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MATSEC SEC Greek practice questions

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Question 1Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the sentence οἱ στρατιῶται πρὸς τὴν θάλασσαν ἔδραμον, what case and function is τὴν θάλασσαν?

  1. Nominative, subject
  2. Accusative, object of the preposition πρός Correct answer.
  3. Genitive, possessive
  4. Dative, indirect object

Explanation

The preposition πρός takes the accusative when it means 'towards' with a verb of motion. τὴν θάλασσαν is therefore accusative singular and serves as the object of πρός. The article τήν confirms the accusative feminine form.

Question 2Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which form correctly completes the sentence ὁ παῖς τὸν ἵππον ______ (the boy was loosening the horse)?

  1. ἔλυσεν
  2. λύει
  3. ἔλυε Correct answer.
  4. ἔλυσαν

Explanation

The imperfect ἔλυε is third person singular and describes continued or repeated past action, fitting 'was loosening'. The subject ὁ παῖς is singular, so a plural form is impossible. The aorist ἔλυσεν would mean 'loosened' as a single completed act.

Question 3Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

What is the correct translation of the participle in ἀκούσαντες οἱ πολῖται ἐσίγησαν?

  1. The citizens, being heard, fell silent
  2. After the citizens had heard, they fell silent Correct answer.
  3. The citizens who hear fall silent
  4. Hearing is what silences the citizens

Explanation

ἀκούσαντες is an aorist active participle, nominative plural, agreeing with οἱ πολῖται. An aorist participle normally denotes action prior to the main verb, hence 'after they had heard'. The main verb ἐσίγησαν is aorist 'they fell silent'.

Question 4Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Identify the mood of the verb in ἐὰν ταῦτα λέγῃς, πιστεύσουσιν.

  1. Indicative
  2. Subjunctive Correct answer.
  3. Optative
  4. Imperative

Explanation

After ἐάν ('if'), Greek regularly uses the subjunctive in a conditional clause referring to a future or general possibility. The ending -ῃς marks the present subjunctive active, second person singular. The main clause keeps the future indicative πιστεύσουσιν.

Question 5Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

What is the meaning of the particle ἄν in εἴ τις ταῦτα λέγοι, ἁμαρτάνοι ἄν;

  1. It means 'again'
  2. It turns the verb into a question
  3. It marks the clause as a potential, unreal condition Correct answer.
  4. It negates the verb

Explanation

The combination of εἰ with the optative plus ἄν in the main clause forms a future-less vivid or potential conditional. ἄν signals that the consequence is hypothetical rather than factual. Without ἄν the sentence would state a plain past or present fact.

Question 6Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which of these nouns is third declension?

  1. δῶρον
  2. φύλαξ Correct answer.
  3. λόγος
  4. ναῦται

Explanation

φύλαξ, φύλακος is a third-declension consonant-stem noun whose genitive reveals the stem φυλακ-. Third-declension nouns are recognised by their genitive singular ending -ος with a varying stem. The other options belong to the first, second, and first declensions respectively.

Question 7Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the phrase τῇ ὑστεραίᾳ ἡμέρᾳ, what does the dative express?

  1. Means
  2. Agent
  3. Place to which
  4. Time when Correct answer.

Explanation

A dative of time answers 'when?' and is common with words like ἡμέρᾳ and ἔτει. Here the phrase means 'on the following day'. The dative of agent would require ὑπό with the genitive, and means would need an instrumental sense.

Question 8Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which word is a properly formed aorist passive of λύω?

  1. ἐλύετο
  2. ἐλύθη Correct answer.
  3. λέλυκα
  4. ἔλυσα

Explanation

The aorist passive adds the suffix -θη- to the verb stem and takes secondary endings: ἐ-λύ-θη-ν, ἐλύθη. The form ἐλύθη is third person singular, 'he/she/it was loosened'. The other forms are active aorist, imperfect middle, and perfect active.

Question 9Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

What is the function of the genitive in ὁ φόβος τῶν πολεμίων τοὺς πολίτας ἐτάραξεν?

  1. Genitive of time
  2. Objective genitive: the fear of the enemies felt by the citizens Correct answer.
  3. Subjective genitive: the fear felt by the enemies
  4. Genitive of price

Explanation

With a verbal noun like φόβος, the genitive can be subjective (the subject of the underlying verb) or objective (its object). Here the citizens are troubled, which makes the enemies the object of the fear, so it is objective. Context, not form, decides between the two.

Question 10Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the sentence ἀφικόμενοι εἰς τὴν πόλιν οἱ πρέσβεις τὸν βασιλέα ἤροντο, what is the tense and voice of ἤροντο?

  1. Present passive
  2. Imperfect active
  3. Aorist middle Correct answer.
  4. Perfect middle

Explanation

ἤροντο comes from ἐρωτάω and is a second aorist middle, 'they asked'. The middle voice here is standard for this verb in the sense 'ask, question'. The augment and the ending -ντο identify a secondary (past) tense with middle/passive endings.

Question 11Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which translation best renders the indirect statement ἔφη τοὺς νεανίας ἀγαθοὺς εἶναι?

  1. He asked whether the young men were brave
  2. He said that the young men were brave Correct answer.
  3. He said the young men are brave men
  4. The young men said he was brave

Explanation

After verbs of saying, Greek uses the infinitive to express indirect statement, with the subject of the infinitive in the accusative. τοὺς νεανίας is that accusative subject and εἶναι the infinitive 'to be'. The tense of the infinitive is present, but English idiom shifts to 'were' after a past main verb.

Question 12Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

What does the optative express in εἴθε ὁ πατὴρ ἔλθοι?

  1. A condition contrary to fact
  2. A past fact
  3. A command
  4. A wish for the future Correct answer.

Explanation

The particle εἴθε with the optative expresses a wish, here 'if only the father would come'. The optative without ἄν in a wish refers to a possible future. A wish about the past would use the aorist indicative with εἴθε.

Question 13Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the sentence ἡ μήτηρ τὸν παῖδα ἔπεισεν ἀπιέναι, why is ἀπιέναι an infinitive rather than a participle?

  1. It replaces a finite verb in a subordinate clause
  2. It forms a genitive absolute
  3. It is required after the accusative article
  4. It completes the meaning of ἔπεισεν as a complementary infinitive Correct answer.

Explanation

Verbs such as πείθω can take an infinitive to complete their sense, here 'persuaded the boy to go away'. The accusative τὸν παῖδα is the object of ἔπεισεν and also the logical subject of the infinitive. A participle would describe the boy rather than complete the verb.

Question 14Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

What is the correct form of the definite article with the dative plural of ναῦς?

  1. ταῖς Correct answer.
  2. τῇ
  3. τοῖς
  4. τῶν

Explanation

ναῦς is feminine, so the dative plural article is ταῖς. The dative plural of the noun itself is ναυσί(ν). The article must agree in gender, number, and case with its noun.

Question 15Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which sentence uses the accusative absolute correctly?

  1. Δέον ταῦτα ποιεῖν, οἱ στρατιῶται ἀπῆλθον Correct answer.
  2. Τοῖς στρατιώταις ἀπιοῦσιν ὁ στρατηγὸς ἐλάλησεν
  3. Τούτων λεχθέντων, οἱ στρατιῶται ἀπῆλθον
  4. Ὁ στρατηγὸς ταῦτα λέγων ἀπῆλθεν

Explanation

An accusative absolute uses a neuter singular participle, often impersonal like δέον or ἐξόν, with the subject in the accusative. Δέον ταῦτα ποιεῖν means 'since it was necessary to do these things'. The construction is impersonal and does not agree with the main subject.

Question 16Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

What is the effect of the negative μή in the clause μὴ τοῦτο ποιήσῃς?

  1. It negates a prohibition with the aorist subjunctive Correct answer.
  2. It negates a single word only
  3. It negates a statement of fact
  4. It introduces a purpose clause

Explanation

Prohibitions in Greek use μή with the imperative or, for the aorist, the subjunctive. μὴ ποιήσῃς means 'do not do this', a prohibition viewed as a whole. Factual negation uses οὐ with the indicative.

Question 17Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the phrase ἀνὴρ ἀγαθὸς ὢν ἐβοήθησεν, what does ὤν add to the sentence?

  1. It turns the noun into a vocative
  2. It describes the subject as being good, a circumstantial participle Correct answer.
  3. It marks the verb as passive
  4. It makes the sentence a condition

Explanation

ὤν is the present participle of εἰμί, nominative singular masculine, agreeing with ἀνήρ. It adds a circumstance, 'being a good man' or 'since he was a good man'. A participle of εἰμί often supplies the reason or attendant circumstance for the main verb.

Question 18Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which is the correct plural of the neuter noun πρᾶγμα in the nominative?

  1. πράγματοι
  2. πράγματος
  3. πράγμασιν
  4. πράγματα Correct answer.

Explanation

Third-declension neuter nouns in -μα form the nominative and accusative plural in -ματα. Thus πρᾶγμα gives πράγματα. The other forms are dative plural and genitive singular respectively, or not attested.

Question 19Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the sentence ὁ ἀνὴρ ὑπὸ τῶν πολιτῶν ἐτιμήθη, what construction is ὑπὸ τῶν πολιτῶν?

  1. Genitive absolute
  2. Genitive of agent with ὑπό Correct answer.
  3. Dative of agent
  4. Accusative of respect

Explanation

With a passive verb, the agent is expressed by ὑπό plus the genitive. ἐτιμήθη is aorist passive, 'was honoured', and the citizens are the ones doing the honouring. A bare dative of agent occurs mainly with the perfect passive.

Question 20Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which translation captures the force of the particle δή in τί δὴ τοῦτο λέγεις;

  1. Why did you say this before?
  2. Why do you not say this?
  3. Why will you say this?
  4. Why ever do you say this? Correct answer.

Explanation

δή is an intensive particle that adds emphasis or impatience, often rendered 'indeed' or 'ever' in questions. With τί it strengthens the question to 'why ever?'. It carries no tense or negative meaning of its own.

Question 21Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

What is the meaning of the middle voice in λύονται τοὺς ἵππους?

  1. They loose the horses for someone else
  2. They have loosened the horses
  3. They loose their own horses Correct answer.
  4. They are loosened by the horses

Explanation

The middle voice typically marks the subject as acting in its own interest, so λύονται with an accusative object means 'they loose for themselves'. The form is present middle/passive, but the presence of a direct object rules out a passive reading. The active λύουσι would simply mean 'they loose'.

Question 22Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the conditional sentence εἰ ταῦτα ἐποίησεν, ἀπέθανεν ἄν, what type of condition is this?

  1. Past contrary to fact condition Correct answer.
  2. Future more vivid condition
  3. Simple past condition
  4. Present general condition

Explanation

The past indicative in the protasis with ἄν and a past indicative in the apodosis marks a past contrary-to-fact condition, 'if he had done this, he would have died'. The augment on both verbs places the hypothesis in the past. Present contrary-to-fact conditions use the imperfect.

Question 23Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which sentence correctly uses the genitive absolute?

  1. Τὸν στρατηγὸν ἀποθανόντα οἱ στρατιῶται ἔφυγον
  2. Ὁ στρατηγὸς ἀπέθανεν καὶ οἱ στρατιῶται ἔφυγον
  3. Ὁ στρατηγὸς ἀποθανὼν οἱ στρατιῶται ἔφυγον
  4. Τοῦ στρατηγοῦ ἀποθανόντος οἱ στρατιῶται ἔφυγον Correct answer.

Explanation

A genitive absolute consists of a genitive noun and a participle that agree with each other and are grammatically independent of the main clause. Τοῦ στρατηγοῦ ἀποθανόντος means 'when the general had died'. The main clause has its own subject, οἱ στρατιῶται, in the nominative.

Question 24Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the sentence οὐκ ἂν ἐδυνήθη ταῦτα ποιῆσαι, what is the force of the aorist infinitive ποιῆσαι?

  1. It marks a continuous action in the past
  2. It is an imperative form
  3. It is a future infinitive
  4. It expresses a completed act within a potential statement Correct answer.

Explanation

The aorist infinitive presents the action as a single whole, here 'to do these things'. With ἄν and the aorist indicative ἐδυνήθη, the sentence expresses a past potential or unfulfilled possibility. The aorist infinitive says nothing about duration, only about aspect.

Question 25Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Why does the verb in ἐπεὶ οἱ πολέμιοι ἀφίκοντο, οἱ πολῖται ἔφυγον take the aorist in the subordinate clause?

  1. The aorist is required after ἐπεί without exception
  2. The aorist presents the arrival as a single event prior to the flight Correct answer.
  3. The aorist marks the clause as a wish
  4. The aorist shows repeated customary action

Explanation

Greek uses tense for aspect: the aorist presents ἀφίκοντο as a complete event that happened before the main action ἔφυγον. A present or imperfect could instead present it as simultaneous or repeated. The choice is aspectual, not a fixed rule of ἐπεί.

Question 26Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the sentence οἱ στρατιῶται πρὸς τὴν θάλασσαν ἐπορεύοντο, what case is θάλασσαν and why?

  1. Genitive, because πρός always takes the genitive of place
  2. Accusative, because πρός with a verb of motion expresses direction towards a place Correct answer.
  3. Dative, because the place where something happens is expressed by the dative
  4. Vocative, because the sea is being addressed by the soldiers

Explanation

The preposition πρός takes the accusative when it expresses motion towards a place, so πρὸς τὴν θάλασσαν means 'towards the sea'. The verb ἐπορεύοντο is a verb of going, which confirms the sense of direction rather than position.

Question 27Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which form is the correct present indicative active, third person singular, of the verb δίδωμι?

  1. δίδωσι(ν) Correct answer.
  2. ἐδίδου
  3. δίδομεν
  4. δίδωμι

Explanation

δίδωμι is an athematic (-μι) verb; the third person singular present active ending is -σι(ν), giving δίδωσι(ν) 'he/she gives'. The other forms belong to different persons or tenses.

Question 28Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which word is the correct accusative singular of the noun βασιλεύς?

  1. βασιλεῦ
  2. βασιλέως
  3. βασιλεῖ
  4. βασιλέα Correct answer.

Explanation

βασιλεύς is a third-declension noun with a -εύς stem; its accusative singular is βασιλέα. The ending -έα reflects the contraction of the stem vowel with the accusative ending -α.

Question 29Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the phrase ὁ πατὴρ αὐτοῦ ἀπέθανεν, what does the genitive αὐτοῦ express?

  1. Separation, meaning 'away from him'
  2. Agent, meaning 'by him'
  3. Possession, meaning 'his father' Correct answer.
  4. Comparison, meaning 'than him'

Explanation

The genitive of the personal pronoun αὐτοῦ here expresses possession: ὁ πατὴρ αὐτοῦ means 'his father'. Possession is one of the core functions of the genitive case.

Question 30Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which translation best renders the sentence ὁ διδάσκαλος τοὺς μαθητὰς γράφειν ἐκέλευσεν?

  1. The teacher ordered the students to write. Correct answer.
  2. The teacher writes and the students order.
  3. The teacher ordered the students and wrote.
  4. The teacher was ordered by the students to write.

Explanation

κελεύω takes an accusative of the person ordered plus a complementary infinitive: τοὺς μαθητὰς γράφειν ἐκέλευσεν means 'he ordered the students to write'. The accusative is the subject of the infinitive, not the object of a separate clause.

Question 31Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the sentence αἱ γυναῖκες πρὸς τῇ κρήνῃ ἔμενον, what does the dative κρήνῃ express?

  1. Time, meaning 'at the spring season'
  2. Direction towards, with πρός meaning 'to'
  3. Place where, with πρός meaning 'near' or 'by' Correct answer.
  4. Instrument, meaning 'with the spring'

Explanation

With the dative, πρός expresses position near a place, so πρὸς τῇ κρήνῃ means 'by the spring'. The verb ἔμενον 'they were waiting/remaining' is a verb of rest, which suits this use.

Question 32Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which adjective form correctly agrees with the feminine noun ναῦς in the phrase 'a swift ship' (nominative singular)?

  1. ταχέος ναῦς
  2. ταχύ ναῦς
  3. ταχύς ναῦς
  4. ταχεῖα ναῦς Correct answer.

Explanation

ναῦς is feminine, so the adjective must take the feminine nominative singular form ταχεῖα. Adjectives of the first and second declension agree with their noun in gender, number and case.

Question 33Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which form is the correct aorist active infinitive of παιδεύω?

  1. παιδεῦσαι Correct answer.
  2. παιδεύσειν
  3. παιδεύεσθαι
  4. παιδεύειν

Explanation

The aorist active infinitive of a regular -ω verb adds -σαι to the stem: παιδεῦσαι. The accent is on the penultimate syllable because the final -αι is treated as short.

Question 34Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the sentence οἱ Ἀθηναῖοι τριήρεις ἐποιήσαντο, what does the middle voice of ἐποιήσαντο add to the meaning?

  1. It expresses a wish, 'may they build ships'.
  2. It makes the verb passive, 'the ships were built by the Athenians'.
  3. It makes the action habitual, 'they used to build ships'.
  4. It shows that the Athenians had the ships built for themselves or made them for their own interest. Correct answer.

Explanation

The middle voice of ποιέω commonly marks the subject's own interest in the action, so ἐποιήσαντο can mean 'they had built for themselves' or 'they made for their own purposes'. The middle is not passive, habitual or optative in force.

Question 35Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the sentence εἰ τοῦτο ἔπραξας, εὖ ἂν ἔσχες, what type of conditional is used?

  1. A past counterfactual condition, implying that the action was not in fact done Correct answer.
  2. A general condition in past time
  3. A simple present open condition
  4. A future more vivid condition

Explanation

The combination of the aorist indicative in the protasis with ἄν and an aorist or imperfect indicative in the apodosis marks an unfulfilled past condition. It implies 'if you had done this (but you did not), you would have fared well'.

Question 36Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the sentence ὡς δὲ ταῦτα ἤκουσαν οἱ στρατιῶται, ἀνεβόησαν, what does ὡς introduce?

  1. A causal clause meaning 'because'
  2. A purpose clause meaning 'in order that'
  3. A comparison meaning 'as if'
  4. A temporal clause meaning 'when' Correct answer.

Explanation

ὡς with a finite verb, especially the aorist, commonly introduces a temporal clause meaning 'when' or 'after'. Here the sense is 'when the soldiers heard this, they shouted out'.

Question 37Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which translation best renders the sentence οἱ νεανίαι τοὺς γέροντας ᾐδοῦντο?

  1. The young men respected the old men. Correct answer.
  2. The young men were respected by the old men.
  3. The young men feared and honoured the old men's gifts.
  4. The old men respected the young men.

Explanation

αἰδοῦμαι is a deponent verb: it has middle/passive endings but active meaning, 'respect, feel shame before'. The accusative τοὺς γέροντας is its direct object, so the sentence means 'the young men respected the old men'.

Question 38Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the phrase ἡ τῶν Ἑλλήνων σοφία, what is the function of the genitive τῶν Ἑλλήνων?

  1. It defines the possessors, 'the wisdom of the Greeks' Correct answer.
  2. It marks the place from which something comes
  3. It expresses the price or value
  4. It marks the agent of a passive verb

Explanation

The genitive placed between the article and its noun expresses possession or belonging: ἡ τῶν Ἑλλήνων σοφία is 'the wisdom of the Greeks'. This is the standard attributive position of a genitive noun.

Question 39Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which sentence uses the optative in a wish?

  1. γένοιτο ἂν ταῦτα, εἰ οἱ θεοὶ θέλοιεν.
  2. ἦλθεν ἵνα τοῦτο γένοιτο.
  3. λέγοι τις ἂν ὅτι ταῦτα ἀληθῆ ἐστιν.
  4. εἰ γένοιτο, ἡδέως ἂν ἀκούσαιμι. Correct answer.

Explanation

An optative without ἄν in a main clause can express a wish: εἰ γένοιτο means 'if only it might happen'. The optative here is the mood of wish, not of potentiality.

Question 40Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which translation best renders the participle in ἀφικόμενος εἰς τὴν πόλιν ὁ ἄγγελος ἀπήγγειλε τὰ γεγενημένα?

  1. Having arrived in the city, the messenger reported what had happened. Correct answer.
  2. The messenger, who was about to arrive in the city, reported it.
  3. While arriving in the city, the messenger was reported to have happened.
  4. The messenger arrived in the city and was reported.

Explanation

The aorist participle ἀφικόμενος is contemporaneous with the main verb in the sense of a completed action preceding it, so it means 'having arrived'. The perfect participle γεγενημένα refers to events already completed, 'what had happened'.

Question 41Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the sentence οἱ πολῖται τοὺς νόμους φυλάττουσι, what grammatical role does τοὺς νόμους play?

  1. Direct object in the accusative plural Correct answer.
  2. Genitive of possession
  3. Subject in the nominative plural
  4. Indirect object in the dative plural

Explanation

τοὺς νόμους is accusative plural, marked by the article τούς and the ending -ους, and it is the direct object of the transitive verb φυλάττουσι. The subject is οἱ πολῖται.

Question 42Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which form is the correct perfect active indicative, third person plural, of λύω?

  1. ἔλυσαν
  2. λελυμένοι εἰσί(ν)
  3. λελύκασι(ν) Correct answer.
  4. λύουσι(ν)

Explanation

The perfect active of λύω is λέλυκα; the third person plural ending -ασι(ν) gives λελύκασι(ν) 'they have loosed'. The reduplication λε- marks the perfect stem.

Question 43Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the sentence οὐδεὶς ἦν τῶν στρατιωτῶν ὃς οὐκ ἐφοβεῖτο τὸν κίνδυνον, what is the effect of the double negative?

  1. It expresses a wish that the soldiers might fear danger.
  2. It cancels out to mean that no soldier feared the danger.
  3. It produces an emphatic positive: every one of the soldiers feared the danger. Correct answer.
  4. It makes the sentence a question.

Explanation

In Greek a relative clause after a negative main clause often takes οὐ to reinforce the negation, so οὐδεὶς ἦν ὃς οὐκ ἐφοβεῖτο means 'there was no one who did not fear', that is, everyone feared. The two negatives reinforce rather than cancel each other.

Question 44Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which translation best renders the sentence ἔδοξεν αὐτοῖς ἀπιέναι?

  1. It seemed to them that they had departed.
  2. They seemed to depart.
  3. They were ordered to depart by themselves.
  4. They decided to depart. Correct answer.

Explanation

The impersonal δοκεῖ with a dative of the person and an infinitive means 'it seems good to someone (to do something)', i.e. 'they resolved/decided'. The dative αὐτοῖς marks the persons deciding.

Question 45Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the phrase εἰς τοῦτο ἀφίκοντο ἀπορίας ὥστε πάντες ἐσιώπησαν, what does ὥστε introduce?

  1. A result clause, 'so that everyone fell silent' Correct answer.
  2. A purpose clause, 'in order that everyone might fall silent'
  3. A concessive clause, 'although everyone fell silent'
  4. A temporal clause, 'when everyone fell silent'

Explanation

ὥστε with the indicative expresses actual result: the situation reached such a point that everyone fell silent. Purpose would normally be expressed by ἵνα or ὡς with the subjunctive, not by ὥστε with the indicative.

Question 46Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which sentence correctly uses the accusative and infinitive after a verb of saying?

  1. ἔλεγον ὅτι οἱ πολέμιοι ἥκοιεν ἂν.
  2. ἔλεγον τοὺς πολεμίους ἥκειν. Correct answer.
  3. ἔλεγον οἱ πολέμιοι ἥκειν.
  4. ἔλεγον τοῖς πολεμίοις ἥκειν.

Explanation

Verbs of saying take an accusative as the subject of the infinitive in indirect statement: ἔλεγον τοὺς πολεμίους ἥκειν means 'they said that the enemies had come'. The accusative marks the subject of the infinitive.

Question 47Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the sentence ὁ στρατηγὸς τοὺς ἄνδρας ἀπέκτεινεν ὅτι προὐδόσαν τὴν πόλιν, why is the aorist used in the subordinate clause?

  1. Because ὅτι always requires the aorist
  2. Because the main verb is aorist and Greek requires tense agreement
  3. Because the betrayal was repeated over a long period
  4. Because the betrayal was a single completed act viewed as a whole, prior to the killing Correct answer.

Explanation

The aorist presents an action as a single complete event, here the betrayal that preceded the punishment. Greek does not require the subordinate verb to match the main verb's tense; the aorist is chosen for its aspect.

Question 48Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the sentence οὐκ ἂν ἔφθασας λέγων πρὶν ἂν ἐγὼ ἀκούσαιμι, what is the force of the construction πρὶν ἂν with the optative?

  1. It marks an anticipated event that would have to happen before the main action, 'before I could hear' Correct answer.
  2. It marks a purpose clause, 'in order that I might hear'
  3. It states a past fact that had already happened
  4. It expresses a wish that the speaker might hear

Explanation

πρίν with ἄν and the optative in a potential or past potential context expresses an anticipated event, here 'before I could hear'. The construction is prospective and depends on the potential main clause.

Question 49Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

In the sentence ταῦτα λέγοντος τοῦ στρατηγοῦ, οἱ στρατιῶται ἐθορύβησαν, what construction is λέγοντος τοῦ στρατηγοῦ?

  1. An accusative absolute, because the participle is impersonal
  2. A dative of agent with the passive verb
  3. A genitive absolute, a participial phrase grammatically independent of the main subject Correct answer.
  4. A genitive of possession depending on ταῦτα

Explanation

A genitive noun or pronoun with a participle, standing apart from the main clause and referring to a different person from the subject, forms a genitive absolute: 'while the general was saying this'. The main subject οἱ στρατιῶται is different from τοῦ στρατηγοῦ.

Question 50Greek language (reading, comprehension and translation)

Which translation best captures the nuance of the particle ἄρα in the sentence ἄρα ταῦτα ἀληθῆ ἐστιν;

  1. Can it really be that these things are true? Correct answer.
  2. These things are therefore true.
  3. These things are true, as everyone knows.
  4. If only these things were true.

Explanation

In a question ἄρα signals the speaker's expectation of a particular answer, often with a tone of surprise or irony: 'is it really the case that...?'. It is an inferential and interrogative particle, not a simple statement of fact.