This thread picks up from http://discourse.textkit.com/t/primary-tenses/14115/1
Here’s a way—a good way, I think—to get to grips with conditional sentences.
There’s conditional clauses, i.e. if-clauses, and there’s main clauses. A main clause is not affected at all by whether or not there’s an if-clause with it.
So here’s how if-clauses work:-
εἰ + indic.:
εἰ λέγω / ἔλεγον / εἶπον / εἴρηκα = If I am saying / was saying / said OR had said / have spoken.
Easy as π.
ἐάν + subj.:
ἐὰν εἴπω = If I say (i.e. in the event that I say) (Usually followed by future main clause)
(ἐάν = εἰ + ἄν, i.e. an indefinite clause)
εἰ + opt.
εἰ εἴποιμι / λέγοιμι = If I were to say (= If I said, followed by main clause with “would”)
(Aor. or pres. according to aspect.)
That’s about it. Note that this system applies not only to if-clauses but also to when-clauses (e.g. ὅτε), relative clauses (e.g. ὅ), and in fact to all subordinate clauses.
Negatived if-clauses—all of them, regardless of mood—have μή, not οὐ.
εἰ/ἐὰν μὴ = if … not …, unless
Now here’s how main clauses work (any and all main clauses, whether or not they have an if-clause attached to them):-
Indic. (without ἄν):
λέγω / ἐρῶ / ἔλεγον / εἶπον / εἴρηκα = I say, will say, was saying, said, have spoken
Indic. with ἄν (This is where people get confused):
Imperf. ἔλεγον ἄν = I would be saying (right now)
Aor. εἶπον ἄν = I would have said
Opt. with ἄν:
εἴποιμι ἄν / λέγοιμι ἄν = I would say
(Aor. or pres. acc. to aspect.)
(In other words:
“would say” = opt.+ἄν
“would have said” = aor.indic.+ἄν
“would be saying” = impf.indic.+ἄν)
Main clauses and if-clauses can be combined in any way that makes sense.
Get this down and you’ll never go wrong. (Well, hardly ever.)
