The augment (
Syllabic Augment.—Verbs beginning with a consonant prefix ε as the augment, which thus increases the word by one syllable. In the pluperfect ε is prefixed to the reduplication.
a. Verbs beginning with ρ double the ρ after the augment. ῥί_πτω
N.—ρρ is here due to assimilation of ϝρ, as in Hom. ἔρρεξα
Hom. has ἔλλαβε
a. These forms seem to be due to parallelism with ἤθελον (from ἐθέλω
Some verbs beginning with a vowel take the syllabic augment because they formerly began with a consonant. Thus,
ἕλκω or ἑλκύω
Syllabic augment in Homer before a vowel is a sure proof of initial ϝ in ἔειπον and some other verbs. Similar Ionic and poetic forms occur from εἶδον, εἴλω, εἴρω, ἔλπω, ἕννυ_μι, ἔρδω, οἰνοχοέω, etc.432
Some forms of some verbs in 431 are augmented as if no consonant had preceded the first vowel, as ἠργαζόμην (and εἰργαζόμην).433
Since ϝ disappeared early, many augmented forms show no trace of its existence, as, ᾤκουν from οἰκέω
The verbs ἄγνυ_μι, ἁλίσκομαι, (ἀν) οίγνυ_μι, ὁράω, which began originally with ϝ, show forms that appear to have a double augment; as ἐά_γην, ἑά_λων, (ἀν) ἐῳγον (rarely ἤνοιγον), ἑώρων, ἑώρα_κα (and ἑόρα_κα). These forms appear to be due to transference of quantity ( cross34) from ἠ-ϝαγην, ἠ-ϝοιγον, ἠ-ϝορων (cp. cross433).435
Temporal Augment.—Verbs beginning with a vowel take the temporal augment by lengthening the initial vowel. The temporal augment is so called because it usually increases the time required to pronounce the initial syllable. Diphthongs lengthen their first vowel.
|α becomes η:||ἄγω ||ἦγον||ἦχα||ἤχη|
|ε “ η:||ἐλπίζω ||ἤλπιζον||ἤλπισα||ἤλπικα||ἠλπίκη|
|ι “ ι_:||ἱκετεύω ||ἱ_κέτευον||ἱ_κέτευσα||ἱ_κέτευκα||ἱ_κετεύκη|
|ο “ ω:||ὁρίζω ||ὥριζον||ὥρισα||ὥρικα||ὡρίκη|
|υ “ υ_:||ὑβρίζω ||ὕ_βριζον||ὕ_βρισα||ὕ_βρικα||ὑ_βρίκη|
|αι “ ῃ:||αἱρίω ||ᾕρουν||ᾕρηκα||ᾑρήκη|
|αυ “ ηυ:||αὐλέω ||ηὔλουν||ηὔλησα||ηὔληκα||ηὐλήκη|
|ει “ ῃ:||εἰκάζω ||ᾔκαζον||ᾔκασα|
|ευ “ ηυ:||εὔχομαι ||ηὐχόμην||ηὐξάμην||ηὖγμαι||ηὔγμην|
|οι “ ῳ:||οἰκέω ||ᾤκουν||ᾤκησα||ᾤκηκα||ᾠκήκη|
Initial α becomes α_ in Doric and Aeolic; initial αι and αυ remain.436
Initial ᾳ becomes ῃ: ᾄδω
Initial diphthongs are sometimes unaugmented: αυ in αὑαίνομαι
Omission of the Augment.—a. In Attic tragedy the augment is sometimes omitted in choral passages, rarely in the dialogue parts (messengers' speeches), which are nearer akin to prose.
b. In χρῆν (from χρὴ ἦν) the augment is strictly unnecessary, but is often added (ἐχρῆν) since the composition of χρῆν was forgotten.
c. In Homer and the lyric poets either the syllabic or the temporal augment is often absent; as φάτο and ἔφατο, βῆν and ἔβην, ἔχον and εἶχον. Iteratives ( cross495) in Hom. usually have no augment (ἔχεσκον).
N.—In Homer the absence of the augment represents the usage of the parent language, in which the augment was not necessarily added to mark past time. It is therefore erroneous, historically, to speak of the omission of the augment in Homer.
d. In Herodotus the syllabic augment is omitted only in the case of pluperfects and iteratives in σκον; the temporal augment is generally preserved, but it is always omitted in verbs beginning with αι, αυ, ει, ευ, οι, and in ἀγι_νέω, ἀεθλέω, ἀνώγω, ἔρδω, ἐάω, ὁρμέω, etc.; in others it is omitted only in some forms (as ἀγορεύω, ἄγω, ἕλκω, ὁρμάω), and in others it is variable (ἀγγέλλω, ἅπτω, ἄρχω, ἐπίσταμαι, ἀνέχομαι); in cases of Attic reduplication the augment is never added. Hdt. omits the augment for the reduplication in the above verbs.
Herbert Weir Smyth [n.d.], A Greek Grammar for Colleges; Machine readable text [info] [word count] [Smyth].