Lesson 10

Present Subjunctive Tense

The present subjunctive tense is usually used in conditional and relative clauses, also in clauses that express wishes, are negative, or pseudo-interrogative. Putting it another way, this tense is used in those clauses which are not declarative, that is, they don't express things that certainly happen or will happen. The clauses in which the present subjunctive is used usually begin with words like յորժամ (when), ուր (where), եթէ (if, that), թէ (if, that), որ (that), թող (let), թերեւս (perhaps), մարթ է զի (it is possible that), հարկ է զի (it is necessary that), գուցէ (perhaps), մի՛ գուցէ (lest), etc.

The present subjunctive can be translated either with a present or a future tense, that is why in some grammar books (usually authored by Soviet and post-Soviet Armenian scholars from Armenia) this tense is called “first future” (of the indicative mood at that). However, the name “present subjunctive” is more correct. If you don't know how to translate the verbs in present subjunctive, first try a present tense, and only when you see it doesn't suit the context, translate with a future tense.

The present subjunctive is formed from the present stem of the verb (see Lesson 7) + endings.

Let us conjugate the following verbs: տեսանել, ծնանիլ, բարձրանալ, ընկենուլ.

Conjugation “ե”

տեսանել - to see [tesanel]

տեսան -  the present stem

տեսան + ից+եմ - տեսանիցեմ - (if) I see [tesanic'em]

տեսան +ից+ես - տեսանիցես - (if) you see [tesanic'es]

տեսան +ից+է - տեսանիցէ - (if) he/she/it sees [tesanic'e:]

տեսան +ից+եմք - տեսանիցեմք - (if) we see [tesanic'emk']

տեսան +ից+էք - տեսանիցէք - (if) you see [tesanic'ek']

տեսան +ից+են - տեսանիցեն - (if) they see [tesanic'en]

Did you notice that the endings after -ից are the same with the endings of the present indicative, which we have already learned?

Conjugation “ի”

ծնանիլ - to give birth, to be born* [cәnanil]

(* The verbs of conjugation “ի” having the same form for both active and passive voices are sometimes called “common” verbs.)

ծնան - the present stem

ծնան + ից + իմ - ծնանիցիմ - (if) I give birth [cәnanic'im]

ծնան + ից + իս - ծնանիցիս - (if) you give birth [cәnanic'is]

ծնան + ից + ի - ծնանիցի - (if) he/she/it gives birth [cәnanic'i]

ծնան + ից + իմք - ծնանիցիմք - (if) we give birth [cәnanic'imk']

ծնան + ից + իք - ծնանիցիք - (if) you give birth [cәnanic'ik']

ծնան + ից + ին - ծնանիցին - (if) they give birth [cәnanic'in]

Conjugation “ա”

բարձրանալ - to rise, ascend, climb up [bardz'ranal] or [barc'ranal]*

(* See about this pronunciation in Lesson 2, Note in the “For Practice” section.)

բարձրան - the present stem

բարձրան + այց + եմ - բարձրանայցեմ - (if) I rise [barc'ranayc'em]

բարձրան + այց + ես - բարձրանայցես - (if) you rise [barc'ranayc'es]

բարձրան + այց + է - բարձրանայցէ - (if) he/she/it rises [barc'ranayc'e:]

բարձրան + այց + եմք - բարձրանայցեմք - (if) we rise [barc'ranayc'emk']

բարձրան + այց + էք - բարձրանայցէք - (if) you rise [barc'ranayc'ek']

բարձրան + այց + են - բարձրանայցեն - (if) they rise [barc'ranayc'en]

Conjugation “ու”

ընկենուլ - to throw

ընկեն - the present stem

ընկեն + ուց + ում - ընկենուցում - (if) I throw [әnkenuc'um]

ընկեն + ուց + ուս - ընկենուցուս - (if) you throw [әnkenuc'us]

ընկեն + ուց + ու - ընկենուցու - (if) he/she/it throws [әnkenuc'u]

ընկեն + ուց + ումք - ընկենուցումք - (if) we throw [әnkenuc'umk']

ընկեն + ուց + ուք - ընկենուցուք - (if) you throw [әnkenuc'uk']

ընկեն + ուց + ուն - ընկենուցուն - (if) they throw [әnkenuc'un]

 

The present subjunctive of the short forms of the verb “to be”

They are formed in the following pattern:

ից + the present indicative short forms of the verb “to be” (see Lesson 3).

Or, they are identical with the present subjunctive endings of the conjugation “ե”.

իցեմ [ic'em]

իցես [ic'es]

իցէ [ic'e:]

իցեմք [ic'emk']

իցէք [ic'ek']

իցեն [ic'en]

About prefixes and suffixes of Classical Armenian

The Classical Armenian language (and Armenian generally) is very rich with suffixes and is very flexible when forming new words with suffixes. But you'll find very few prefixes in Mesropian Armenian (see Lesson 4), because most of the prefixes that we find in Post-Mesropian Armenian were created artificially by the Armenian grammarians of the so-called Graecophil School at the end of the fifth century. Here are Armenian prefixes created by those grammarians, and their Greek equivalents:

ապ- apo-, ap-

առ- pros-

արտ- ek-, ex-

բաղ- syn-

բաց- apo-

գեր- hyper-

դեր- anti-

ենթ- hypo-

հակ- anti-

հոմ- homo-

մակ- epi-

յար- para-, syn-

ներ- en-

շաղ- syn-

շար- syn-

պար- peri-

ստոր- hypo-

վեր- ana-

տար- para-, dia-

փաղ- syn-

տրամ- dia-

փար- peri-

փոխ- meta-

The verb “to be” + genitive case of nouns/pronouns

This pattern expresses possession.

- Իցէ՞ քո տուն անդ։ Do you have a house there?

- Այո՛, է իմ տուն անդ։ Yes, I have a house there.

Է տուն եւ եղբարց իմոց։ My brothers too have a house.

Այլ տուն նոցա մեծ է քան զիմն։ But their house is bigger than mine.

Քո, իմ, եղբարց and նոցա are the genitive cases of ես, դու, եղբարք and նոքա (I, you, brothers, they) and mean “my”, “your”, “of brothers” and “their”. But since they are used with the verb “to be”, they are translated as “I”, “you”, “brothers”, “they”, and the verb is translated with the verb “have”.

իմ (im) - my

ձեր (dz'er) - your (plural)

նոցա (noc‘a) - their

եղբարք (yełbark‘) - brothers

եղբարց (yełbarc‘) - of brothers

իմոց (imoc‘) - my (genitive, plural)

քան (k‘an) - than

Reading
(Please hover over each word to see the translation)

Գիտիցէ՞ք արդեւք զինչ է այս։  
Եթէ երթայցես ի տուն, կե՛ր հաց եւ ա՛րբ ջուր, զի մի՛ նուաղիցիս։  
Զիա՞րդ ուտիցեն, եթէ չկամին գործել։  
Զի՞նչ է զոր դու գիտիցես, եւ մեք ոչ գիտիցեմք։  
Որ ասիցէ թէ ի լոյս իցէ եւ զեղբայր իւր ատիցէ, սուտ է։  
Ոչ կարէ ոք խաւսել լեզու ինչ, եթէ ոչ նախ ուսանիցի զայն։  
Ասէ Եսաւ ցհայրն իւր. «Միթէ մի՞ աւրհնութիւն իցէ քո, հայր․ աւրհնեա՛»։

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միթէ (mit‘e) - really, indeed. This word doesn't have its English equivalent and is sometimes omitted in translation. It is used in interrogative sentences.

արդեւք (a later form: արդեաւք=արդեօք) (ardyok‘) - really, indeed. This word doesn't have its English equivalent and is usually omitted in translation. It is used mainly in interrogative, sometimes in negative sentences.

հաց ուտել (hac' utel) - literally means to eat bread, but in Armenian (both in Classical and modern) this expression is also an idiom, which means “to dine”, to eat (anything).

ուտել (utel) - to eat

նուաղիլ (nəvałil) - to faint

գործել (gorcel) - to work

զիարդ (ziard) - how

սուտ (sut) - 1. a lie. 2. a liar

ատել (atel) - to hate

կարել (karel) - to be able, can

նախ (nax) - first, firstly, in the first place (do not confuse this with the ordinal number 
առաջին (first))

մի՛ (mi) - not; used in the imperative mood and usually with the stress mark on it to be distinguished from the number մի (one).

աւրհնութիւն (orhnut‘iun) - blessing

աւրհնել (orhnel) - to bless

մի - one