prep phrase position

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sandrajune
Posts: 1
Joined: November 20th, 2019, 7:59 pm

prep phrase position

Post by sandrajune »

Hello,
I am brand new here and I have what is probably a very basic question but it's finals time and my brain isn't functioning. :D

When using a prepositional phrase to modify a noun, does the placement before or after the noun matter to the meaning?

for example: ηλθον προ εμοῦ or προ εμοῦ ηλθον

Thank you!
Barry Hofstetter
Posts: 2159
Joined: May 6th, 2011, 1:48 pm

Re: prep phrase position

Post by Barry Hofstetter »

Greetings, Sandra, feel free to introduce yourself in the Introductions subforum. To answer your question, no and a bit of yes. In terms of how we end up rendering the Greek into English, it often does not make a difference, but word order in the longer sentence can sometimes make a difference (with things like emphasis).
N.E. Barry Hofstetter, M.A., Th.M.
Ph.D. Student U of FL
Instructor of Latin
Jack M. Barrack Hebrew Academy
καὶ σὺ τὸ σὸν ποιήσεις κἀγὼ τὸ ἐμόν. ἆρον τὸ σὸν καὶ ὕπαγε.
Shirley Rollinson
Posts: 415
Joined: June 4th, 2011, 6:19 pm
Location: New Mexico
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Re: prep phrase position

Post by Shirley Rollinson »

sandrajune wrote: November 20th, 2019, 8:04 pm Hello,
I am brand new here and I have what is probably a very basic question but it's finals time and my brain isn't functioning. :D

When using a prepositional phrase to modify a noun, does the placement before or after the noun matter to the meaning?

for example: ηλθον προ εμοῦ or προ εμοῦ ηλθον

Thank you!
welcome to B-Greek. What comes first in a Greek sentence tends to be what was first in the speaker's mind.
ηλθον προ εμοῦ - THEY CAME before me.
προ εμοῦ ηλθον - they came BEFORE ME.

There is light at the end of the tunnel, and life after Finals :-)
Shirley Rollinson
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