MATSEC SEC Greek case studies
MATSEC SEC Greek · Put your knowledge to work in context.
The Secondary Education Certificate (SEC) Greek is a MATSEC examination. MATSEC is the Examinations Board of L-Università ta' Malta (UM), and its pages sit under the University's Study menu alongside the Junior College. The MATSEC SEC Greek case studies are 5 cases and about 2,335 words.
1Genitive Absolute and Embedded Clause in an Embassy Narrative
A candidate translating a short Attic narrative for the translation section has produced a draft with three disputed choices. The Greek text is: οἱ πρέσβεις ἀφικόμενοι εἰς τὴν πόλιν, τῶν πολιτῶν ἔτι καθευδόντων, εὗρον τὰς πύλας κεκλεισμένας.
498 words, about 2 min2Counterfactual, Optative, and Indirect Question in a Forensic Passage
A candidate is parsing a three-line forensic passage and has made two confident but conflicting claims. The Greek is: εἰ μὲν εἶχεν ὁ πατὴρ χρήματα, ἐξέπεμψεν ἂν τὸν παῖδα εἰς Σπάρτην· ἐπεὶ δὲ οὐκ εἶχεν, ἔμεινεν οἴκοι.
465 words, about 2 min3Idioms of ἔχω and χάριν in a Short Dialogue
A candidate translating a short dialogue is treating every occurrence of ἔχω as ‘have’ and every πρός as ‘towards’. The Greek is: Α· ἔχεις μοι εἰπεῖν ποῦ μένει Δίων; Β· οὐκ ἔχω· καὶ γὰρ χθὲς αὐτὸν ἐζήτουν.
441 words, about 2 min4Chorus-Leader, Liturgy, and Festival Inference in a Decree Formula
A candidate is commenting on a short Athenian decree-style sentence and wants to identify the institution behind it. The text is: ἔδοξεν τῇ βουλῇ καὶ τῷ δήμῳ· τὴν μὲν θυσίαν ποιεῖσθαι τῇ Ἀθηνᾷ κατὰ τὰ πάτρια, χοροὺς δὲ ἀνδρῶν τρεῖς καὶ παίδων τρεῖς ἀγαγεῖν, τὸν δὲ χορηγὸν αἱρεῖσθαι ἐξ ἁπάντων Ἀθηναίων.
458 words, about 2 min5Reported Speech, Topography, and Pretext in a Wolf-and-Lamb Fable
A candidate reading a short fable has to resolve pronouns, optatives in reported speech, and the logic of the wolf’s accusation. The Greek is: λύκος ἀμνὸν ἐν ποταμῷ πίνοντα ἰδὼν ἐβούλετο μὲν ἁρπάσαι, φοβούμενος δὲ τοὺς ποιμένας αἰτίαν ἐζήτει.
473 words, about 2 min