Present or past

Simple present and past conditional relative clauses have the present or past indicative. The main clause has the indicative or any other form of the simple sentence (cp. 2298, 2300).

οὐ γὰρ ἃ πρᾱ́ττουσιν οἱ δίκαιοι, ἀλλ᾽ ἃ (= εἴ τινα) μὴ πρᾱ́ττουσι, ταῦτα λέγεις for it is not what the just do, but what they do not do, that you keep telling us X. M. 4.4.11, τῶν Ἑλλήνων οἳ (= εἴ τινες) μὴ ἔτυχον ἐν ταῖς τάξεσιν ὄντες εἰς τᾱ̀ς τάξεις ἔθεον those of the Greeks who happened not to be in rank ran into their ranks X. A. 2.2.14, διέβαλλεν αὐτὸν ὅ τι ἐδύνατο he slandered him all he could 6. 1. 32, ἄνδρας τῶν Ἀθηναίων ἀπέκτειναν ὅσοι μὴ ἐξένευσαν they killed all of the Athenians who had not escaped by swimming T. 2.90, δ̀ δέ γε μηδὲν κακὸν ποιεῖ οὐδ᾽ ἄν τινος εἴη κακοῦ αἴτιον; and that which produces no evil cannot be the cause of any evil either? P. R. 379b, ἃ μὴ προσήκει μήτ᾽ ἄκουε μήθ᾽ ὅρᾱ neither hear nor behold that which beseems thee not Men. Sent. 39, ὅστις ζῆν ἐπιθῡμεῖ, πειρᾱ́σθω νῑκᾶν whoever longs to live, let him strive to conquer X. A. 3.2.39.

a. Since the antecedent of these clauses is indefinite, simple present conditional relative clauses with the present indicative in the main clause often have the value of general conditions. But general clauses with ὅς (μή) usually take the subjunctive or optative (2567, 2568), and those with ὅστις (μή) the indicative (2569).

If the relative clause expresses a present intention or necessity, the future indicative may be used.

ἐν τούτῳ κεκωλῦσθαι (1950) ἐδόκει ἑκάστῳ τὰ πρᾱ́γματα ᾧ μή τις αὐτὸς παρέσται each thought that progress was surely impeded in any undertaking in which he was not going to take part in person (= ἐν τούτῳ κεκώλῡται ᾧ μὴ παρέσομαι) T. 2.8. Cp. P. Th. 186c. More common is μέλλω with the present or future infinitive: ἕλοισθ᾽ ὅ τι . . . ἅπᾱσι συνοίσειν ῡ̔μῖν μέλλει may you adopt whatever course is likely to be of advantage to you all D. 3.36.

a. Elsewhere the future indicative is not regular in conditional relative sentences.

Present and past unreal conditional relative clauses have a secondary tense of the indicative. The main clause has a secondary tense with ἄν (cp. 2303).

οὔτε γὰρ ἂν αὐτοὶ ἐπεχειροῦμεν πρᾱ́ττειν ἃ (= εἴ τινα) μὴ ἠπιστάμεθα κτλ. for (if that were so) neither should we ourselves be undertaking (as we are) to do what we did not understand, etc. P. Charm. 171e, οἱ παῖδες ῡ̔μῶν, ὅσοι (= εἴ τινες) ἐνθάδε ἦσαν, ὑπὸ τούτων ἂν ῡ̔βρίζοντο (if that were so) your children, as many of them as were present (but none were present), would be insulted by these men L. 12.98, ὁπότερα τούτων ἐποίησεν, οὐδενὸς ἂν ἧττον πλούσιοι ἦσαν whichever of these things he had done, they would be no less rich than any one 32. 23.