Prepositions
Table of contents
Prepositional Phrases
A preposition is a bridge word that either relates one noun to another noun or qualifies the action of the verb. The preposition takes a prepositional object, and the whole unit (preposition plus object) is called a prepositional phrase.
Here are examples of prepositional phrases that qualify nouns:
- I found the mistake in the essay.
- The dog behind the window is very cute.
In these examples, the prepositional phrase tells us more about a noun by answering the question “which one”?
- I found the mistake. – Which mistake? The one in the essay (as opposed to a mistake anywhere else).
- The dog is very cute. – Which dog? The one behind the window (as opposed to the one in the park or the one under the blanket).
Compare this against prepositional phrases that function adverbially, to answer questions like “where”, “when” or “how”:
- We are standing on the platform. (Where are we standing? On the platform.)
- The clock chimes on the hour. (When does it chime? On the hour, every hour.)
In all of these examples, the preposition (e.g., “in”, “behind”, “on”) serves as a bridge word that relates the prepositional object either to another noun or to the verb’s action.
Prepositions and Object Cases
In Greek, a preposition usually has some sort of core location or direction inherent in its definition. To take some examples from the Week 6 Vocabulary:
- οἱ ἄνθρωποι ἀπὸ τῆς θάλαττης ἦλθον. The people came from the sea.
- ὁ μάρτυς ἐν τῇ πόλει ἠδικήθη. The witness was injured in the city. (πόλει > dative singular of πόλις, -εως, f. - city)
- οἱ παῖδες εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν ἤχθησαν. The children were led into the house. (οἰκίαν > accusative singular of οἰκία, -ας, f. - house)
ἀπό embodies the sense that a noun is moving away from something; ἐν embodies the sense that a noun is in a location; and εἰς embodies the sense that a noun is moving into a location. Other prepositions indicate different directions or locations; for example, πρός indicates motion to or toward something, while παρά indicates that something is near or next to something else.
In Greek, prepositional objects can be in one of the oblique cases (meaning the genitive, dative, or accusative). Some prepositions take only one case as an object. For example, note how εἰς in the Week 6 Vocabulary is followed by (+ acc.). This means that εἰς tends to be used only with the accusative case. Similarly, ἐν takes the dative, while ἐκ and ἀπό take the genitive.
Other prepositions, however, can take a noun in any of the oblique cases as an object. The differences in using one case over another can vary from small semantic differences to entirely discrete translations. Take, for example, μετά in the Week 6 Vocabulary. When its object is in the accusative case, μετά means “after”:
- ὁ πολίτης ἦλθε μετὰ τὸν δικαστήν. The citizen came after the juror.
However, when the object of μετά is in the genitive case, μετά means “with”:
- ὁ πολίτης ἦλθε μετὰ τοῦ δικαστοῦ. The citizen came with the juror.
So, you must both know what the preposition means and pay attention to the case of its object; the case of the object can change that definition, the meaning of the prepositional phrase, and the idea being communicated by the sentence.
Case Directions
With prepositions that can take any of the three oblique cases, there is often a rationale to the use of one case versus another. We’ve discussed how each preposition has a location or direction inherent in its definition, but the case of a prepositional object also has a direction or location inherent in it:
- The accusative usually indicates motion toward the prepositional object.
- The dative usually indicates a static location for the prepositional object.
- The genitive usually indicates motion away from the prepositional object.
When we combine the case of the prepositional object with the direction/location in the preposition, we can create specific and interesting pictures about how a verbal action works. Note, for example, the difference in the following two sentences:
- ἦλθον κατὰ τοῦ δένδρου. (δένδρον, δένδρου, n. - tree)
- They came down from the tree.
- ἦλθον κατὰ τὸ δένδρον.
- They came down to the tree.
The direction of “down” is inherent in the preposition κατά, and it indicates in what direction the subject is coming (ἦλθον κατά - they came down). The object of the preposition, then, fills out the picture further. If we use the genitive, which indicates motion away from the object, the image that we get is of the subject climbing down from the tree, presumably from a high branch to the ground below: ἦλθον κατὰ τοῦ δένδρου, they came down from (κατά + gen.) the tree. However, if we use the accusative, which indicates motion toward the object, the image that we get is of the subject approaching the tree, presumably from higher ground to the tree on a lower level: ἦλθον κατὰ τὸ δένδρον, they came down to (κατά + acc.) the tree. These nuances draw a more detailed and complete picture of how a verbal action occurs.
Genitive of Agent
One special type of prepositional phrase is known as the genitive of agent. In this construction, a prepositional phrase using ὑπό and a genitive noun indicates who performs the action of a passive verb. Here’s an example:
- ὁ μάρτυς ὑπὸ τῶν πολιτῶν εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν ἄγεται. The witness is being led into the house by the citizens.
Consider why we would need a construction like the genitive of agent. If the verb is active or middle, the nominative subject performs the verb’s action:
- οἱ πολῖται τὸν μάρτυρα ἄγουσιν. The citizens are leading the witness.
In a sentence with a passive verb, however, the subject receives the action, rather than performing it. In this construction, we don’t necessarily need an indication of who performs the action for the sentence to be grammatically correct:
- ὁ μάρτυς εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν ἄγεται. The witness is being led into the house.
We’re left wondering, though – who is doing the leading? Who is performing that verb’s action? A genitive of agent construction helps answer that question, even though it is not technically necessary for the sentence to make sense. So, ὑπὸ τῶν πολιτῶν (“by the citizens”) gives us that answer.