English - Modern Greek

letters	greek	english
Α, α	ανοίγω, ο αδελφός, απέναντι	to open/ brother/ opposite
	Ανοίγει ένα μαγαζί απέναντι σπίτι μας.	He opens up a shop opposite our house.
	Ανοίγει ένα μαγαζί απέναντι σπίτι μας.
	Ο αδελφός του είναι μεγαλύτερος μου κατά έξι χρόνια.	His brother is six years older than me.
	Ο αδελφός του είναι μεγαλύτερος μου κατά έξι χρόνια.
Β, β	βρίσκω, το βιβλίο, βαρετός,-η,-ο	to find, locate/ book/ boring, long-winded, annoying
	Δεν μπορώ να βρω το βιβλίο.	I can't find the book.
	Δεν μπορώ να βρω το βιβλίο.
	Το βιβλίο είναι πολύ βαρετό.	The book is very boring.
	Το βιβλίο είναι πολύ βαρετό
Γ, γ	γράφω, η γυναίκα, για	to write/ woman/ for, to, about
	Τι γράφεις;	what do you write?
	Τι γράφεις;
	Η γυναίκα μου γράφει για τον εαυτό της.	My wife writes about herself.
	Η γυναίκα μου γράφει για τον εαυτό της.
Δ, δ	δουλεύω, η δουλειά, δύσκολος,-η,-ο	to work, labor/ street/ difficult
	Η δουλειά μου δεν είναι τόσο δύσκολη.	My work is not that difficult.
	Η δουλειά μου δεν είναι τόσο δύσκολη.
	Δε δουλεύω σε γραφείο αλλά σ'ένα κατάστημα.	I don't work in an office but in a shop.
	Δε δουλεύω σε γραφείο αλλά σ'ένα κατάστημα.
Ε, ε	έρχομαι, η Ελλάδα, ελληνικός, -η, -ο,	to come/ Griekenland/ Grieks
	Πολλοί τουρίστες έρχονται στην Ελλάδα.	Many tourists are coming to Greece.
	Πολλοί τουρίστες έρχονται στην Ελλάδα.
	Η ελληνική γλώσσα είναι μάλλον δύσκολη.	The greek language is rather difficult.
	Η ελληνική γλώσσα είναι μάλλον δύσκολη.
Ζ, ζ	ζω, η ζωή, ζωηρός,-ή,-ό	to live/ life/ lively
	Έχει ζωηρή ζωή.	She has a lively life.
	Έχει ζωηρή ζωή.
	Έζησε όλη του τη ζωή εδώ.	He lived here all his life.
	Έζησε όλη του τη ζωή εδώ.
Η, η	ηρεμώ, η ημέρα, ο ήλιος	to relax, calm down, be quiet/ dag/ zon
	Ο ήλιος δεν είναι πλανήτης, είναι αστέρι.	The sun is not a planet, it's a star.
	Ο ήλιος δεν είναι πλανήτης, είναι αστέρι.
	Η θάλασσα θα ηρεμήσει εκείνη την ημέρα.	The sea will grow calm that day.
	Η θάλασσα θα ησυχάζει εκείνη την ημέρα.
Θ, θ	θυμάμαι, η θάλασσα, θεαματικός, -ή, -ό	to remember/ sea/ spectacular
	Η θάλασσα είναι θεαματική σήμερα.	The sea is spectacular today.
	Η θάλασσα είναι θεαματική σήμερα.
	Δεν το θυμάμαι.	I don't remember it.
	Δεν το θυμάμαι.
Ι, ι	ισχύω, η ιδέα, ίσως	to be valid,be in force,apply/ idea/ may-be, perhaps
	Αυτός ο κανόνας ισχύει από τη Δευτέρα.	This rule is in force on Monday.
	Αυτός ο κανόνας ισχύει από τη Δευτέρα.
	Ίσως δεν είναι τόσο καλή ιδέα.	It is perhaps not such a good idea.
	Ίσως δεν είναι τόσο καλή ιδέα
K, k	κάνω, καλά, κάτι	to do, make/ well, nicely, properly etc./ something
	Ο θεός να σ'έχει καλά.	God blesses you.
	Ο θεός να σ'έχει καλά.
	Κάνει κάτι τόσο καλό για τη μητέρα του.	He does something good like this for his mother.
	Κάνει κάτι τόσο καλό για τη μητέρα του.
Λ, λ	λέω, τα λεπτά/το λεπτό, λίγος, -η, -ο	to say, tell, mention/ money, minute/ little
	Είμαι πίσω σ'ένα λεπτό.	I'll be back in a minute.
	Είμαι πίσω σ'ένα λεπτό.
	Λέγεται ότι έχει λίγα λεπτά.	It has been said that he has little money.
	Λέγεται ότι έχει λίγα λεπτά.
Μ, μ	μιλάω/μιλώ, το μάθημα, μόνος,-η,-ο	to speak, talk, lesson,alone les,
	Θα μιλάμε για το μάθημα αυτό.	We will talk about this lesson.
	Θα μιλάμε για το μάθημα αυτό.
	ζει μόνος του.	He lives alone.
	ζει μόνος του.
Ν, ν	νιώθω, το νησί/η νήσος, νοστιμός, -η, -ο	to feel, sense/ island/ tasty, good-looking, attractive
	Νιώθω καλά σε αυτό το νησί.	I feel gooed on that island.
	Νιώθω καλά σε αυτό το νησί.
	Είναι τόσο νόστιμο.	It tastes so good.
	Είναι τόσο νόστιμο.
Ξ, ξ	ξέρω, ξαφνικά, ξυπνιός,-ά -ό	to know/ suddenly/ awake, smart, sharp-witted
	Ξαφνικά είσαι ξύπνιος.	Suddenly you are awake.
	Ξαφνικά είσαι ξύπνιος.
	Ξέρουν ξένες γλώσσες.	They know foreign languages
	Ξέρουν ξένες γλώσσες.
Ο, ο	οδηγώ, το όνομα, όμορφος, -η, -ο,	drive, guide/ / name/ beautiful, pretty, handsome
	Οδηγεί το δικό του αυτοκίνητο.	He drives his own car.
	Οδηγεί το δικό του αυτοκίνητο.
	Το όνομά της είναι η Ελένη και είναι πολύ όμορφη	Her name is Helen and she is very pretty.
	Το όνομά της είναι η Ελένη και είναι πολύ όμορφη.
Π, π	πηγαίνω, το παιδί, η πόλη	to go/ child/ town
	Πηγαίνουμε στο σχολείο για να μάθουμε πολλά.	We are going to school to learn a lot.
	Πηγαίνουμε στο σχολείο για να μάθουμε πολλά.
	Το παιδί πηγαίνει στο σχολείο στην πόλη.	The child goes to school in town.
	Το παιδί πηγαίνει στο σχολείο στην πόλη.
Ρ, ρ	ρωτάω/ρωτώ, το ρήμα, ρητώς	to ask/ verb/ expressly
	Μου ρωτάει/ρωτά ρητώς να είμαι παρών.	He/She asks me expressly to be present.
	Μου ρωτάει/ρωτά ρητώς να είμαι παρών.
	Το ελληνικό ρήμα ρωτώ είναι ένα ομαλό ρήμα.	The Greek verb to ask is a regular verb.
	Το ελληνικό ρήμα ρωτώ είναι ένα ομαλό ρήμα.
Σ, σ, ς	σπουδάζω, σωστός, -η, -ο, σωστά	to study/ right, correct/ right, correctly
	Σωστά, έχετε δίκιο.	Indeed, you're richt.
	Σωστά, έχετε δίκιο.
	Σπουδάζουν στη σωστή πόλη.	They are studying in the right town.
	Σπουδάζουν στη σωστή πόλη.
Τ, τ	τιμάω/τιμώ, η τάξη, τώρα	to celebrate, honour, grace/ class, classroom, order, tidiness/ now
	Τιμάμε τα φαγητά της.	We honour her dishes.
	Τιμάμε τα φαγητά της.
	Ποιος στην τάξη μας είναι ο καλύτερος τώρα.	Who is the best now in our class.
	Ποιος στην τάξη μας είναι ο καλύτερος τώρα.
Υ, υ	υπάρχω, η υγεία, υγιής,-ής,-ές	to be, exist/ health/ healthy, sane, fit
	Είναι υγιής και υγεία της είναι καλά.	She is fit and her health is good.
	Είναι υγιής και υγεία της είναι καλά.
	Υπάρχει Θεός;	Is there a God?
	Υπάρχει Θεός;
Φ, φ	φεύγωο, ο φίλος, φθηνά	to leave/ friend/ cheaply
	Ο φίλος μου φεύγει νωρίς το απόγευμα.	My friend leaves early this afternoon/evening.
	Ο φίλος μου φεύγει νωρίς το απόγευμα.
	Βρήκα φθηνά εισιτήρια στο ιντερνετ.	I found a cheap ticket on internet.
	Βρήκα φθηνά εισιτήρια στο ιντερνετ.
Χ, χ	χορεύω, το χρώμα, χωρίς	to dance/ colour/ without
	Χορεύεις ωραία.	You dance nice.
	Χορεύεις ωραία.
	Χωρίς όλα αυτά τα χρώματα είναι πολύ βαρετά.	Without all these colours it is terribly boring.
	Χωρίς όλα αυτά τα χρώματα είναι πολύ βαρετά.
Ψ, ψ	το ψήνω, to ψάρι, ψητός,-ή,-ό	το cook, bake, roast, grill/ vis/ roast, barbecued
	Μ'αρέσει ψητό ψάρι.	I love grilled fish.
	Μ'αρέσει ψητό ψάρι.
	Το κρέας ψήνεται και δεν ψήνεται στη σχάρα.	The meat is baked and not grilled.
	Το κρέας ψήνεται και δεν ψήνεται στη σχάρα.
Ω, ω	ωφελώ, η ώρα, ωραία	to benefit, profit, gain/ hour, point of time/ well, fine
	Από ώρα είναι πολύ ωραία εδώ.	For some time it's very nice here.
	Από ώρα είναι πολύ ωραία εδώ.
	Δεν ωφελούν άμεσα ή έμμεσα.	They do not benefit directly or indirectly
	Δεν ωφελούν άμεσα ή έμμεσα.

Some notes about the above sentences:

The words «μεγαλύτερος» in «Α, α» and «καλύτερος» in «Τ, τ» are the comparative degrees of the adjectives «μεγάλος, -η, -ο» and «καλός, ή, -ό». The ending «ος» modifies in «ύ», supplemented with the suffix «-τερος, -η, ο». Look at the degrees of comparison in which this is explained in detail.

In «Β, β», «Π, π», and «Ρ, ρ» the subjunctive mood has been used with the particle «να». The subjunctive mood is often used in key phrases with all forms of the verb to express wishes, requests, suggestions, prohibitions and some commands. But also after certain verbs such as «μπορώ» - can, may and behind some prepositions such as «χωρίς». Look at the particle «να» for more explanation

In some of the above sentences the negative particle «δεν» is used. Unlike other European languages, Modern Greek has multiple particles to express a negation, but «δεν» is used in the indicative mood, i.e. the mood used so far in the present tense. Look at the particle «δεν» and on the negation for more clarity

Τhe end «-ν», which has been omitted at «Ζ, ζ» from the phrase «τη(ν) ζωή», is always used in front of vowels and most of the time in front of the following consonants and combinations: «κ, ξ, π, τ, ψ,μπ, ντ, γκ, τζ and τσ». They may be omitted in front of: «β, γ, δ, ζ, θ, μ, ν, λ, ρ, σ, χ and φ». The same applies in front of the negative particles «δε(ν)» and
«μη(ν)», for instance at «Δ, δ» in «δε δουλεύω», the end «-ν» has been ommitted from «δεν».

When two vowels come together, either in a compound word or between words in a sentence, it is likely that one of the two will be omitted. Which one is complicated and depends mostly on the position of the vowel in the order of the sound. It has been shown that the five Greek vowels are arranged on the scale of the sound from the most soundful to the least soundful vowel. This scale looks, in our own sounds, as follows: 1) «a», 2) «o», 3) «u», 4) «e» and 5) «i», although the «i» sometimes proves to be more soundful than the «e». But the fuller the sound is, the less a vowel will be omitted. An example is at «Κ, κ» where «σε» and «έχει» are combined by means of a separator in the sentence «Ο θεός να σ'έχει καλά». The word «έχει» here is a sound with the stress on the «ε» ranked above the «ε» of «σε». The same occurs at
«Ψ, ψ» in the sentence «μ'αρέσει ψητό ψάρι», of which «ου» has been omitted from the personal pronoun «μου», as being less soundful than «α».

The words with the endings in «-ή,-ό», «-α,-ο» and «-ής,-ές» are the adjectives, which are declined according to the declension category, masculine single and plural, femine single and plural and neuter single and plural, of the nouns they accompany.

Adverb like «άμεσα», «εδώ», «χωρίς», «ρητώς», «καλά» etc. are indeclinable, as well as the prepositions «για», «σε» and «από». The nouns following the prepositions are declined in the accusative (4th case).

The verb «αρέσω», In the present tense. For a complete conjugation , look at «αρέσω»

Some examples with «αρέσω»:

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
Σας αρέσει η Ελλάδα;	Do you like Greece?
Σας αρέσουν οι κεφτέδες;	Do you like meatballs?
Σου αρέσει η σούπα;	Do you like soup?
Σου αρέσουν τα μαθήματα;	Do you like the lessons?
Σας αρέσει το βιβλίο;	Do you like the book?
Μου αρέσει το βιβλίο.	I like the book.
Μας αρέσει το βιβλίο.	We like the book.
Μου αρέσουν τα βιβλία.	I like books.
Μας αρέσουν τα βιβλία.	We like books.
Αν σ'άρεσιε!	Like it or lump it!
Δεν του αρέσω.	He doesn't like me.
Είτε αρέσει είτε όχι.	Whether I like it or not.
Μου αρέσει δεν μου αρέσει.	Whether I like it or not.
Θα κάνω ό,τι μ'αρέσει.	I'll do as I please.
Μου αρέσεις.	I like you.
Μου αρέσουν.	I like them.
Όπως σου αρέσει.	Do as you please.

The verb «μπορώ», in the present tense. For a complete conjugation, look at «μπορώ»

Some examples with «μπορώ»:

ελληνικά	αγγλικά
Μπορώ να πάω έξω;	Can i go outside?
Μπορώ να κάνω κάτι.	I can do something.
Θα κάνω ό,τι μπορώ.	I will do what I can.
Μπορείς να το κάνεις.	You can do it.
Δεν μπορώ να το γράφω	I can't write .
Μπορείς αύριο;	Can you make it tomorrow?
Δεν μπορεί! *	That's not possible!
Μπορεί να είναι στο σπίτι. *	He could be home.
Μπορεί να βρέξει αύριο. *	It could rain tomorrow.
Δεν μπορεί να το έκανε αυτός. *	He could not have done that.

* In the last 4 sentences the unpersonal «μπορεί» has been used, i.e. the same word as the 3rd person singular of the verb, but herewith a possibility has been expressed, whilst «μπορεί» as the 3rd personal form of the verb the characteristics ability and permission has been assigned.

This can lead to problems, in particular with respect to the interpretation in a conversation. In a text it is easier to look through which form has been used.

Cardinal and ordinal numbers:

cardinal: masculine, feminine, neuter	ordinal: masculine, feminine, neuter
01. ένας, μία, ένα	01st. πρώτος, πρώτη, πρώτο
02. δύο, δύο, δύο	02nd. δεύτερος, δεύτερη, δεύτερα
03. τρεις, τρεις, τρία .	03rd. τρίτος, τρίτη, τρίτο
04. τέσσερις, τέσσερις, τέσσερα	04th. τέταρτος, τέταρτη, τέταρτο
05. πέντε, πέντε, πέντε	05th. πέμπτος, πέμπτη, πέμπτο
06. έξι, έξι, έξι	06th. έκτος, έκτη, έκτο
07. επτά, επτά, επτά	07th. έβδομος, έβδομη, έβδομο
08. οκτώ, οκτώ, οκτώ	08th. όγδοος, όγδοη, όγδοο
09. εννέα, εννέα, εννέα	09th.ένατος, ένατη, ένατο
10. δέκα, δέκα, δέκα	10th. δέκατος, δέκατη, δέκατο
11. έντεκα, έντεκα, έντεκα	11th. εντέκατος, εντέκατη, εντέκατο
12. δώδεκα, δώδεκα, δώδεκα	12th. δωδέκατος, δωδέκατη, δωδέκατο

Some notes about above numerals:

The cardinals are declined like adjectives according to gender, single and plural and case of the noun or another part in the sentence where they belong to.

This does not apply to the indeclinable numeral 11.

All numeral ending in 3 are delined in the same way.

All numeral ending in 4 are delined in the same way.

More info at the numerals

Greek	English
	meaning	part of speech
δουλεύω	to work, labour, function	regular verb with active and passive voices
ηρεμώ	to calm, compose, relax, calm down	regular verb in the active voice
θυμάμαι	to remember	regular verb in the passive voice
ισχύω	to be in force, be valid	regular verb in the active voice
λέω	to say, tell	irregular verb with active and passive voices
νιώθω	to feel, sense	regular verb in the active voice
οδηγώ	to drive, guide, lead	regular verb with active and passive voices
ρωτώ/ρωτάω	to ask	regular verb with active and passive voices
σπουδάζω	to study	regular verb in the active voice
τιμώ/τιμάω	to honour, venerate, esteem	regular verb with active and passive voices
υπάρχω	to be, exist	irregular verb in the activevoice
χορεύω	to dance	regular verb with active and passive voices
ψήνω	to bake, roast, grill	regular verb with active and passive voices
ωφελώ	to profit, benefit	regular verb with active and passive voices
το αστέρι	star	neuter noun
το γραφείο	desk, office	neuter noun
το δίκιο	right	neuter noun
η ζωή	life	feminine noun
ο ήλιος	sun	masculine noun
η ημέρα	day	feminine noun
η θάλασσα	sea	feminine noun
ο Θεός	God	masculine noun
η ιδέα	idea	feminine noun
το κρέας	meat	neuter noun
ο πλανήτης	planet	masculine noun
το λεπτό/τα λεπτά	minute/ money	neuter noun
το ρήμα	verb	neuter noun
το σχάρα	grill	neuter noun
ο τουρίστας	tourist	masculine noun
το φαγητό	food	neuter noun
η υγεία	health	feminine noun
το χρώμα	colour	neuter noun
το ψάρι	fish	neuter noun
άμεσα	directly	adverb
έμμεσα	indirectly	adverb
ίσως	perhaps, may-be	adverb
καλά	well, right, clearly, nicely etc.	adverb
μάλλον	probably, possibly	adverb
ξαφνικά	suddenly	adverb
ρητώς	expressly	adverb
σωστά	right, correctly	adverb
φθηνά	cheaply	adverb
βαρετός, -η, -ο	boring, dull	adjecttive
ζωηρός, -ή, -ό>	happy, gay, joyfull, lively	adjective
θεαματικός -ή, -ό	spectacular	adjective
λίγος, -η, -ο	little, small	adjective
νοστιμός, -ή, -ό	tasty	adjective
μόνος, -η, ο	alone, only	adjective
μονός, ή, -ο	single, odd	adjective
όλος, -η, -ο	all, everything	adjective
ομαλός, -η, -ο	smooth, even, regular	adjective
παρών, -ουσα, -όν	present	adjective
υγιής, -ής, -ές	healthy, fit, well	adjective
ψητός, -ή, -ό	baked, roasted, frilled	adjective
εαυτός	oneself	pronoun
κατά	against, accordingly, per, at, on	preposition/adposition
δικός, -ή/-ιά, -ό	own (mine)	possissive pronoun
εκείνος, -η, -ο	that, those	demonstrative pronoun
αλλά	but	conjunction

The The conjugation of the used verbs

The regular verbs are divided in two groups, viz. group A (the first conjugation) and group B (the second conjugation).

To learn the conjugation of a verb we should know the stem of it. The stem indicates the essential meaning of the verb and from there the ending is formed. The first thing we need to know to create verb forms is the difference between the stem of the verb and the ending. Look at the stem of the verb. The stem tells us someting about the aspect and the ending about the person. These two things together give us the information about the voice (active or passive), the person, and the number.

Regular verbs follow the classifications Type and Model. The [Type] tab classifies the verbs according to their personal endings. There are essentially two types, I and II; then, there are two II types, A and B. Type I verbs are accented on the stem. Type II verbs are accented on the personal ending. It's as simple as that. There are some complications with Type II verbs though: some verbs don't seem to belong to A or B, while others belong to both A and B. Verbs having more than one conjugation are hyperlinked on the first person present of the active-indicative, the "name" of the verb. The [Model] tab classifies the verbs according to the stems. Stem formation is quite regular too. There are probably 25, or 30 of them. Each verb usually has three stems, one imperfect stem, shared in active and passive voice, like {βλάφτω, βλάφτομαι}, and two perfect stems, one active, like έβλαψα, and one passive, like βλάφτηκα. The full conjugations are created by combining the Active and Passive models from the Iordanidou book, so our "Model" is an ordered pair, eg. ξύνω has two models, {1, 2}, and {1, 39}. Verbs belonging to more than one model have more than one conjugation, and are connected by hyperlinks. For example, σέρνω, and σύρω both represent the same verb: "draw, pull, drag". Sub [Model]... Μodels can divided into submodels, like when a group of verbs share the optional parts of a model. Check out γράφω. They're all pretty close. Some conjugations do not have a participle, some have an optional infinitive, others have additional periphrased tenses...

The present tense in the indictive mood of the verb «δουλεύω».

• «δουλεύω» is regular verb from category 4 of group A (the first conjugation), with the stem «δουλεύ-ω». It has also a passive voice viz. «δουλεύομαι»

The present tense in the indicative mood of the active verb «ηρεμώ».

• «ηρεμώ» is a regular active verb from category 2 of group B (the second conjugation), with the stem «ηρεμ-ώ». It doesn't have a passive voice.

The present tense in the indicative mood of the passive verb «θυμάμαι».

• The verb «θυμάμαι» is a regular passive verb from the category 1 of the A group (The first conjugation). It has an alternative from, viz. «θυμούμαι». The stem is «θυμά-μαι»

The present tense in the indicative mood of the active verb «ισχύω».

• «ισχύω» is a regular active verb from the category 1 of the A group, without a passive voice. The stem is «ισχύ-ω». It also means to be in force and to be valid.

The present tense in the indicative mood of the verb «λέω».

• «λέω» is a irregular verb with an active and passive voice. In modern Greek

The present tense in the indicative mood of the active verb «νιώθω».

• «νιώθω» is a regular verb with an active voice.

The present tense in the indicative mood of the verb «οδηγώ».

• «οδηγώ» is a regular verb with an active and passive voice.

The present tense in the indicative mood of the verb «ρωτάω, ρωτώ».

• «ρωτάω, ρωτώ» is a regular verb with an active and passive voice.

The present tense in the indicative mood of the active verb «σπουδάζω».

• «σπουδάζω» is a regular verb with in the active voice.

The present tense in the indicative mood of the active verb «τιμάω, τιμώ».

• «τιμάω, τιμώω» is a regular verb with an active and passive voice.

The present tense in the indicative mood of the active verb «υπάρχω».

• «υπάρχω» is an irregular verb in the active voice.

The present tense in the indicative mood of the active verb «χορεύω».

• «χορεύω» is a regular verb in the active voice. It has ....

The present tense in the indicative mood of the active verb «ψήνω».

• «ψήνω» is a regular verb with active and passive voices.

The present tense in the indicative mood of the active verb «ωφελώ».

• «ωφελώ» is a regular verb with active and passive voices.