέρ-βᾰ-σαν (3rd plural)
μετά-βηθι (imperative)
βή-μεναι (infinitive)

ἔ-στη-ν
I stood

στή-την (dual)
ἔ-στη-μεν, ἔ-στη-τε, ἔ-στη-σαν (plural)
στῆ-θι, στῆ-τε (imperative)
στή-μεναι (infinitive)

ἔ-φθη
came before

φθᾰ́-μενος (participle)

ἐξ-έ-πτη
flew out (Hes. Op. 98)

κατα-πτή-την (3rd dual)
cowered

ἔ-πτα-το (middle)
flew

ἔ-σβη
was quenched

ἔ-τλη-ν
I endured

ἔ-τλη-μεν, ἔ-τλη-τε (plural)
τλή-τω, τλῆ-τε (imperative)

ἔ-γνω-ν
I knew

γνώ-την (3rd dual)
ἔ-γνω-σαν (3rd plural)

ἐπ-έ-πλω-ς
did sail over

ἐπι-πλώς (participle)

βιώ-τω
let him live

βιῶ-ναι (infinitive)

ἁλῶ-ναι
to be taken

ἁλούς (participle)

ἔ-φθι-το
perished

κτί-μενος
built

ἔ-δῡ
sank under

ἐ-δῡ́-την (3rd dual)
ἔ-δῡ-τε (2nd plural)
δῦ-θι (imperative)
δῡ́-μεναι (infinitive)

ἔ-φῡ
grew

ἔ-φῡ-σαν (3rd plural; H. Ven. 265)

λύ-το[fn]Once λῦ-το, Il. 24.1.[/fn]
was loosed

κλῦ-θι
hear

κλῦ-τε (plural)[fn]Participle κλῠ́-μενος as a proper name in Homer.[/fn]

On the forms ἔσσῠ-το, ἔ-χῠ-το see § 15.

The vowel is invariably long in ξυμ-βλή-την the two encountered, middle βλῆ-το was struck; πλῆ-το was filled; πλῆ-το came near; ἀπ-όνη-το profited, imperative ὄνη-σο, participle ὀνή-μενος; ἄμ-πνῡ-το recovered breath; ἔ-στρω-το was strewed: see § 14.

On the other hand the vowel is short throughout in κατ-έ-κτᾰ-ν (Il. 4.319, where the ancient critics read κατ-έ-κτᾱ), 3 Sing. ἔκτᾰ (the quanitity is proved by Od. 11.410 ἐκτα σὺν οὐλομένῃ κ.τ.λ.), 1 Plur. ἔ-κτᾰ-μεν, Part. κατα-κτάς, Mid. ἔ-κτᾰ-το, Inf. κτά-σθαι, Part. κτάμενος. The longer form of the root is κτεν- (Pres. κτείνω for κτεν-⍸ω). A similarly irregular 3 Sing. in -ᾰ is found in οὖτα he wounded, Inf. οὐτά̆-μεναι, Part. Mid. οὐτά̆-μενος : perhaps also in ἀπ-ηύρα-ς, ἀπ-ηύρα. For, comparing the Part. ἀπο-ύρας, Mid. ἀπο-υρά-μενος (Hes. Sc. 173), we may conjecture that the Indic. should be written ἀπ-εῦρα-ς, ἀπ-εῦρα (or ἀπ-έ-ϝρᾰ-ς, ἀπ-έ-ϝρᾰ), where ϝρᾰ- is the weak form of the root ϝερ- (Meyer G. G. § 524). We have ᾰ for -εν also in ἀπ-έ-φα-το died (Hesych.), from the root φεν- (Pf. πέφᾰ-ται). 

On the Non-Thematic Aorists with Stems ending in a consonant, such as ἆλτο, ἔπαλτο, ὦρτο, δέκτο, λέκτο, μίκτο, &c., with the Inf. πέρθαι and the Participles ἄρμενος, ἴκμενος, ἄσμενος, see § 40.  

Suggested Citation


D.B. Monro, A Grammar of the Homeric Dialect. Carlisle, Pennsylvania: Dickinson College Commentaries, 2014. ISBN: 978-1-947822-04-7. https://dcc.dickinson.edu/ar/grammar/monro/simple-athematic-aorist