English - Modern Greek

A. The strong form of the personal pronoun «Ο δύνατος τύπος την προσωπική αντωνυμία

In MG are two different types of personal pronouns:

• A. the strong form
• B. the weak form

Personal pronouns are used to denote the three grammatical persons:

• 1. the first person, singular and plural
• 2. the second person, singular and plural
• 3. the third person, singular and plural

The strong form

Singular - Ενικός Αριθμός

cases	1st person	2nd person	3rd pers.masculine	3rd pers.feminine	3rd pers.neuter
1st	εγώ	εσύ	αυτός	αυτή	αυτό
2nd	μού/μου	σού/σου	αυτού	αυτής	αυτού
4th	εμένα/με	εσένα/σε	αυτόν	αυτήν	αυτό

Plural - Πληθυντικός Αριθμός

cases	1st person	2nd person	3rd pers.masculine	3rd pers.feminine	3rd pers.neuter
1st	εμείς	εσείς	αυτοί	αυτές	αυτά
2nd	μάς/μας	σάς/σας	αυτών	αυτών	αυτών
4th	εμάς/μας	εσάς/σας	αυτούς	αυτές	αυτά

 

N.B

1. In MG the personal pronouns are omitted in most of the circumstances. The verb-endings clarify that the subject has been put in the first, second or third person singular or plural.

2. The verb-ending indicates the direct verb e.g.: «(εγώ) γράφω», «(εσύ) γράφεις» - I write, you write

3. The 2nd and 4th case of the 1st and 2nd person singular and plurar have two forms e.g: «μού έδωσες» - you give me and «δος μου» -give me.

4. The personal pronoun is used, when we want to emphasize the importance.

The strong form of the personal pronouns is used when we want to make between individuals a distinction They can function in various ways, as follows:

1. Emphasizing on the person:

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
Αυτός έσπασε το τζάμι.	He has broken the window-pane.
Εγώ έφαγα λίγο, αλλά αυτός έφαγε πάρα πολύ.	I ate a little, but he ate too much.
Όταν δεν έρχονται αυτοί, θα φεύγουμε εμείς.	When they don't come, we are leaving.

2. Denoting the contrast between one person and no one else:

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
Εσένα ξέριες ο Γιώργος.	You know George (you and nobody else)
Δεν θέλουν το Γιώργο, εμένα θέλουν.	They don't want George, they want me
Φώναξα αυτήν, όχι την Ελένη.	I called her, not Helen.

3. Functioning as a subject, direct object or indirect object of the verb:

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
Εσύ γιατί δεν μιλάς;	Why don't you speak?
Η μητέρα φώναξε εσένα.	Mother was calling you.
Εσύ όταν γιορτάζεις τα γενέθλιά σου;	When are you celebrating your birthday?
Εσένα πού είναι οι ρίζες σου;	And you, where are your roots?

4. Functioning as the direct or indirect object in a prepositional phrase, noting that after the following prepositions never the weak form is used, always the strong form: «από, με, σε, για, χωρίς»:

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
Το έκανε γι'αυτήν.	He did it for haar.
Ποιος από μας;	Which one of us?
Χωρίς εμένα δεν θα το καταφέρεις.	Without me you will not make it.
Σε μένα έδωσε τα βιβλία του.	He gave me his books.
Κανένας από σας	Not anybody of you.
Το αγόρασα για σένα.	I bought it for you.

5. Functioning on their own:

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
Εγώ το θέλω.	I want it.
Αυτός δεν το ανάμεινε.	He didn't expect it.
Εμείς οι Έλληνες είμαστε αβελτίωτες.	We Greeks are incorrigible.

6. As a subject, the personal pronound is not mentioned:

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
1Ας χωρίσουμε το λογαριασμό.	Let's split the bill.
2Ας ακυρωθεί η διόρθωση.	Have them declare the correction invalid.
3Τρώω μακαρόνια.	I eat spaghetti.
4Ήρθα τρέχοντας και έφτασα κουρασμένος.	I was going to run and arrived wearied.

As stated before normally the personal pronoun is not mentioned, because the verb already indicates it. Thus, in the last four sentences the strong forms «εμείς» (1), «αυτός», «αυτή» or «αυτό» (2) and «εγώ» (3+4) are not mentioned.

When are saying: they work in a factory - «αυτοί δουλεύουν σ'ένα εργαστάσιο», we emphasize «αυτοί» so the speaker is aware of the importance of it. In that case it's also obvious that we speak about the masculine 3rd person plural. However when we say «δουλεύουν σ'ένα εργαστάσιο» it means the same but then it isn't clear whether feminine or masculine is meant.

In such utterances, the speaker assumes that one has already understood from a previous discussion what he meant, otherwise he had to mention the pronoun to make himself clear.

B.The weak form of the personal pronoun «Ο αδύνατος τύπος την προσωπική αντωνυμία»

Singular - Ενικός Αριθμός

cases	1st person	2nd person	3rd pers.masculine	3rd pers.feminine	3rd pers.neuter
1st	--	--	τος	τη	το
2nd	μου	σου	του	της	του
4th	με	σε	τον	τη(ν)	το

Plural - Πληθυντικός Αριθμός

cases	1st person	2nd person	3rd pers.masculine	3rd pers.feminine	3rd pers.neuter
1st	--	--	τοι	τες	τα
2nd	μας	σας	τους	τους	τους
4th	μας	σας	τους	τις/τες	τα

The weak form of the personal pronouns is used more often than the strong form

The weak personal pronouns have one syllable and no accent. They are used when nothing has to be emphasized, functioning as follows:

A few examples of this are (1):

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
aΘα ήθελα να ασφαλίσω το σπίτι.	I would like to assure the house.
bΘα ήθελα να το ασφαλίσω.	I would like to assure it.
aΔεν θα λύσω την άσκηση σήμερα.	I will not solve the exercise today.
bΔεν θα τη λύσω σήμερα.	I will not solve it today.
aΘα πάρω το ποδήλατο σήμερα.	I will take the bicycle today.
bΘα το παίρνω σήμερα.	I will take it today
aΗ Εύα αγόρασε τα παπούτσια.	Eve bought the shoes.
bΗ Εύα τα αγόρασε.	Eve bought them.
aΘέλω να δω τον Πέτρο.	I want to speak to Peter.
bΘέλω να τον δω.	I want to speak to him.
aΜου έδωσε το βιβλίο.	He gave me the book.
bΜου το έδωσε.	He gave it to me.
aΜου χάρισε το μενταγιόν της.	She gave me her medallion as a gift.
bΜου το χάρισε.	She gave it to me as a gift.

Example of the above (2) :

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
aΤο σπίτι του Γιώργο είναι μεγάλο.	The house of George is big.
bΤο σπίτι του είναι μεγάλο.	His house is big.
aΔεν είπε στις αδελφές του το μυστικό.	He didn't tell the secret to his sisters.
bΔεν τους είπε το μυστικό.	He didn't tell them the secret.
aΗ υποστήριξη των γονιών του ήταν ευπρόσδεκτη.	He welcomed his parents'support.
bΗ υποστήριξη τους ήταν ευπρόσδεκτη.	Their support was welcome.
aΟ Κώστας έσπασε το τζάμι με μια πέτρα.	Kostas broke the window-pane with a stone.
bΗ πέτρα το έσπασε.	The stone broke it.
aΑυτός ευθύνεται για το σχέδιο αυτής της εικόνας.	He is responsible for the design of this sculpture.
bΑυτός ευθύνεται για το σχέδιό της.	He is responsible for the design of it.

Voorbeelden hiervan zijn:

3.1

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
Η τελευταία τους νέα ήταν τρομακτική.	Their last news was frightening.
Το παλιό μου παλτό κρεμασε στην κρεμάστρα.	My old coat was hanging on the coat rack.
Το ωραίο της σκύλο έχασε.	Her cute dog had been disappeared.
Οι καλές σας προθέσεις, δεν εκτιμήθηκαν.	Your good intentions were not appreciated.
Η αγαπητή μου μητέρα πέθανε χρόνια πριν..	My dear mother died years ago.
Η Μαρία είναι χρόνια μεγαλύτερή μου.	Maria years older than me.
H Ελένη είναι η μεγαλύτερή μας.	Helen is the oldest of us.
Είμαι κοντότερή σου.	I'm smaller than you.
Είναι ο κοντότερός σας.	He is the smallest of you.

3.2

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
θα έρθουμε οι δυο μας απόψε.	The two of us will come tonight.
Οι τρεις σας δεν θα πάτε απόψε.	The three of you will not go tonight.
Εργάζεται εκεί με δέκα τους.	They work there with ten (of us).
Η πρώτη μου προσπάθεια απέτυχε.	My first attempt failed.
Οι τέσσερις μας πήγαμε στον κινηματογράφο.	The four of us went to the cinema.

3.3

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
Kανένας τους θα φάει απόψε.	None of them will eat tonight.
Εσείς ξέρετε τους εαυτούς σας.	You know yourselves
Καθόταν μόνο του.	He was siting on his own
Πρέπει κανείς να αγαπιέται τον εαυτό του.	One should love himself.
Μόνοι μας το κάναμε.	We did it alone.
Φροντίζω τον εαυτό μου.	I take care of myself.
Καθένας σας θα πάτε εκεί αύριο.	Every one of you will go there tomorrow.
Άλλοι τους δεν θα έρθετε αύριο.	Others of them will not go tomorrow.
Ξέρουν τους εαυτούς τους καλά.	They know themselves well.
Είναι κλέφτες των εαυτών τους	They are thieves of themselves.

3.4

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
Oλοί μας θα πάμε.	We all will go.
Μερικοί σας δεν είχατε κέφι.	Some of you did not feel like it.
Διάφορές τους δεν ήρθαν.	Several of them did not come.
Πολλοί μας δεν είναι ευτυχισμένοι.	Many of us are not happy.

3.5

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
Έχεις δικό σου σπίτι.	You have your own house.
Καθόμαστε εδώ μεταξύ μας.	We sit here among one another
Ό, τι μου πεις θα μείνει μεταξύ μας.	Anything you tell me will stay between us.
Είναι ένας δικτάτορας που σκότωσε χιλιάδες δικούς του.	He is a dictator who murdered thousands of his people.

Examples of it (4):

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
Μαζί του δίπλα μου κάθομαι καλά.	With him next to me I'm okay.
Μπροστά μου κάθεται ο Γιάννης.	In front of me John is sitting.
Απέναντί μας υπάρχει ένα πάρκο.	Opposite us is a parc.
Στάσου κοντά μου, σε παρακαλώ	Stay with me, please.
Το παρελθόν σου είναι πίσω σου.	Your past is behind you.

 

N.B

• The weak form of the personal pronoun always precedes the verb with which it has been connected. Nothing can separate a weak pronoun from a verb.
• Even if the sentence is negative and the particles «δεν» or «μην» should be used, as well as the particles «θα» in the future tense and past future tense and «να» in the subjunctive, they can't be separated.
• The direct object and indirect object of the weak form can only both occur in one sentence, if the first of them indicates a person and the second is a form of the third person. When using two weak personal pronouns in one sentence, the indirect object precedes the direct object.

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
Ο Γιάννης έδωσε τα κλειδιά στη Μαρία.	John gave the keys to Maria.
Της τα έδωσε.	He gave them to her.
Δε θα δώσει το βιβλίο της Ελένης σήμερα.	He will not give the book to Helen today
Δε θα της το δίνει.	He will give it to her.

 

N.B

• An exception to the abovementioned rule is the imperative and the English ing-form in which the weak form is placed after the verb.
• Sometimes the direct object will be come accross behind the indirect object after this form.
• From «τις/τες», the feminine plural of the 4th case, is «τις» the obligatory form to use om front of the verb. Both can be used behind it. «Τες» is often used in spoken language after the imperative and after the adjectival used verb, as an alternative to «τις». After the imperative in the plural only «τις» is used.

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
Φώναξε τις κοπέλες να έρθουν!	Call the girls to come!
Φώναξέ τες! (Φώναξε: imperative in single)	Call them! (here: you call them)
Φώναξτέ τις! (Φώναξτε: imperative in plural)	Call them! (here: y'all call them)
Φέρε μού τες, παράκαλο! (Φέρε: imperative in single)	Bring them to me, please!
Φέρτε μού τις, παράκαλο! (Φέρτε: imperative in plural)	Bring them to me, please! (here: y'all bring them to me)
Τις έφερες;	Did you bring them?
Αγοράζοντας αυτές τις αμφίεσεις, είμαι ταπί τώρα.	By buying these clothes I am broke now.
Αγοράζοντάς τες, είμαι ταπί τώρα	By buying it, I am broke now.

 

N.B

• At the 1st and 2nd person singular and plural of the weak personal pronouns, the 1st case is lacking, whereas the 3rd person does have masculine, feminine and neuter forms in the singular and plural.
• The weak form can take the places of the subject (1st case) and the direct object (4th case) in interrogatory and exclaiming meanings using the particles «να» - there, «ας» - let, leave and «που» - where.

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
Ας ποτίσουμε τις γλάστρες!	Let's water the flowerpots!
Ας τις ποτίσουμε!	Let's water them!
Να τος ο Γιάννης! (έρχεται)	Look, there is John!
Nα τον το Γιάννη! (τον βλέπω)	Look, there goes John!
Να το το βιβλίο! (το βρήκα!)	Look, there's the book!
Να τες οι κοπέλες! (Εκεί κάτω είναι!)	Look, there are the girls!
Θέλεις να τον δω;	Do you want to see him?
Πού τις άκουσες;	Where did you hear them (the sounds)?

 

N.B

• When a perfect time is used in which for instance the auxiliary verb «έχω» occurs, the weak personal pronoun must precede it.

Αυτοί οι ήχοι έχουμε ακούσει και άλλες φορές.	These noises we heard before.
Τους έχουμε ακούσει και άλλες φορές.	We've heard them before.
Δεν έχω ξαναδεί αυτές τις ταινίες.	I have not seen these movies again.
Δεν τις έχω ξαναδεί.	I have not seen them again.

Examples of the imperative and the verb used as a noun (το γερούνδιο), where the weak personal pronoun is placed after the verb:

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
κοίταξέ με!	look at me!
δίνε του!	bugger off!
φίλησέ με!	kiss me!
άσε με ήσυχο!	leave me alone!
άσε με να σου εξηγήσω!	let me explain it to you!
ας την!	let her!
βιαστείτε!	Hurry!
Στείλε της ένα γράμμα!	Send her a letter!
Χαρίζοντάς την το, μου ένιωσα πολύ καλά! [of: Χαρίζοντάς το την...!] (both is okay)	By giving it to her, I felt very good!
Θα εξηγήσω τι έγινε αύριο, γράφοντάς του ένα γράμμα.	I will explain what happened tomorrow, by writing a letter to him.
Το κατάλαβα, διαβάζοντας αυτές τις έκθεσεις.	I understood it, by reading those reports.
Διαβάζοντάς τες το κατάλαβα.	By reading them, I understood.

The genitive forms of the weak personal pronoun are used for the possessive pronouns