[*] 430. Indicative with a)/n as potential of the past. The indicative of the historical tenses with “ἄν” also serves to express potentiality, or guarded assertion, in the past, chiefly with the ideal second person or “τις”, but by no means limited to it. Ellipses are often easily supplied, but are not necessary. The translation is freer than in an elliptical conditional sentence. The protasis is sometimes contained in a participle or otherwise intimated. “ἔγνω τις ἄν”, XEN. Cyr. 3.3.70; One would (could, might) have known. “ὀλίγους ἂν εἶδες”, Hell. 6.4.16; Few should you have seen. DEM.18.225: “ἃ μήτε προῄδει μηδεὶς μήτ᾽ ἂν ᾠήθη τήμερον ῥηθῆναι”. ISOC.5.64: “καίτοι τίς ἂν προσεδόκησεν ὑπ᾽ ἀνδρὸς οὕτω ταπεινῶς πράξαντος ἀναστραφήσεσθαι τὰ τῆς Ἑλλάδος πράγματα”; LYS.1.27: “πῶς γὰρ ἄν” (sc. “κατέφυγε”); Ibid.: “οὔτε σίδηρον . . . οὔτε ἄλλο οὐδὲν ἔχων, ᾧ τοὺς εἰσελθόντας ἂν ἠμύνατο” . 8.7: “ἂν . . . ὑπερείδετε” . Ibid.: “ἂν . . . ὑπώπτευον” . PLATO, Apol. 18C: “ἐν ταύτῃ τῇ ἡλικίᾳ . . . ἐν ᾗ ἂν μάλιστα ἐπιστεύσατε”. Hipparch. 229 B: “πάντων ἂν τῶν παλαιῶν ἤκουσας ὅτι ταῦτα μόνον τὰ ἔτη τυραννὶς ἐγένετο ἐν Ἀθήναις”. XEN. An. 1.5.8: “θᾶττον ἢ ὥς τις ἂν ᾤετο”. Cyr. 3.3.70 (see above). 4.5.6: “τοῦ λοιποῦ οὐδὲ βουλόμενος ἂν εὗρες ῥᾳδίως τὸν νύκτωρ πορευόμενον”. 8.1.33: “ἐπέγνως δ᾽ ἂν ἐκεῖ οὐδένα οὔτε ὀργιζόμενον κραυγῇ οὔτε χαίροντα ὑβριστικῷ γέλωτι, ἀλλὰ ἰδὼν ἂν αὐτοὺς ἡγήσω τῷ ὄντι εἰς κάλλος ζῆν”. Hell. 1.7.7: “τότε γὰρ ὀψὲ ἦν καὶ τὰς χεῖρας οὐκ ἂν καθεώρων”. 6.4.16 (see above). THUC.7.55.2: “ὃ οὐκ ἂν ᾤοντο”. AR. Ran. 1022: “ὃ θεασάμενος πᾶς ἅν τις ἀνὴρ ἠράσθη δάϊος εἶναι”. EUR. Andr. 1135: “δεινὰς δ᾽ ἂν εἶδες πυρρίχας”. I. A. 1582: “πληγῆς κτύπον γὰρ πᾶς τις ᾔσθετ᾽ ἂν σαφῶς”.
HOM. Od. 10.84: “ἔνθα κ᾽ ἄυπνος ἀνὴρ δοιοὺς ἐξήρατο μισθούς”. Il. 4.421: “ὕπο κεν ταλασίφρονά περ δέος εἷλεν”. 16.638-9: “οὐδ᾽ ἂν ἔτι φράδμων περ ἀνὴρ Σαρπηδόνα δῖον” | “ἔγνω”. For “ἄν” with the Optative as the Potential of the Past, see 437 and 439.“ τίς ἄν ποτ᾽ ᾤεθ᾽ ὧδ᾽ ἐπώνυμον
τοὐμὸν ξυνοίσειν ὄνομα τοῖς ἐμοῖς κακοῖς;
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