ἆρα

A. anxiety or impatience, = Ep. and Lyr. ἦ ῥα:

1. alone, it simply marks the question, the nature of which is determined by the context: e.g. in D. 35.44 a negative answer is implied in the question ἆρ’ ἂν οἴεσθε . . ; but an affirmative in X. Cyr. 4.6.4 ἆ. βέβληκα δὶς ἐφεξῆς; cf. ἆρ’ εὐτυχεῖς . . ἢ δυστυχεῖς; E. Ph. 424.—To make it plainly neg., we have ἆ. μή . . ; A. Th. 208, Pl. Phd. 64c; and to make it plainly affirmative, ἆρ’ οὐ; ἆρ’ οὐχί; S. OC 791, OT 540; ἆρ’ οὐχ οὕτως; Pl. Phlb. 11d.

2. ἆ. οὖν; is used to draw an affirmative inference, Id. Grg. 477a, La. 190b; also when a neg. answer is expected, Id. Chrm. 159b; with a neg., ἆρ’ οὖν οὐ . . ; Id. Phdr. 263a, etc.

3. in ἆρά γε, each Particle retains its force, γε serving to make the question more definite, Ar. Pl. 546, X. Mem. 1.5.4, etc.

4. less freq. with τίς interrog., τίνος ποτ’ ἆρ’ ἔπραξε χειρί S. Aj. 905; τίδ’ ἆρ’ ἐγὼ σέ; E. IA 1228; τίς ἆρ’ ὁ φεύγων; Ar. V. 893; with ἤν, E. Rh. 118.

5. in indirect questions, σκεψώμεθα τοῦτο ἆ . . . Pl. Phd. 70e, cf. R. 526c, al., Arist. Ph. 204b3, etc.

II. in Poets sts. like ἄρα, Archil. 86,89, Pi. P. 4.78, Ar. V. 3; τοιοῖσδε χρησμοῖς ἆ. χρὴ πεποιθέναι; A. Ch. 297, cf.435; τῷ δὲ ξιφήρης ἆρ’ ὑφειστήκει λόχος E. Andr. 1114: in exclamations, βραδεῖαν ἡμᾶς ἆρ’ ὁ τήνδε τὴν ὁδὸν πέμπων ἔπεμψεν S. Aj. 738; ὀδυνηρὸς ἆρ’ ὁ πλοῦτος E. Ph. 566, cf.El. 1229, Hipp. 1086; ἦ δεινὸν ἆρ’ ἦν Id. Fr. 931; ἔμελλόν σ’ ἆ. κινήσειν Ar. Nu. 1301, cf. Ach. 347.

B. In Prose, ἆ. almost always stands first in the sentence, but cf. Pl. Grg. 467e; καὶ ὑπὲρ τούτων ἆ. . . Jul. Or. 2.61c: in Poetry greater licence is taken, v. supr. 1.4,11.