William Watson Goodwin, Syntax of the Moods and Tenses of the Greek Verb

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[*] 745. The infinitive may be the subject nominative of a finite verb, or the subject accusative of another infinitive. It is especially common as subject of an impersonal verb or of ἐστί. It may also be a predicate nominative or accusative, and it may stand in apposition to a noun in the nominative or accusative. E.g. Συνέβη αὐτῷ ἐλθεῖν, it happened to him to go. Οὐκ ἔνεστι τοῦτο ποιῆσαι, it is not possible to do this. Ἀδύνατόν ἐστι τοῦτο ποιῆσαι. Ἐξῆν αὐτῷ μένειν, he might have remained (i.e. to remain was possible for him). Δεῖ μένειν. Οὐ μὴν γάρ τι κακὸν βασιλευέμεν, for it is no bad thing to be a king. Od. i. 392. Ἀεὶ γὰρ ἡβᾷ τοῖς γέρουσιν εὖ μαθεῖν. AESCH. Ag. 584. Πολὺ γὰρ ῥᾷον ἔχοντας φυλάττειν ἢ κτήσασθαι πάντα πέφυκεν. DEM. ii. 26. (Compare i. 23, quoted in 790.) Ἡδὺ πολλοὺς ἐχθροὺς ἔχειν; Id. xix. 221. Δοκεῖ οἰκονόμου ἀγαθοῦ εἶναι εὖ οἰκεῖν τὸν ἑαυτοῦ οἶκον. XEN. Oec. i. 2. Φησὶ δεῖν τοῦτο ποιῆσαι, he says that it is necessary to do this. (Here ποιῆσαι as accusative is subject of δεῖν.) Τὸ γνῶναι ἐπιστήμην που λαβεῖν ἐστιν, to learn is to acquire knowledge (pred. nom.). PLAT. Theaet. 209E. Ξυνέβη τοὺς Ἀθηναίους θορυβηθῆναι, “it chanced that the Athenians fell into confusion.” THUC. v. 10. Οὐ φάσκων ἄνεκτον εἶναι ξυγκεῖσθαι κρατεῖν βασιλέα τῶν πόλεων. Id. viii. 52. (Here κρατεῖν βασιλέα τῶν πόλεων is subject of ξυγκεῖσθαι, which is subject of εἶναι, the whole being object of φάσκων.) Εἷς οἰωνὸς ἄριστος, ἀμύνεσθαι περὶ πάτρης, one omen is best, to fight for our country. Il. xii. 243.

For the subject infinitive in indirect discourse, see 751.