# BBG Chapter 16 — Present Active Indicative

## Files

### Exercises

Exercise | Description
--- | ---
exercises/ch16-present-active-parsing/ | 20-item drill: parse present active indicative forms (tense/voice/mood/person/number/root) and translate

### Flashcards

File | Description
--- | ---
ch16-vocab-deck.md | Human-readable card list — 12 vocabulary words
ch16-vocab-deck.txt | Anki import file (File → Import)
ch16-vocab-deck-fd.txt | Flashcards Deluxe import file

### Notebooks

Notebook | What it shows
--- | ---
GNT Verb Morphology | Tense/voice/mood profiles — present tense in context
Genre Comparison | Greek present tense distribution across Gospels / Pauline / General epistles

Basics of Biblical Greek Grammar, Mounce, 4th Edition

## 1. Overview

The Present Active Indicative (PAI) is the most common verbal form in the GNT. It combines:

- Present tense stem — the base form learned in vocabulary
- Connecting vowel (ο/ε) — links stem to ending
- Primary active personal endings — mark person and number

The aspect is imperfective: the action is viewed as ongoing, repeated, or in progress. In the indicative mood, this aspect typically corresponds to present time.

> Aspect note: "I am loosing" (in progress), "I loose" (general/habitual), or "I keep loosing" (repeated action) are all valid translations depending on context.

## 2. Paradigm Verb — λύω ("I loose, I destroy")

λύω is the standard paradigm verb for learning Greek endings in BBG. Its present stem is λυ-.

### Present Active Indicative — λύω

Person | Singular | Translation | Plural | Translation
--- | --- | --- | --- | ---
1st | λύω | I am loosing / I loose | λύομεν | We are loosing / we loose
2nd | λύεις | You are loosing | λύετε | You (pl.) are loosing
3rd | λύει | He/she/it is loosing | λύουσι(ν) | They are loosing

### How the form is built

Component | Value | Notes
--- | --- | ---
Present stem | λυ- | From vocabulary lexical form
Connecting vowel | ο or ε | ο before μ/ν; ε elsewhere
Personal ending | see below | Primary active endings

## 3. Primary Active Endings

These endings appear on the present, future, and perfect active indicative.

Person | Singular | Plural
--- | --- | ---
1st | -ω | -ομεν
2nd | -εις | -ετε
3rd | -ει | -ουσι(ν)

> Note on contractions:
> - 1sg: λυ + ο + ω → λύω (connecting vowel + ending merged)
> - 2sg: λυ + ε + ς → λύεις (connecting vowel ε contracts with ε+ς)
> - 3sg: λυ + ε + ι → λύει
> - 3pl: λυ + ο + νσι → λύουσι(ν) (ν is movable — added before vowels or at end of sentence)

## 4. The Connecting Vowel in Detail

Form | Stem | C.V. | Ending | Result
--- | --- | --- | --- | ---
λύω | λυ- | ο | -ω | λύω (ο absorbed into -ω)
λύεις | λυ- | ε | -ις | λύεις
λύει | λυ- | ε | -ι | λύει
λύομεν | λυ- | ο | -μεν | λύομεν
λύετε | λυ- | ε | -τε | λύετε
λύουσι | λυ- | ο | -νσι | λύουσι (ο+νσι → ουσι)

## 5. Aspect and Translation

The present active indicative expresses imperfective aspect — the action is viewed as in progress, ongoing, or repeated:

English gloss | When to use
--- | ---
"I am loosing" | Emphasizes ongoing action in the present moment
"I loose" | General, habitual, or gnomic statement
"I keep loosing" | Repeated or iterative action

Context determines which nuance fits. In narrative, "I am V-ing" is often natural; in general statements or teaching, the simple present works.

## 6. Parsing Format

When parsing a present active indicative verb, give these 6 elements:

> Tense — Voice — Mood — Person — Number — Lexical form (= translation)

Example: λύουσιν → Present Active Indicative 3rd Plural λύω = "they are loosing"

## 7. The PAI in the GNT — Examples

> λέγει αὐτοῖς ὁ Ἰησοῦς (John 2:7)
> "Jesus says to them."
> → PAI 3sg λέγω; historical present — vivid narrative present

> ὁ θεὸς ἀγαπᾷ τὸν κόσμον (John 3:16, simplified)
> "God loves the world."
> → PAI 3sg ἀγαπάω (contract verb; see Ch17)

> πιστεύομεν εἰς αὐτόν (John 6:69)
> "We believe in him."
> → PAI 1pl πιστεύω; habitual/ongoing belief

> τί ποιεῖτε; (Mark 11:3)
> "What are you doing?"
> → PAI 2pl ποιέω (contract verb; see Ch17)

> γινώσκουσιν αὐτὸν οἱ μαθηταί (John 10:14, adapted)
> "The disciples know him."
> → PAI 3pl γινώσκω

## 8. Key Diagnostics

Feature | Value
--- | ---
Tense stem | Same as lexical form (1sg present = stem + ω)
Connecting vowel | ο before μ/ν; ε elsewhere
3pl ending | -ουσι(ν) — highly distinctive
2sg ending | -εις — very common form
No augment | Present indicative never has augment (augment = past time signal)

> Note: The present tense 3rd plural -ουσι(ν) ending is one of the most frequently encountered forms in the GNT and is extremely easy to recognize once memorized.