Charles Terrizzi wrote:Is gunaika a declension of gunay?
Is it always used for wife?
Sometimes the same subject is referred to as a gunaika and then to a gunay.
Hi, Charles, and welcome to the forum!
We like to look at the Greek around here. In this case, the word in question is γυνή. As you begin to learn Greek, you will see that there are different forms that a word takes to serve various functions in a sentence.
Nominative is the case for the subject of a sentence or the "predicate nominative".
Genitive is the case of possession and belonging (with other notable functions as well, of course - this is a very basic explanation).
Dative is the case for the indirect object, instrumentality etc.
Accusative is the case of the direct object.
Vocative is the case of direct address.
We (that is, B-Greekers) would encourage you to look into an introductory grammar to start to learn how these things work. The basics of noun declension (showing the form of words as they function in various cases) is usually covered in the first chapter of a Greek textbook.
In this case, γυνή ("gynē") is the
nominative case of the word that translates as "wife" or "woman" in the singular. γυναῖκα ("gynaika") is the
accusative case of the same word. This means that when this word appears as the subject of a finite verb (or a predicate nominative), it will appear as γυνή, but when it appears as the direct object of a verb it will take the form γυναῖκα.
Have you thought about taking a basic Greek course? Were you aware that study groups form online from time to time?
Let me know if you want more information about where you can contact others who might be interested in starting up a study with you!