instrumental dative

When the idea denoted by the noun in the dative is the instrument or means, it falls under (1); if it is a person (not regarded as the instrument or means) or any other living being, or a thing regarded as a person, it belongs under (2); if an action, under (2).

Abstract substantives with or without an attributive often stand in the instrumental dative instead of the cognate accusative (1577).

Instrument or Means.—ἔβαλλέ με λίθοις he hit me with stones L. 3.8, ῑ̔́ησι τῇ ἀξῑ́νῃ he hurls his ax at him (hurls with his ax) X. A. 1.5.12, ταῖς μαχαίραις κόπτοντες hacking them with their swords 4. 6. 26, οὐδὲν ἤνυε τούτοις he accomplished nothing by this D. 21.104, ἐζημίωσαν χρήμασιν they punished him by a fine T. 2.65, ῡ̔́οντος πολλῷ (ὕδατι) during a heavy rain X. H. 1.1.16 (934). So with δέχεσθαι: τῶν πόλεων οὐ δεχομένων αὐτοὺς ἀγορᾷ οὐδὲ ἄστει, ὕδατι δὲ καὶ ὅρμῳ as the cities did not admit them to a market nor even into the town, but (only) to water and anchorage T. 6.44. Often with passives: ᾠκοδομημένον πλίνθοις built of bricks X. A. 2.4.12.

a. The instrumental dative is often akin to the comitative dative: ἀλώμενος νηί τε καὶ ἑτάροισι wandering with his ship and companions λ 161, νηυσὶν οἰχήσονται they shall go with their ships Ω 731, θῡμῷ καὶ ῥώμῃ τὸ πλέον ἐναυμάχουν ἢ ἐπιστήμῃ they fought with passionate violence and brute force rather than by a system of tactics T. 1.49.

b. Persons may be regarded as instruments: φυλαττόμενοι φύλαξι defending themselves by pickets X. A. 6.4.27. Often in poetry (S. Ant. 164).

c. Verbs of raining or snowing take the dative or accusative (1570 a).

Under Means fall:

a. The dative of price (cp. 1372): μέρει τῶν ἀδικημάτων τὸν κίνδῡνον ἐξεπρίαντο they freed themselves from the danger at the price of a part of their unjust gains L. 27.6.

b. Rarely, the dative with verbs of filling (cp. 1369): δάκρυσι πᾶν τὸ στράτευμα πλησθέν the entire army being filled with tears T. 7.75.

c. The dative of material and constituent parts: κατεσκευάσατο ἅρματα τροχοῖς ἰσχῡροῖς he made chariots with strong wheels X. C. 6.1.29.

χρῆσθαι use (strictly employ oneself with, get something done with; cp. uti), and sometimes νομίζειν, take the dative. Thus, οὔτε τούτοις (τοῖς νομίμοις) χρῆται οὔθ᾽ οἷς ἡ ἄλλη Ἑλλὰς νομίζει neither acts according to these institutions nor observes those accepted by the rest of Greece T. 1.77. A predicate noun may be added to the dative: τούτοις χρῶνται δορυφόροις they make use of them as a body-guard X. Hi. 5.3. The use to which an object is put may be expressed by a neuter pronoun in the accus. (1573); τί χρησόμεθα τούτῳ; what use shall we make of it? D. 3.6.

The instrumental dative occurs after substantives: μῑ́μησις σχήμασι imitation by means of gestures P. R. 397b.

The instrumental dative of means is often, especially in poetry, reinforced by the prepositions ἐν, σύν, ὑπό: ἐν λόγοις πείθειν to persuade by words S. Ph. 1393, οἱ θεοὶ ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς ἐσήμηναν the gods have shown by the victims X. A. 6.1.31; σὺν γήρᾳ βαρεῖς heavy with old age S. O. T. 17; πόλις χερσὶν ὑφ᾽ ἡμετέρῃσιν ἁλοῦσα a city captured by our hands B 374.

Dative of Standard of Judgment.—That by which anything is measured, or judged, is put in the dative: ξυνεμετρήσαντο ταῖς ἐπιβολαῖς τῶν πλίνθων they measured the ladders by the layers of bricks. T. 3.20, τῷδε δῆλον ἦν it was plain from what followed X. A. 2.3.1, οἷς πρὸς τοὺς ἄλλους πεποίηκε δεῖ τεκμαίρεσθαι we must judge by what he has done to the rest D. 9.10, τίνι χρὴ κρῑ́νεσθαι τὰ μέλλοντα καλῶς κριθήσεσθαι; ἆρ᾽ οὐκ ἐμπειρίᾳ τε καὶ φρονήσει καὶ λόγῳ; by what standard must we judge that the judgment may be correct? Is it not by experience and wisdom and reasoning? P. R. 582a. With verbs of judging ἐκ and ἀπό are common.

Manner (see also 1527).—The dative of manner is used with comparative adjectives and other expressions of comparison to mark the degree by which one thing differs from another (Dative of Measure of Difference).

κεφαλῇ ἐλᾱ́ττων a head shorter (lit. by the head) P. Ph. 101a, οὐ πολλαῖς ἡμέραις ὕστερον ἦλθεν he arrived not many days later X. H. 1.1.1, ἰόντες δέκα ἡμέραις πρὸ Παναθηναίων coming ten days before the Panathenaic festival T. 5.47, τοσούτῳ ἥδῑον ζῶ ὅσῳ πλείω κέκτημαι the more I possess the more pleasant is my life X. C. 8.3.40, πολλῷ μείζων ἐγίγνετο ἡ βοὴ ὅσῳ δὴ πλείους ἐγίγνοντο the shouting became much louder as the men increased in number X. A. 4.7.23. So with πολλῷ by much, ὀλίγῳ by little, τῷ παντί in every respect (by all odds).

a. With the superlative: μακρῷ ἄριστα by far the best P. L. 858e.

With comparatives the accusatives (1586) τί, τὶ, οὐδέν, μηδέν without a substantive are always used: οὐδὲν ἧττον nihilo minus X. A. 7.5.9. In Attic prose (except in Thuc.) πολύ and ὀλίγον are more common than πολλῷ and ὀλίγῳ with comparatives. Hom. has only πολὺ μείζων.

Measure of difference may be expressed by ἔν τινι; εἴς τι, κατά τι; or by ἐπί τινι.

The dative of manner may denote the particular point of view from which a statement is made. This occurs chiefly with intransitive adjectives but also with intransitive verbs (Dative of Respect). (Cp. 1600.)

ἀνὴρ ἡλικίᾳ ἔτι νέος a man still young in years T. 5.43, τοῖς σώμασι τὸ πλέον ἰσχῡ́ουσα ἢ τοῖς χρήμασιν a power stronger in men than in money 1. 121, ἀσθενὴς τῷ σώματι weak in body D. 21.165, τῇ φωνῇ τρᾱχύς harsh of voice X. A. 2.6.9, φρονήσει διαφέρων distinguished in understanding X. C. 2.3.5, τῶν τότε δυνάμει προύχων superior in power to the men of that time T. 1.9, ὀνόματι σπονδαί a truce so far as the name goes 6. 10.

a. The accusative of respect (1600) is often nearly equivalent to the dative of respect.

Cause.—The dative, especially with verbs of emotion, expresses the occasion (external cause) or the motive (internal cause).

Occasion: τῇ τύχῃ ἐλπίσᾱς confident by reason of his good fortune T. 3.97, θαυμάζω τῇ ἀποκλῄσει μου τῶν πυλῶν I am astonished at being shut out of the gates 4. 85, τούτοις ἥσθη he was pleased at this X. A. 1.9.26, ἠχθόμεθα τοῖς γεγενημένοις we were troubled at what had occurred 5. 7. 20, χαλεπῶς φέρω τοῖς παροῦσι πρᾱ́γμασιν I am troubled at the present occurrences 1. 3. 3. Motive: φιλίᾳ καὶ εὐνοίᾳ ἑπόμενοι following out of friendship and good will X. A. 2.6.13. Occasion and motive: οἱ μὲν ἀπορίᾳ ἀκολούθων, οἱ δὲ ἀπιστίᾳ some (carried their own food) because they lacked servants, others through distrust of them T. 7.75, ὕβρει καὶ οὐκ οἴνῳ τοῦτο ποιῶν doing this out of insolence and not because he was drunk D. 21.74.

Some verbs of emotion take ἐπί (with dat.) to denote the cause; so always μέγα φρονεῖν to plume oneself, and often χαίρειν rejoice, λῡπεῖσθαι grieve, ἀγανακτεῖν be vexed, αἰσχῡ́νεσθαι be ashamed. Many verbs take the genitive (1405).

The dative of cause sometimes approximates to a dative of purpose (1473): Ἀθηναῖοι ἐφ᾽ ἡμᾶς ὥρμηνται Λεοντῑ́νων κατοικίσει the Athenians have set out against us (with a view to) to restore the Leontines T. 6.33. This construction is common with other verbal nouns in Thucydides.

Cause is often expressed by διά with the accusative, ὑπό with the genitive, less frequently by ἀμφί or περί with the dative (poet.) or ὑπέρ with the genitive (poet.).

Prepositions of accompaniment (μετά with gen., σύν) are often used, especially when the verb does not denote accompaniment or union.

Dative of Association.—The dative is used with words denoting friendly or hostile association or intercourse. This dative is especially common in the plural and after middle verbs.

a. κακοῖς ὁμῑλῶν καὐτὸς ἐκβήσῃ κακός if thou associate with the evil, in the end thou too wilt become evil thyself Men. Sent. 274, ἀλλήλοις διειλέγμεθα we have conversed with each other P. A. 37a, τῷ πλήθει τὰ ῥηθέντα κοινώσαντες communicating to the people what had been said T. 2.72, δεόμενοι τοὺς φεύγοντας ξυναλλάξαι σφίσι asking that they reconcile their exiles with them 1. 24, εἰς λόγους σοι ἐλθεῖν to have an interview with you X. A. 2.5.4, μετεσχήκαμεν ῡ̔μῖν θυσιῶν we have participated in your festivals X. H. 2.4.20, ἀλλήλοις σπονδᾱ̀ς ἐποιήσαντο they made a truce with one another 3. 2. 20, αὐτοῖς διὰ φιλίᾱς ἰέναι to enter into friendship with them X. A. 3.2.8. So with verbs of meeting: προσέρχεσθαι, προστυγχάνειν and ἐντυγχάνειν, ἀπαντᾶν.

b. πολλοῖς ὀλίγοι μαχόμενοι few fighting with many T. 4.36, Κῡ́ρῳ πολεμοῦντες waging war with Cyrus 1. 13, ἀμφισβητοῦσι μὲν δι᾽ εὔνοιαν οἱ φίλοι τοῖς φίλοις, ἐρίζουσι δὲ οἱ διάφοροι ἀλλήλοις friends dispute with friends good-naturedly, but adversaries wrangle with one another P. Pr. 337b, δίκᾱς ἀλλήλοις δικάζονται they bring lawsuits against one another X. M. 3.5.16, διαφέρεσθαι τούτοις to be at variance with these men D. 18.31 (and so many compounds of διά), οὐκ ἔφη τοὺς λόγους τοῖς ἔργοις ὁμολογεῖν he said their words did not agree with their deeds T. 5.55. So also τινὶ διὰ πολέμου (διὰ μάχης, εἰς χεῖρας) ἰέναι, τινὶ ὁμόσε χωρεῖν, etc.

N. 1.—πολεμεῖν (μάχεσθαι) σύν τινι (μετά τινος) means to wage war in conjunction with some one.

N. 2.—Verbs of friendly or hostile association, and especially periphrases with ποιεῖσθαι (πόλεμον, σπονδᾱ́ς), often take the accusative with πρός.

Dative of Accompaniment.—The dative of accompaniment is used with verbs signifying to accompany, follow, etc.

ἀκολουθεῖν τῷ ἡγουμένῳ to follow the leader P. R. 474c, ἕπεσθαι ῡ̔μῖν βούλομαι I am willing to follow you X. A. 3.1.25. μετά with the genitive is often used, as are σύν and ἅμα with the dative.

With αὐτός.—The idea of accompaniment is often expressed by αὐτός joined to the dative. This use is common when the destruction of a person or thing is referred to. Thus, τῶν ϝεῶν μία αὐτοῖς ἀνδράσιν one of the ships with its crew T. 4.14, εἶπεν ἥκειν εἰς τᾱ̀ς τάξεις αὐτοῖς στεφάνοις he bade them come to their posts, crowns and all X. C. 3.3.40. The article after αὐτός is rare; and σύν is rarely added (X. C. 2.2.9). Hom. has this dative only with lifeless objects.

Dative of Military Accompaniment.—The dative is used in the description of military movements to denote the accompaniment (troops, ships, etc.) of a leader: ἐξελαύνει τῷ στρατεύματι παντί he marches out with all his army X. A. 1.7.14. σύν is often used with words denoting troops (T. 6.62).

a. An extension of this usage occurs when the persons in the dative are essentially the same as the persons forming the subject (distributive use): ἡμῖν ἐφείποντο οἱ πολέμιοι καὶ ἱππικῷ καὶ πελταστικῷ the enemy pursued us with their cavalry and peltasts X. A. 7.6.29.

b. The dative of military accompaniment is often equivalent to a dative of means when the verb does not denote the leadership of a general.

Dative of Accompanying Circumstance.—The dative, usually of an abstract substantive, may denote accompanying circumstance and manner.

a. The substantive has an attribute: πολλῇ βοῇ προσέκειντο they attacked with loud shouts T. 4.127, παντὶ σθένει with all one's might 5. 23, τύχῃ ἀγαθῇ with good fortune C.I.A. /lref>So παντὶ (οὐδενὶ, ἄλλῳ, τούτῳ τῷ) τρόπῳ. Manner may be expressed by the adjective, as βιαίῳ θανάτῳ ἀποθνῄσκειν to die (by) a violent death X. Hi. 4.3 (= βίᾳ).

b. Many particular substantives have no attribute and are used adverbially: θεῖν δρόμῳ to run at full speed X. A. 1.8.19, βίᾳ by force, δίκῃ justly, δόλῳ by craft, (τῷ) ἔργῳ in fact, ἡσυχῇ quietly, κομιδῇ (with care) entirely, κόσμῳ in order, duly, κύκλῳ round about, (τῷ) λόγῳ in word, προφάσει ostensibly, σῑγῇ, σιωπῇ in silence, σπουδῇ hastily, with difficulty, τῇ ἀληθείᾳ in truth, τῷ ὄντι in reality, ὀργῇ in anger, φυγῇ in hasty flight.

N.—When no adjective is used, prepositional phrases or adverbs are generally employed: σὺν κραυγῇ, σὺν δίκῃ, μετὰ δίκης, πρὸς βίᾱν (or βιαίως).

c. Here belongs the dative of feminine adjectives with a substantive (ὁδῷ, etc.) omitted, as ταύτῃ in this way, here, ἄλλῃ in another way, elsewhere, πῇ, ᾗ in what (which) way. So δημοσίᾳ at public expense, ἰδίᾳ privately, κοινῇ in common, πεζῇ on foot.

N.—Some of these forms are instrumental rather than comitative, e.g. ταύτῃ.

Space and Time.—The dative of space and time may sometimes be regarded as comitative.

a. Space: the way by which (qua), as ἐπορεύετο τῇ ὁδῷ ἣν πρότερον ἐποιήσατο he marched by the road (or on the road?) which he had made before T. 2.98; b. Time: κατηγόρει ὡς ἐκείνη τῷ χ<*>όνῳ πεισθείη she charged that she had been persuaded in (by) the course of time L. 1.20. Some of these uses are instrumental rather than comitative.