Questions tagged [dual]

The tag has no usage guidance.

Filter by
Sorted by
Tagged with
6 votes
2 answers
272 views

πλήθει, dual use of πλῆθος in Philebus

One word seems to me somehow very strange with its dual number. It is in a passage from Plato's Philebus: φωνὴ μὲν ἡμῖν ἐστί που μία διὰ τοῦ στόματος ἰοῦσα, καὶ ἄπειρος αὖ πλήθει, πάντων τε καὶ ...
kore's user avatar
  • 517
7 votes
2 answers
609 views

How was the "elliptical dual" used?

In a comment on this answer, TKR brought up an interesting point of grammar I'd never heard of. Αἴαντε [Ajax-DUAL] is an interesting case. Though readers of Homer since antiquity have interpreted ...
Draconis's user avatar
  • 65.1k
8 votes
2 answers
935 views

When was the dual number used in Attic Greek?

I have only studied the very basics of Greek years ago, so the question might be simple, but I couldn't find a clear summary anywhere. Attic Greek has a dual number alongside singular and plural. When ...
Joonas Ilmavirta's user avatar
8 votes
1 answer
751 views

Was there ever dual conjugation in Latin?

Latin effectively lost its dual number. It left behind some remnants, most notably duo and ambo. However, all examples or relics of the dual number in Latin I have seen are in declension. I would ...
Joonas Ilmavirta's user avatar
13 votes
3 answers
776 views

Remnants of the dual number

To my understanding, Latin doesn't have a dual number at all. The adjectives duo "two" and ambō "both" have some special forms derived from the PIE dual (-ō, -ābus, -ōbus), but are considered ...
Draconis's user avatar
  • 65.1k