11.72 Correlative Constructions

Make sure you read Croy's discussion of the καὶ ... καί, τε ... τε, τε ... καί constructions. Croy also makes some points about English translation, but you should not regard these as hard and fast rules. As always, there is no simple word-for-word mechanical approach you can take to translating Greek into English. The most important thing is to be able to recognize these patterns in Greek, and to then choose which you think the most appropriate English translation might be - "both... and..." or "as... so...." or even a simple "and."

The οὔτε ... οὔτε construction can be translated into English as "neither... nor..." - although most people do not use "nor" as part of their daily vocabulary, so depending on the context a more everyday English translation might be appropriate:

θεοὶ λίθου οὔτε ἀκούουσιν οὔτε λέγουσιν.

Formal: Gods of stone neither hear nor speak.

Informal: Gods of stone do not hear and do not speak.