How to Speak Basic Greek

Greeting Other People

Use yassass as a formal greeting to strangers. Yassass means "hello." When you're greeting someone you don't know, it's more polite to use this formal version. This is especially true if the person is older than you, or in a position of authority. For younger people or friends, you can say yassou instead. You can also just say yah, which equates more to "hi" in English. Yassass is also the plural form of "hello." Use it if you are greeting a group of people generally.

Try different greetings based on the time of day. As in most other languages, there are time-specific greetings in Greek for morning, afternoon, and night. Some of these phrases are used both coming and going from a place. Kali mera means "good morning" or "good day." It is typically used only before noon. Kali spera means "good afternoon." Use it after noon, before nightfall. Kali nikta means "good night." It isn't typically used as a greeting. Rather, you would use it as a "good bye" when you were going home for the night.

Say herete only in extremely formal settings. This is a very formal way of saying "hello," and as such it isn't commonly used among Greeks or within Greece. However, if you are in a formal setting or addressing someone of importance, it may be appropriate. If greeting someone who is a government official, teacher, member of the military, or member of the clergy, start with this greeting. If they are comfortable with you addressing them in a less formal way, they will let you know.

Recognize polite responses to greetings. When you greet someone in Greek, they may say kalo sorisateh, which means "welcome." In the afternoon, you may also hear kalo vrathi, which means "wishing you a pleasant evening." For example, if you were entering a shop and said yassass, the shop-owner might reply kalo sorisateh. Upon leaving, if you say kali nikta (good night), you may hear the response kalo ximeroma, which means "wishing you a good dawn" or "wishing you a good tomorrow."

Ask ti kanete? to mean "how are you?" Ti kanete is the formal or polite way to ask after someone's wellbeing. If you're speaking to someone younger than you, or someone you already know, use the informal ti kanis? In response, you might say kala, efharisto, which means "fine, thank you." If the other person asked you first, add esis, which means "and you?"

Use the same words and phrases to say "hello" and "goodbye." Yassass and yassou mean both "hello" and "goodbye." Similarly, the phrases for "good morning" and "good afternoon" can be used both when first greeting someone and when taking your leave. Adio is another way to say goodbye in Greek.

Having Simple Conversations

Say na sas sustitho to introduce yourself. This phrase means "let me introduce myself." In Greek culture, this formality is important. Use this sentence before you simply tell someone your name. Then wait for them to acknowledge that you may continue. To tell the person your name, you can either say to onoma mou (my name is) or my lenne (I am called), followed by your name. These phrases are interchangeable. When the person tells you their name, say harika poli ya to gnorimia, which means "pleased to meet you."

Use polite words and phrases to show respect. Especially if you can't speak a language very well, knowing how to say "please" and "thank you" will help you tremendously. Being polite to native speakers can help avoid misunderstandings or offense. Me synhorite is the formal way to say "excuse me." If you're speaking to a friend or someone younger than you, you might say me sinhoris, which is the informal version of the phrase. Sygnomi means "I'm sorry." Efharisto means "thank you." Parakalo means "please." This is also used for "you're welcome," as a reply when someone thanks you.

Explain your familiarity with the Greek language. Especially if you're visiting Greece or a Greek-speaking area, it's important to let people know that you don't speak very much Greek. You might say den melo kala ellinika, which means "I don't speak Greek very well." If you want the person to continue speaking to you in Greek so you can practice, you might say parakalo milate mou ellinika, which means "please speak Greek." If you don't understand what someone has said, you might say parakalo milate pyo arga, which means "please speak more slowly." You could also say mporite na epanalavete, or "please say that again."

Talk about where you're from. Particularly if you're traveling, your home city or country will likely be an early topic of conversation. If someone asks you apo pu iste or apo pu katageste, they are asking where you're from. In response, use the phrase eime apo or katagome apo, followed by the name of your home city or country. Which one of these you use depends on what the person asked you. If they asked apo pu iste, use the response eime apo. If they asked you first, add esis to the end of your response, meaning "and you?" This helps keep the conversation flowing.

Be polite when asking questions. Add parakalo to the end of any question you ask in Greek. This is not only polite, it's considered an important part of Greek culture, and shows respect to the person you're asking. Parakalo can also be used to mean "beg your pardon." You can use it if you think you've misunderstood something, or if you didn't hear what someone said.

Take care not to confuse "yes" and "no." In Greek, neh means yes and ohee means no. Particularly since neh sounds a lot like a word for "no" in English, it can be easy to get confused and misinterpret what someone is saying. If you're not sure what someone meant, you might say then katalaveno, which means "I don't understand."

Pronouncing Greek Words Correctly

Familiarize yourself with the Greek alphabet. You certainly don't have to learn how to read Greek to be able to speak conversationally. However, a basic understanding of the Greek alphabet will help with your pronunciation. Look for a copy of the Greek alphabet online. There are many different images available, simply choose the one you like the best. You may find that you already know part of the alphabet. Many Greek letters have similar counterparts in the Latin alphabet, which is used in English and other Western European languages.

Recognize Greek letters that share pronunciations with Latin letters. There are about 10 letters in the Greek alphabet that have the same sounds as their counterparts in the Latin alphabet. If you get these under your belt, you'll already be able to pronounce nearly half of the Greek alphabet. The vowels a (alpha, Α α) and e (epsilon, Ε ε) are equivalent to the short version of these vowels in English. Alpha sounds like the a in the English word "father." Epsilon sounds like the e in the English word "pet." Both omicron (Ο ο) and omega (Ω ω) have an o sound, similar to the o in the English word "got." The Greek letters zeta (Ζ ζ), kappa (Κ κ), mu (Μ μ), nu (Ν ν), and tau (Τ τ) look like the Latin letters z, k, m, n, and t, and share the same sounds. Lambda (Λ λ) does not look like the Latin l, but is pronounced the same. It sounds like the l in the English word "lap." Pi (Π π) does not look like the Latin p, but is pronounced the same. It sounds like the p in the English word "pot." Sigma (Σ σ/ς) does not look like the Latin s, but is pronounced the same. It sounds like the s in the English word "soap." Note that the lower-case letter has a different form if it occurs at the end of a word.

Memorize Greek letters with distinct pronunciations. While the Greek alphabet shares many commonalities with the Latin alphabet, there are letters that may have a different pronunciation than what you would expect. Memorizing them will make it easier for you to pronounce Greek words, even if you're reading the word transliterated into the Latin alphabet. Eta (Η η), iota (Ι ι), and upsilon (Υ υ) are the 3 i letters in the Greek alphabet. They are all pronounced like the ee in the English word "meet." You may be tempted to pronounce beta (Β β) the way you would an English b. However, this Greek letter actually has a v sound, as in the English word "vet." Theta (Θ θ) has a th sound, similar to the th in the English word "think." Delta (Δ δ) also has a th sound, but it is softer, similar to the th in the English word "this." Ksi (Ξ ξ) has a ks sound, similar to the x in the English word "fox." This letter is always pronounced the same, regardless of where it appears in a word. Phi (Φ φ) has an f sound, similar to the f in the English word "fat." Chi (Χ χ) sounds similar to the ch in the Scottish word "loch." If followed by either an e or an i, it sounds more like the ch in the German word "ich." Psi (Ψ ψ) has a ps sound, similar to the ps in the English word "lopsided." The sound of the letter does not change, regardless of where it appears in a word.

Practice pronouncing the letter g (gamma, Γ γ). Particularly if your first language is English, you may have some difficulty with the letter g. It has 2 different sounds, depending on the vowel that comes after it. If the letter g is followed by an i or an e, it is pronounced like the y in the English word "yellow." For example, the Greek word "giro" is pronounced yee-roh. When followed by an a, o, or u, the letter g has a "soft g" sound. There is no equivalent sound in the English language. However, a sound that comes close is the ch in "Bach" or "Loch Ness Monster." The Greek word meaning "sorry" or "excuse me," signomi, has this "soft g" sound.

Pronounce r (rho, Ρ ρ) differently when it occurs between vowels. Similar to the Greek g, the Greek r has a different sound depending on the letters that surround it. Between vowels, the r is shorter and clipped, while otherwise it sounds like a trilled or rolled r in Spanish or Italian. Between vowels, the r sounds similar to the tt in the English word "butter," or like the r in the Spanish word "pero."