Comparative Grammar

Article

English
Greek
Latin
German
French
Hebrew
Spanish
Others

English

Definite article: the

Indefinite article: a, an.

"An" is used before a noun which give a vowel sound when it is pronounced. For example, an hour (h is silent.)

Greek

Reference: Wenham, The Elements of New Testament Greek (Cambridge: CUP, 1984).
Robertson, A.T. A Grammar of The Greek New Testament in the Lihgt of Hitorical Research (Nashville: Broadman, 1934).

Lesson 8 : Case of Noun / Definite Article

Greek is in Symbol font, except the two Nominative in SPIonic font.

Please download this font and put it in your computer, under C:\WINDOWS\Fonts directory.

The definite article: Textbook Lesson 6 (p. 34)

It follows the noun except the Nominative (No Vocative!).

Masculine nouns

Case
Meaning
Singular
Plural

Nominative :

Vocative:

Accusative:

Genitive:

Dative:

Subject - The God

------------

Direct Object - The God

possessive - of the God

indirect Object - to/for the God

o(

--------------

t+on

t+ou

t+w(i)

oi(

--------

t+ouV

t+wn

t+oiV

The article change with nouns. A noun can be feminine, masculine, or neuter. Besides, each noun has five cases, therefore 24 definite articles are there.

But there is no indefinite article. Logos can mean word, or a word.

Special attention: When there is no definite article used on a noun, then it may refer to the nature of quality described by the noun.

For example, a very controversial usage in John 1. When there is no article article on "theos" (god), then it can mean "nature of god (divinity)." Not necessary the only God. But the problem case may be caused by Rhetorical reason or grammatical habit.

Latin

Reference: Smith, F. Kinchin. Teach Yourself Latin (London: English Universities Press, 1962).

There is no word for the or a, the definite and indefinite artcle. For example, Insula means an island or the island, in which the meaning is depended on the context. (p.25)

German (Deutsche)

Reference: Gewehr, Wolf and von Schmidt Wolff A. German Review & Readings (New York: Rinehart and Winston, 1973).

Definite Articles (and der-words follows this too.)

Singular
Masculine
Feminine
Neuter
Plural
Nominative
der
die
das
die
Genitive
des
der
des
der
Dative
dem
der
dem
den
Accusative
den
die
das
die

Several pronouns are declined like the definite article and are called der-words. For example, alle (pl.) all

Indefinite Articles (and ein-words follows this too.)

Singular
Masculine
Feminine
Neuter
Nominative
ein
eine
ein
Genitive
eines
einer
eines
Dative
einem
einer
einem
Accusative
einen
eine
ein

All possessive pronouns and the word kein are declined like the indefinite articles and are called ein-words. For example, andere (pl.) , other , different.

French (Francaise)

Reference: Handbook of French Grammar (in Simplified Chinese)

There are three kinds of articles in French.
Definite (L'article défini)
Indefinite (L'article indéfini)
Partitive (L'article partitif)
Singular
Plural
Singular
Plural
Singular
Plural
Masculine
le
les
un
des
du
des
Feminine
la
une
de la

When the articles, le, les are preceded by preposition à, or de
Definite (L'article défini)
le
les
à
à + le = au
à + les = aux
de
de + le = du
de + les = des

 

Spanish (Espanol)

Spanish

Hebrew (one of Semitic)

Reference: Seow, C. L. A Grammar for Biblical Hebrew (Nashville: Abingdon, 1990).

There is no indefinite article in Hebrew. "malek" can mean either king or a king.

The definite article is a "h" attached to the beginning of the noun.

For example, the king = h(a) + mmalek. (ha + dages forte) p.31.

Others

Reference: Lord, Robert Comparative Linguistics

 

Short comparison on the usuage: Related factors: gender, number, definiteness, case

Language
Definiteness
Number
Gender
Case
English
Definite (1), Indefinite (2)
-
-
-
Greek
Definite only (24)
s. + pl.
Declension
4 : NGDA
Latin
No!
-
-
-
German
Definite (16)
s. + pl.
M, F, N
4 : NGDA
Indefinite (12)
s. + pl.
M, F, N
4 : NGDA
French
Definite (3)
s. + pl.
M, F
-
Indefinite (3)
s. + pl.
M, F
-
Partitive (3)
s. + pl.
M, F
-
Hebrew
Definite only (1)
The definite article is a "h" attached to the beginning of the noun.