Greek Vocabulary Challenge: April 19

Here are today's vocabulary words; it's Group 160. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion:

ἀκούω ~ ἀκούσομαι ~ ἤκουσα: listen, hear 

νοέω ~ νοήσω ~ νόησα: perceive, comprehend 

μάχομαι ~ μαχοῦμαι ~ ἐμαχεσάμην: fight, struggle 

διδάσκω ~ διδάξω ~ ἐδίδαξα: teach, instruct 

βουλεύω ~ βουλεύσω ~ ἐβούλευσα: deliberate, plan 

These are the proverbs (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Ἄκουε πάντα.

Ἀκούσας νόει.

Ἐν φρέατι κυσὶ μάχεσθαι. 

Ἀετὸν ἵπτασθαι διδάσκεις. 

Οὐδεὶς μετ' ὀργῆς ἀσφαλῶς βουλεύεται.

And now, some commentary:

Ἄκουε πάντα.

Listen to everything.

This is one of the Delphic maxims recorded by Stobaeus. Notice the accusative object, πάντα. That means ἄκουε has the sense of "listen to," as in listening to things, to sounds heard. When ἀκούω takes the genitive, it has the sense of "hearing" a person, and even "hear and obey."

Ἀκούσας νόει.

After having listened, think.

This is another one of those maxims from Stobaeus, and it makes a good pair with the preceding saying: Ἄκουε πάντα, and then: Ἀκούσας νόει. Note that it is the accent which tells you this is the imperative of a contract verb, νοέω: νόει. The 3rd-person indicate is νοεῖ. The verb in turn is from the noun νοῦς, "mind." You can see this root in English "noetic."

Ἐν φρέατι κυσὶ μάχεσθαι. 

To fight with dogs in a well.

This is used to refer to a quarrel or disagreement (μάχεσθαι) with disreputable, quarrelsome people (κυσὶ) in a situation from which you cannot extricate yourself (ἐν φρέατι). There a variation using a less well-known verb:  Ἐν φρέατι κυνομαχεῖν: κυνο-μαχέω, "fight with dogs."

Ἀετὸν ἵπτασθαι διδάσκεις. 

You're teaching an eagle to fly.

This is one of those proverbial fool's errands. Not only does an eagle not need you to teach it to fly, the eagle can fly far higher and faster than you can. Compare the saying that you saw in an earlier post: Ἰχθὺν νήχεσθαι διδάσκεις, "You're teaching a fish to swim."

Οὐδεὶς μετ' ὀργῆς ἀσφαλῶς βουλεύεται.

Nobody can safely make plans in anger.

This is another one of those "one-liners" of Menander; here is the iambic meter marked:

Οὐδεὶς | μετ' ὀρ|γῆς ἀσ|φαλῶς | βουλεύ|εται.

Ganymede and Eagle mosaic

And here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too :

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Greek Reading: Fables 48

Both the fables and the jokes below come from Abbott's Easy Greek Reader which is available at the Internet Archive. 

So, here are the stories in Greek, then segmented, and then interwoven with English. The titles are linked to the Internet Archive page.

Κώνωψ καὶ βοῦς

(You've seen another version of this story before.)

Κώνωψ ἐπιστὰς κέρατι ταύρου καὶ πολὺν χρόνον ἐπικαθίσας, ἐπειδὴ ἀπαλλάττεσθαι ἔμελλεν, ἐπυνθάνετο τοῦ ταύρου εἰ ἤδη βούλεται αὐτὸν ἀπελθεῖν. Ὁ δὲ ὑποτυχὼν εἶπεν· ἀλλ’ οὔτε, ὅτε ἦλθες, ἔγνων, οὔτε, ἐὰν ἀπέλθῃς, γνώσομαι.

Κώνωψ 

ἐπιστὰς κέρατι ταύρου 

καὶ πολὺν χρόνον ἐπικαθίσας, 

ἐπειδὴ ἀπαλλάττεσθαι ἔμελλεν, 

ἐπυνθάνετο τοῦ ταύρου 

εἰ ἤδη βούλεται αὐτὸν ἀπελθεῖν. 

Ὁ δὲ ὑποτυχὼν εἶπεν· 

ἀλλ’ οὔτε, ὅτε ἦλθες, ἔγνων, 

οὔτε, ἐὰν ἀπέλθῃς, γνώσομαι.

Κώνωψ  ...  A gnat

ἐπιστὰς κέρατι ταύρου  ...  settled down on a bull's horn 

καὶ πολὺν χρόνον ἐπικαθίσας  ...  and sat there a long time. 

ἐπειδὴ ἀπαλλάττεσθαι ἔμελλεν  ...  When he was about to fly off, 

ἐπυνθάνετο τοῦ ταύρου  ...  he asked the bull 

εἰ ἤδη βούλεται αὐτὸν ἀπελθεῖν  ...  if he wanted him to go now. 

Ὁ δὲ ὑποτυχὼν εἶπεν  ...  The bull said in reply, 

ἀλλ’ οὔτε, ὅτε ἦλθες, ἔγνων  ...  Not only did I not notice when you came, 

οὔτε, ἐὰν ἀπέλθῃς, γνώσομαι  ...  but I won't notice if you go away.

illustration by Rackham

Ἀλεκτόρων δύο

Ἀλεκτόρων δύο μαχομένων περὶ θηλειῶν ὀρνίθων ὁ εἷς τὸν ἕτερον κατετροπώσατο. Καὶ ὁ μὲν ἡττηθεὶς εἰς τόπον κατάσκιον ἀπιὼν ἐκρύβη· ὁ δὲ νικήσας εἰς ὕψος ἀρθεὶς καὶ ἐφ᾽ ὑψηλοῦ τοίχου στὰς μεγαλοφώνως ἐβόησε. Καὶ παρευθὺς ἀετὸς καταπτὰς ἥρπασεν αὐτόν.

Ἀλεκτόρων δύο 

μαχομένων περὶ θηλειῶν ὀρνίθων 

ὁ εἷς τὸν ἕτερον κατετροπώσατο. 

Καὶ ὁ μὲν ἡττηθεὶς 

εἰς τόπον κατάσκιον ἀπιὼν 

ἐκρύβη· 

ὁ δὲ νικήσας 

εἰς ὕψος ἀρθεὶς 

καὶ ἐφ᾽ ὑψηλοῦ τοίχου στὰς 

μεγαλοφώνως ἐβόησε. 

Καὶ παρευθὺς 

ἀετὸς καταπτὰς 

ἥρπασεν αὐτόν.

Ἀλεκτόρων δύο  ...  Two roosters

μαχομένων περὶ θηλειῶν ὀρνίθων  ...  were fighting over female birds,

ὁ εἷς τὸν ἕτερον κατετροπώσατο  ...  and one chased away the other.

Καὶ ὁ μὲν ἡττηθεὶς  ...  The one who was defeated 

εἰς τόπον κατάσκιον ἀπιὼν  ...  went off into a shady place

ἐκρύβη  ...  and hid, 

ὁ δὲ νικήσας  ...  but the one who won 

εἰς ὕψος ἀρθεὶς  ...  flew up to a high place 

καὶ ἐφ᾽ ὑψηλοῦ τοίχου στὰς  ...  and standing on the rooftop 

μεγαλοφώνως ἐβόησε  ...  he let out a mighty cock-a-doodle-doo. 

Καὶ παρευθὺς  ...  And straight away

ἀετὸς καταπτὰς  ...  an eagle swooped down

ἥρπασεν αὐτόν  ...  and carried him off.

illustration by Grandville

Πλοῖα ἀσφαλέστερα

Δειλὸς ἐρωτηθείς, ποῖα τῶν πλοίων ἀσφαλέστερα, τὰ μακρὰ ἢ τὰ στρογγύλα; ἔφη· τὰ νενεωλκημένα.

Δειλὸς ἐρωτηθείς

ποῖα τῶν πλοίων ἀσφαλέστερα, 

τὰ μακρὰ ἢ τὰ στρογγύλα; 

ἔφη· 

τὰ νενεωλκημένα.

Δειλὸς ἐρωτηθείς  ...  A coward was asked

ποῖα τῶν πλοίων ἀσφαλέστερα  ...  which ships are safest, 

τὰ μακρὰ ἢ τὰ στρογγύλα  ...  ships of war or merchant ships. 

ἔφη  ...  He said,

τὰ νενεωλκημένα  ...  Ships hauled up on the land!

Δειλὸς κυνηγὸς

Δειλὸς κυνηγὸς συνεχῶς τὴν νύκτα ὑπὸ ἄρκτου διωκόμενος ἐν ὕπνῳ, κύνας μισθωσάμενος μεθ' ἑαυτοῦ ἐκοίμιζεν. 

Δειλὸς κυνηγὸς  ...  A cowardly hunter

συνεχῶς τὴν νύκτα  ...  non-stop all night 

ὑπὸ ἄρκτου διωκόμενος  ...  was chased by a bear 

ἐν ὕπνῳ  ...  in his sleep, 

κύνας μισθωσάμενος  ...  so he bought some dogs 

μεθ' ἑαυτοῦ ἐκοίμιζεν  ...  and had them sleep with him. 

bear mosaic from Pompeii

And here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too :

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Greek Vocabulary Challenge: April 17

Here are today's vocabulary words; it's Group 159. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion:

βοῦς ~ βοός (noun c.): ox, cow 

πούς ~ ποδός (noun m.): foot 

πῦρ ~ πυρός (noun n.): fire 

γέρων ~ γέροντος (noun m.): old; old man 

ἀδελφός~ ἀδελφοῦ (noun m.): brother 

These are the proverbs (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Βοῦς ἐφ' ἑαυτῷ κονιεῖται.

Ἐκτὸς πηλοῦ πόδας ἔχεις. 

Εἰς τὸ πῦρ ἐκ τοῦ κάπνου.

Γέρων δὲ καὶ μῦς οὐχ ἁλισκεται πάγῃ.

Τίς ἐστιν ἡ μήτηρ μου καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοί;

And now, some commentary:

Βοῦς ἐφ' ἑαυτῷ κονιεῖται.

The ox kicks up dust upon himself.

The saying refers to someone who in anger or stubbornness only manages to bring trouble upon himself. The noun βοῦς is common gender, but the pronoun ἑαυτῷ marks this instance as masculine. The verb κονίω is from the noun κόνις, "dust," which is cognate with Latin cinis, from which we get "incinerate."

Ἐκτὸς πηλοῦ πόδας ἔχεις. 

You've got your feet outside of the mud.

This means you're in a good position, not likely to slip and slide into some kind of disaster. The word ἐκτός can be used as a preposition with the genitive, as here, and it can also be used as an adverb. You can see this root in English "ectoplasm." You can see Greek πούς in English "podium."

Εἰς τὸ πῦρ ἐκ τοῦ κάπνου.

Into the fire from the smoke.

Compare the English saying, "Out of the frying pan and into the fire." You can see Greek πῦρ in English "pyre" (with the -y- as a clue to its Greek origin).

Γέρων δὲ καὶ μῦς οὐχ ἁλισκεται πάγῃ.

Someone old, even a mouse, is not caught in a trap.

The idea is that experience, which comes with age, teaches animals, even mice, to beware of traps set for them. You can see Greek γέρων in English "gerontology."

Τίς ἐστιν ἡ μήτηρ μου καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοί;

Who is my mother and who are my brothers?

The words are spoken by Jesus in the Gospel of Mark when his mother and brothers have come to find him. Answering his own question, he then says that his fellow believers are his mother and brothers:  ἴδε ἡ μήτηρ μου καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοί μου, "Behold my mother and my brothers." The story is also told in the Gospel of Matthew and in the Gospel of Luke. For more information, see Wikipedia: Jesus' true relatives, which is the source for this 14th-century Orthodox illustration:

And here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too :

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Greek Reading: Fables 47

Both the fables and the joke below come from Abbott's Easy Greek Reader which is available at the Internet Archive. 

So, here are the stories in Greek, then segmented, and then interwoven with English. The titles are linked to the Internet Archive page.

Δράκων καὶ ἀετὸς 

Δράκων καὶ ἀετὸς συμπλακέντες ἀλλήλοις ἐμάχοντο· καὶ ὁ μὲν δράκων εἶχε τὸν ἀετὸν συλλαβών. Γεωργὸς δὲ ἰδὼν λύσας τὴν πλοκὴν τοῦ δράκοντος αὐτόνομον ἀφῆκε τὸν ἀετόν. Χαλεπήνας δὲ ἐπὶ τούτοις ὁ δράκων ἰὸν ἀφῆκε τῷ τοῦ σώσαντος πόματι. Πιεῖν δὲ τοῦ γεωργοῦ πρὸς ἄγνοιαν μέλλοντος ὁ ἀετὸς καταπτὰς τῶν τοῦ γεωργοῦ χειρῶν ἐξαιρεῖται τὴν κύλικα.

Δράκων καὶ ἀετὸς 

συμπλακέντες ἀλλήλοις 

ἐμάχοντο· 

καὶ ὁ μὲν δράκων 

εἶχε τὸν ἀετὸν 

συλλαβών. 

Γεωργὸς δὲ ἰδὼν 

λύσας τὴν πλοκὴν τοῦ δράκοντος 

αὐτόνομον ἀφῆκε τὸν ἀετόν. 

Χαλεπήνας δὲ ἐπὶ τούτοις 

ὁ δράκων 

ἰὸν ἀφῆκε τῷ τοῦ σώσαντος πόματι. 

Πιεῖν δὲ τοῦ γεωργοῦ 

πρὸς ἄγνοιαν μέλλοντος 

ὁ ἀετὸς καταπτὰς 

τῶν τοῦ γεωργοῦ χειρῶν 

ἐξαιρεῖται τὴν κύλικα.

Δράκων καὶ ἀετὸς  ...  A serpent and an eagle

ἐμάχοντο  ...  were fighting

συμπλακέντες ἀλλήλοις  ...  entangled with one another,

καὶ ὁ μὲν δράκων  ...   and when the serpent

συλλαβών  ...  grabbed 

εἶχε τὸν ἀετὸν  ...  and held the eagle, 

γεωργὸς δὲ ἰδὼν  ...  a farmer saw 

λύσας  ...  and loosened 

τὴν πλοκὴν τοῦ δράκοντος  ...  the serpent's coil 

αὐτόνομον ἀφῆκε τὸν ἀετόν  ...  let the eagle go free. 

Χαλεπήνας δὲ ἐπὶ τούτοις  ...  Angry at them, 

ὁ δράκων ἰὸν ἀφῆκε ...  the serpent squirted poison

τῷ τοῦ σώσαντος πόματι  ...  into the rescuer's drink. 

τοῦ γεωργοῦ  ... When the farmer

πιεῖν δὲ μέλλοντος  ... was about to drink,

πρὸς ἄγνοιαν  ... unsuspecting,

ὁ ἀετὸς καταπτὰς  ... the eagle swooped down

ἐξαιρεῖται τὴν κύλικα  ... seized the cup

τῶν τοῦ γεωργοῦ χειρῶν  ... out of the farmer's hands.

Byzantine mosaic

Ζεὺς καὶ Ἀπόλλων

Ζεὺς καὶ Ἀπόλλων περὶ τοξικῆς ἤριζον· τοῦ δὲ Ἀπόλλωνος ἐκτείναντος τὸ τόξον καὶ τὸ βέλος ἀφέντος, Ζεὺς τοσοῦτον διέβη, ὅσον Ἀπόλλων ἐτόξευσεν.

Ζεὺς καὶ Ἀπόλλων 

περὶ τοξικῆς ἤριζον· 

τοῦ δὲ Ἀπόλλωνος 

ἐκτείναντος τὸ τόξον 

καὶ τὸ βέλος ἀφέντος, 

Ζεὺς τοσοῦτον διέβη, 

ὅσον Ἀπόλλων ἐτόξευσεν.

Ζεὺς καὶ Ἀπόλλων  ... Zeus and Apollo

περὶ τοξικῆς ἤριζον  ... were competing at archery. 

τοῦ δὲ Ἀπόλλωνος  ... After Apollo 

ἐκτείναντος τὸ τόξον  ... stretched his bow 

καὶ τὸ βέλος ἀφέντος  ... and let loose the arrow, 

Ζεὺς τοσοῦτον διέβη  ... Zeus took a step as long 

ὅσον Ἀπόλλων ἐτόξευσεν  ... as Apollo had shot.

Zeus at Olympia

Σχολαστικὸς καὶ ἰατρός 

Σχολαστικῷ τις ἰατρῷ προσελθὼν εἰπεν· ἰατρέ, ὅταν ἀναστῶ ἐκ τοῦ ὕπνουν, ἡμιώριον ἐσκότωμαι, καὶ εἶθ' οὕτως ἀποκαθίσταμαι. καὶ ὁ ἰατρός· μετὰ τὸ ἡμιώριον ἐγείρου.

Σχολαστικῷ τις 

ἰατρῷ προσελθὼν 

εἰπεν· 

ἰατρέ, 

ὅταν ἀναστῶ ἐκ τοῦ ὕπνουν, 

ἡμιώριον ἐσκότωμαι, 

καὶ εἶθ' οὕτως ἀποκαθίσταμαι. 

καὶ ὁ ἰατρός· 

μετὰ τὸ ἡμιώριον ἐγείρου.

Σχολαστικῷ τις  ...  A dunce 

ἰατρῷ προσελθὼν  ...  went to the doctor 

εἰπεν  ...  and said. 

ἰατρέ  ...  Doctor, 

ὅταν ἀναστῶ ἐκ τοῦ ὕπνουν  ...  whenever I get up from sleep, 

ἡμιώριον ἐσκότωμαι  ...  I'm dizzy for a half-hour, 

καὶ εἶθ' οὕτως ἀποκαθίσταμαι  ...  and then after that I'm fine.

καὶ ὁ ἰατρός  ...  And the doctor (said), 

μετὰ τὸ ἡμιώριον ἐγείρου  ...  Get up a half-hour later!

And here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too :

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Crossword Puzzle 19-20-21

The proverbs for today come from back in Group 19, Group 20, and Group 21; you can visit those blog posts for the translations and more information. 

• Ἀεί τι καινὸν ἡμέρα παιδεύεται.
  
• Ἀνδρὶ σοφῷ πᾶσα γῆ βατή.
  
• Ἄνδρῶν ἡρώων τέκνα πήματα.
  
• Βελλεροφόντης τὰ γράμματα.
  
• Δεινῆς ἀνάγκης οὐδὲν ἰσχυρότερον.
  
• Δὶς κράμβη θάνατος.
  
• Ἐλέφαντα ἐκ μυίας ποιεῖς.
  
• Ἰατρὲ, θεράπευσον σεαυτόν.
  
• Καδμεία νίκη.
  
• Μέτρον ἄριστον.
  
• Μὴ μοῦ τοὺς κύκλους τάραττε.
  
• Οὐδείς ἐστιν ἅπαντα σοφός.
  
• Ὄφιν ἐν τῷ κόλπῳ τρέφεις.
  
• Πολιτικὸν ζῷον ὁ ἄνθρωπος.
  
• Φάρμακον ὀργῆς ὁ χρόνος.
  

I got some nice feedback about the proverbs with all the spaces removed as being easier and more useful than the jumbles, so that's what I'll include along with the crossword puzzles for these old sets of proverbs. :-)

Κ α δ μ ε ι α ν ι κ η.

Μ ε τ ρ ο ν α ρ ι ς τ ο ν.

Δ ι ς κ ρ α μ β η θ α ν α τ ο ς.

Α ν δ ρ ι ς ο φ ῳ π α ς α γ η β α τ η.

Ο φ ι ν ε ν τ ῳ κ ο λ π ῳ τ ρ ε φ ε ι ς.

Φ α ρ μ α κ ο ν ο ρ γ η ς ο χ ρ ο ν ο ς.

Ε λ ε φ α ν τ α ε κ μ υ ι α ς π ο ι ε ι ς.

Ο υ δ ε ι ς ε ς τ ι ν α π α ν τ α ς ο φ ος.

Α ν δ ρ ω ν η ρ ω ω ν τ ε κ ν α π η μ α τ α.

Ι α τ ρ ε θ ε ρ α π ε υ ς ο ν ς ε α υ τ ο ν.

Π ο λ ι τ ι κ ο ν ζ ῳ ο ν ο α ν θ ρ ω π ο ς.

Β ε λ λ ε ρ ο φ ο ν τ η ς τ α γ ρ α μ μ α τ α.

Μ η μ ο υ τ ο υ ς κ υ κ λ ο υ ς τ α ρ α τ τ ε.

And here's the crossword puzzled based on a missing word from each proverb: printable Crossword PDF. I've pasted in screenshots below so you can see what the crossword looks like:

And here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too :

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Greek Reading: Fables 46

Today's fable comes from Abbott's Easy Greek Reader, and the jokes come from Colton's Greek Reader. Both books are available at the Internet Archive. 

So, here are the stories in Greek, then segmented, and then interwoven with English. The titles are linked to the Internet Archive page.

Γαλῆ

(Abbot titles this  fable"Cat" because the Greeks kepts weasels as mousers, much like we keep cats, but the fable is definitely not about a cat: it's about a weasel!)

Γαλῆ εἰσελθοῦσα εἰς χαλκέως ἐργαστήριον, τὴν ἐκεῖ κειμένην ῥίνην περιέλειχε. Συνέβη δὲ ἐκτριβομένης τῆς γλώσσης πολὺ αἷμα φέρεσθαι. Ἡ δὲ ἐτέρπετο, ὑπονοῦσά τι τοῦ σιδήρου ἀφαιρεῖσθαι, μέχρι παντελῶς ἀπέβαλε τὴν γλῶσσαν.

Γαλῆ εἰσελθοῦσα 

εἰς χαλκέως ἐργαστήριον, 

τὴν ἐκεῖ κειμένην ῥίνην 

περιέλειχε. 

Συνέβη δὲ 

ἐκτριβομένης τῆς γλώσσης 

πολὺ αἷμα φέρεσθαι. 

Ἡ δὲ ἐτέρπετο, 

ὑπονοῦσά 

τι τοῦ σιδήρου ἀφαιρεῖσθαι, 

μέχρι παντελῶς 

ἀπέβαλε τὴν γλῶσσαν.

Γαλῆ εἰσελθοῦσα  ... A weasel went into

εἰς χαλκέως ἐργαστήριον  ... a metalwork shop, 

περιέλειχε  ... and she licked all around

τὴν ῥίνην  ... an iron file 

ἐκεῖ κειμένην  ... that was lying there. 

Συνέβη δὲ  ... It happened that 

ἐκτριβομένης τῆς γλώσσης  ... as her tongue wore away

πολὺ αἷμα φέρεσθαι  ... lots of blood flowed. 

Ἡ δὲ ἐτέρπετο  ... She was delighted 

ὑπονοῦσά  ... supposing 

τι τοῦ σιδήρου ἀφαιρεῖσθαι  ... the blood came from the iron, 

μέχρι παντελῶς  ... until she completely 

ἀπέβαλε τὴν γλῶσσαν  ... wore away her tongue.

I don't have an illustration of the weasel and the file, but there is another version of this fable with a viper and a file, so here's one of those illustrations:

viper and file

Σχολαστικὸς καὶ οἶνος

Σχολαστικὸς ἀμιναῖαν ἔχων, ἐσφράγισεν αὐτήν. Τοῦ δὲ δούλου κάτωθεν τρήσαντος, καὶ τὸν οἶνον αἴροντος, ἐθαύμαζεν ὅτι, τῶν σημάντρων σώων ὄντων, ὁ οἶνος ἐλαττοῦτο. Ἕτερος δὲ εἶπεν, Ὅρα μὴ κάτωθεν ἀφῃρέθη. Ὁ δὲ, Ἀμαθέστατε, εἶπεν, οὐ τὸ κάτωθεν λείπει, ἀλλὰ τὸ ἄνωθεν μέρος.

Σχολαστικὸς 

ἀμιναῖαν ἔχων, 

ἐσφράγισεν αὐτήν. 

Τοῦ δὲ δούλου 

κάτωθεν τρήσαντος, 

καὶ τὸν οἶνον αἴροντος, 

ἐθαύμαζεν 

ὅτι τῶν σημάντρων 

σώων ὄντων, 

ὁ οἶνος ἐλαττοῦτο. 

Ἕτερος δὲ εἶπεν, 

Ὅρα μὴ κάτωθεν ἀφῃρέθη. 

Ὁ δὲ, 

Ἀμαθέστατε, εἶπεν, 

οὐ τὸ κάτωθεν λείπει, 

ἀλλὰ τὸ ἄνωθεν μέρος.

Σχολαστικὸς  ...  A dunce

ἀμιναῖαν ἔχων  ...  had some Falernian wine, 

ἐσφράγισεν αὐτήν  ...  and sealed it. 

Τοῦ δὲ δούλου  ...  One of the dunce's slaves 

κάτωθεν τρήσαντος  ...  made a hole in the bottom, 

καὶ τὸν οἶνον αἴροντος  ...  and took the wine. 

ἐθαύμαζεν  ...  The dunce was baffled

ὅτι τῶν σημάντρων  ...  since the jar seals 

σώων ὄντων  ...  were not broken, 

ὁ οἶνος ἐλαττοῦτο  ...  but the wine was going down. 

Ἕτερος δὲ εἶπεν  ...  Another man said, 

Ὅρα μὴ ἀφῃρέθη  ...  See if the wine isn't being taken

κάτωθεν  ...  from down below.

Ὁ δὲ εἶπεν  ...  And the dunce said, 

Ἀμαθέστατε,  ...  You idiot! 

οὐ τὸ κάτωθεν λείπει  ...  The wine is not missing below; 

ἀλλὰ τὸ ἄνωθεν μέρος  ...  it's the part on top that's gone.

ancient Greek wine jar

Σχολαστικοῦ υἱὸς

Σχολαστικοῦ υἱὸς, ὑπὸ τοῦ πατρὸς εἰς πόλεμον ἐκπεμπόμενος, ὑπέσχετο ἑνὸς τῶν ἐχθρῶν κεφαλὴν ἀγαγεῖν. Ὁ δὲ ἔφη· Εὔχομαι, καὶ χωρὶς κεφαλῆς σε ἐλθόντα, μόνον ὑγιῆ ὄντα ἰδεῖν καὶ εὐφρανθῆναι.

Σχολαστικοῦ υἱὸς, 

ὑπὸ τοῦ πατρὸς 

εἰς πόλεμον ἐκπεμπόμενος, 

ὑπέσχετο 

ἑνὸς τῶν ἐχθρῶν κεφαλὴν ἀγαγεῖν. 

Ὁ δὲ ἔφη· 

Εὔχομαι, 

καὶ χωρὶς κεφαλῆς σε ἐλθόντα, 

μόνον ὑγιῆ ὄντα ἰδεῖν 

καὶ εὐφρανθῆναι.

Σχολαστικοῦ υἱὸς  ...  The son of a dunce, 

εἰς πόλεμον ἐκπεμπόμενος  ...  sent off to war 

ὑπὸ τοῦ πατρὸς  ...  by his father,

ὑπέσχετο  ...  promised 

κεφαλὴν ἀγαγεῖν  ...  to bring back the head

ἑνὸς τῶν ἐχθρῶν  ...  of one of his enemies.

Ὁ δὲ ἔφη  ...  The dunce said, 

Εὔχομαι  ...  I hope that

ἰδεῖν καὶ εὐφρανθῆναι  ...  I can rejoice seeing

σε ἐλθόντα  ...  you come back

καὶ χωρὶς κεφαλῆς  ...  even without a head, 

μόνον ὑγιῆ ὄντα  ... so long as you are healthy.

And here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too :

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