tenses (imperfect, preterite). Their formation varies by dialect. Present Formation of the present tense differs between Eastern and Western. In form, the present indicative of Eastern Armenian has no corresponding Western formation. However, the Western present indicative is formed identically to the Eastern present conditional. Eastern Armenian uses the -ում (-um) participle with the present tense of Eastern Armenian verb լինել (linel "to be"). Western Armenian uses a synthetic general form of the verb preceded by the particle կը gë /gə/. The synthetic form conjugates according to the verb's theme vowel (i.e., e, i, or a). In Armenian, final /j/ in polysyllabic words is silent. Imperfect The formation of the imperfect is similar to the present-tense formation in both dialects. Eastern Armenian uses the -ում (-um) participle with the imperfect of verb լինել (linel "to be"). Western Armenian uses a synthetic imperfect form of the verb preceded by the particle կը gë /gə/. Note that in all forms, Eastern and Western, that feature the combination էի (e.g., սիրում էիմ/կը սիրէիմ, etc.), there is an epenthetic yod: sirum ēi or ; gë sirēi . Future Like the formation of the present tense, the future tense in Armenian intersects two varying constructions with opposite meanings. The Eastern future tense is made with the future participle in -լու (-lu) with the present tense of verb լինել (linel). (This Eastern form is identical to the Western Armenian non-past necessitative (see below.)) The Western future tense is made with the general synthetic verb preceded by the particle պիտի (bidi). (This Western form is identical to the Eastern Armenian non-past necessitative (see below.)) Note that in all Eastern forms that feature the combination ու + ե (e.g., կարդալու եմ, etc.), epenthetic yod appears: kardalu em or . Preterite In various grammars, this is called the preterite, the perfect, or sometimes the aorist. Both Eastern and Western Armenian use a synthetic preterite, which is formed by deleting the infinitive marker and theme vowel, then: · Class I and II verbs (in both dialects) add -եց (-ec῾); · Class III verbs add -աց (-ac῾). The preterite affixes are similar to the imperfect endings of the verb "to be" (Eastern լինել linel, Western ըլլալ ëllal) In Class III verbs (a-thematic verbs), the preterite stem and the past stem are identical. Optative mood The optative mood (called the subjunctive in some grammars) in Armenian is identical in both dialects. There