Conditional Sentences in Greek

In Brief

Greek normally introduces a condition with αν (“if”). A real or open condition uses an indicative verb, while an unreal condition typically pairs αν + imperfect with θα + imperfect for the present, or αν + past perfect with θα + past perfect for the past: Αν είχα χρόνο, θα ερχόμουν (“If I had time, I would come”). Do not put θα after αν in an ordinary if-clause.

Overview

A conditional sentence connects a condition with its result. The clause containing “if” is the condition clause—also called the protasis—and the clause giving the result is the result clause, or apodosis. In Αν βρέξει, θα μείνουμε σπίτι (“If it rains, we will stay home”), αν βρέξει is the condition and θα μείνουμε σπίτι is the result.

At B2, the important distinction is not simply “present, past, or future.” It is whether the speaker treats the condition as open and possible, imagined or contrary to the present, or contrary to the past. Modern Greek marks these meanings through combinations of αν, verb aspect and tense, and the particle θα.

This system resembles English in broad outline, but the forms do not line up word for word. In particular, Greek has no separate verb form called “the conditional.” Instead, θα combines with forms you already know. Greek also leaves θα out of the ordinary condition clause even when the English translation contains “will.”

How It Works

The two-clause pattern

The basic order is flexible:

Order	Pattern	Example
Condition first	αν-clause + result clause	Αν τελειώσω νωρίς, θα σε πάρω τηλέφωνο.
Result first	result clause + αν-clause	Θα σε πάρω τηλέφωνο αν τελειώσω νωρίς.

When the αν-clause comes first, it is normally followed by a comma. When it comes second, a comma is usually unnecessary. Changing the order normally changes emphasis, not the underlying meaning.

1. Real and open conditions

Use this pattern when the condition is a fact, a regular occurrence, or a genuine possibility.

Meaning	Condition	Typical result	Example
General truth or habit	αν + present indicative	present indicative	Αν κάνει κρύο, φοράω παλτό.
Possible future event	αν + dependent perfective form	θα + dependent perfective form	Αν έρθεις, θα χαρώ.
Ongoing future situation	αν + present/imperfective form	θα + future form	Αν δουλεύεις αύριο, θα έρθω μόνος μου.
Condition followed by advice or request	αν + indicative form	imperative or other appropriate form	Αν τον δεις, πες του να με πάρει.

The indicative is the ordinary verb form used to present something as a statement or possibility. In a future condition such as αν έρθεις, the form έρθεις is perfective: it views “coming” as one complete event. It looks like the form used after να, but here it follows αν. The result commonly has θα: θα χαρώ.

English speakers often want to translate “If you will come” literally. Greek instead says:

• Αν έρθεις, θα χαρώ. — “If you come, I’ll be happy.”
• not Αν θα έρθεις, θα χαρώ.

The result does not have to be in the future. It may be a fact, a command, a suggestion, or a question: Αν πεινάς, φάε κάτι (“If you’re hungry, eat something”).

2. Unreal or hypothetical present conditions

Use αν + imperfect in the condition and θα + imperfect in the result for a situation imagined as unlikely, remote, or contrary to present reality.

Part	Pattern	Example
Condition	αν + imperfect	αν είχα περισσότερο χρόνο
Result	θα + imperfect	θα μάθαινα άλλη μία γλώσσα
Complete sentence	—	Αν είχα περισσότερο χρόνο, θα μάθαινα άλλη μία γλώσσα.

The imperfect is a past form that normally presents an action or state as ongoing, repeated, or in progress. In this conditional pattern, however, it creates distance from reality: είχα can mean “I had” in a past narrative, but after αν it can mean “if I had (now).” The time reference comes from the whole sentence and its context.

The result form can describe a single imagined action even though it is morphologically imperfect: θα αγόραζα αυτό το σπίτι means “I would buy this house.” Greek does not need an English-style auxiliary “would” plus infinitive; θα and the imperfect form do the work together.

With είμαι, the common pattern is αν ήμουν …, θα …: Αν ήμουν στη θέση σου, θα περίμενα (“If I were you, I would wait”).

3. Unreal past conditions

Use this pattern when the condition did not happen and its imagined result did not happen either.

Part	Pattern	Example
Condition	αν + past perfect	αν είχα φύγει νωρίτερα
Result	θα + past perfect	θα είχα προλάβει το τρένο
Complete sentence	—	Αν είχα φύγει νωρίτερα, θα είχα προλάβει το τρένο.

The past perfect (υπερσυντέλικος) is built with the imperfect of έχω plus the fixed perfective form: είχα δει, είχες κάνει, είχαν φύγει. It places an event before another past point. In a past counterfactual, both clauses commonly use it:

• Αν είχα ξέρει, θα είχα έρθει. — “If I had known, I would have come.”
• Αν με είχες ρωτήσει, θα σου είχα πει την αλήθεια. — “If you had asked me, I would have told you the truth.”

Core patterns at a glance

Type	Speaker’s view	If-clause	Result clause
Real/open	factual or genuinely possible	αν + indicative	indicative, θα + verb, imperative, etc.
Unreal present	imagined, unlikely, or not true now	αν + imperfect	θα + imperfect
Unreal past	did not happen in the past	αν + past perfect	θα + past perfect

Negation

The usual negative word is δεν, placed before the verb or before an attached object pronoun:

• Αν δεν βρέξει, θα πάμε παραλία. — “If it doesn’t rain, we’ll go to the beach.”
• Αν δεν είχα αργήσει, θα τον είχα συναντήσει. — “If I hadn’t been late, I would have met him.”
• Αν δεν τον δεις, στείλε του μήνυμα. — “If you don’t see him, send him a message.”

Aspect in open future conditions

Greek distinguishes perfective aspect (an event seen as a complete whole) from imperfective aspect (an action seen as ongoing or repeated). This matters after αν:

• Αν γράψεις την αναφορά, στείλε μου ένα αντίγραφο. — finish/write the report as one complete task
• Αν γράφεις την αναφορά αύριο, μπορώ να σε βοηθήσω. — be working on the report tomorrow

This is the same aspect contrast used in the future system, but without θα in the condition clause.

Examples in Context

Greek	English	Note
Αν ζεσταίνεις πάγο, λιώνει.	If you heat ice, it melts.	General condition; present in both clauses
Αν έχει χρόνο, πηγαίνει με τα πόδια.	If he has time, he walks.	Habitual result
Αν έρθεις, θα χαρώ.	If you come, I’ll be happy.	Open future condition
Αν τελειώσουμε νωρίς, θα πάμε για φαγητό.	If we finish early, we’ll go out to eat.	Complete future events
Αν δουλεύεις αύριο, θα κρατήσω εγώ τα παιδιά.	If you’re working tomorrow, I’ll look after the children.	Ongoing situation in the condition
Αν δεις τη Μαρία, δώσε της αυτό το βιβλίο.	If you see Maria, give her this book.	Imperative in the result
Αν είχα χρήματα, θα ταξίδευα περισσότερο.	If I had money, I would travel more.	Unreal present
Αν μέναμε πιο κοντά, θα βλεπόμασταν συχνότερα.	If we lived closer, we would see each other more often.	Present situation contrary to fact
Θα δεχόμουν τη δουλειά αν ο μισθός ήταν καλύτερος.	I would accept the job if the salary were better.	Result clause placed first
Αν ήμουν στη θέση σου, δεν θα του απαντούσα τώρα.	If I were you, I wouldn’t answer him now.	Advice framed hypothetically
Αν είχα ξέρει, θα είχα έρθει.	If I had known, I would have come.	Unreal past
Αν είχαμε κλείσει τραπέζι, δεν θα είχαμε περιμένει.	If we had booked a table, we wouldn’t have waited.	Negative past result
Αν δεν είχε χαλάσει το αυτοκίνητο, θα είχαμε φτάσει στην ώρα μας.	If the car hadn’t broken down, we would have arrived on time.	Negative past condition
Αν είχα ακούσει τη συμβουλή σου, θα ήμουν πιο ήρεμος τώρα.	If I had taken your advice, I would be calmer now.	Mixed condition: past cause, present result

Common Mistakes

Putting θα in an ordinary if-clause

• Wrong: Αν θα έρθεις αύριο, θα μαγειρέψω.
• Right: Αν έρθεις αύριο, θα μαγειρέψω.
• Why: In a condition meaning “if,” Greek normally uses the appropriate verb form directly after αν. The future particle θα belongs in the result clause.

Using a real condition for a contrary-to-fact idea

• Wrong: Αν έχω περισσότερα χρήματα, θα αγόραζα σπίτι.
• Right: Αν είχα περισσότερα χρήματα, θα αγόραζα σπίτι.
• Why: A present situation presented as unreal needs the imperfect in both clauses, with θα in the result.

Using the simple past pattern for a past counterfactual

• Wrong: Αν ήξερα χτες, θα ερχόμουν. (when you mean that you did not know and therefore did not come)
• Right: Αν είχα ξέρει, θα είχα έρθει.
• Why: The past perfect clearly marks an unreal condition and result located in the completed past.

Translating English “would” into both clauses

• Wrong: Αν θα είχα χρόνο, θα ταξίδευα.
• Right: Αν είχα χρόνο, θα ταξίδευα.
• Why: English also normally avoids “would” in a standard if-clause, but learners may still build both halves symmetrically. Greek marks the condition with αν + imperfect, not αν + θα.

Choosing the wrong aspect after αν

• Less suitable: Αν γράφεις την αίτηση, στείλε την σήμερα. (if the intended meaning is “once you complete the application”)
• Better: Αν γράψεις την αίτηση, στείλε την σήμερα.
• Why: Use the perfective form for one bounded, completed event. Use the imperfective form when the action is ongoing or repeated.

Treating every θα + imperfect as a full conditional sentence

• Misleading analysis: Θα ήθελα έναν καφέ must have a missing literal if-clause.
• Natural analysis: Θα ήθελα έναν καφέ. — “I’d like a coffee.”
• Why: The same form can soften a wish or request without stating a condition. Its polite function is often more important than any implied condition.

Usage Notes

Εάν is a slightly more formal alternative to αν and is common in instructions, announcements, and careful writing: Εάν επιθυμείτε περισσότερες πληροφορίες, επικοινωνήστε μαζί μας (“If you would like more information, contact us”). In everyday use, αν is neutral and by far the safest general choice.

Άμα can also mean “if/when,” especially in informal speech: Άμα τον δεις, πες μου (“If you see him, tell me”). It is natural conversational Greek but less suitable for formal writing. The conditional pattern after it follows the same broad principles.

Be careful because αν can also mean “whether.” In an indirect question, θα after αν is entirely normal:

• Δεν ξέρω αν θα έρθει. — “I don’t know whether he will come.”

This does not break the rule about condition clauses. Here αν θα έρθει is the content of what the speaker does not know; it is not an “if X, then Y” condition. Compare Αν έρθει, θα φύγουμε μαζί (“If he comes, we’ll leave together”).

In speech, intonation and context often show whether an imperfect form refers to real past time or an unreal present. Αν είχε χρόνο... can begin a past habitual account (“Whenever he had time...”) or an unreal thought (“If he had time...”); the result clause and wider context remove the ambiguity.

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

Mixed conditions

The condition and result do not always refer to the same time. A past event may have a present consequence:

• Αν είχα δεχτεί εκείνη τη δουλειά, θα ζούσα τώρα στην Αθήνα. — “If I had accepted that job, I would be living in Athens now.”

Here the past perfect είχα δεχτεί marks the unreal past choice, while θα ζούσα presents its unreal present result. The reverse combination is also possible when the meaning supports it, though it is less common: a continuing characteristic can be imagined as the reason for a past outcome.

Politeness and softened wishes

θα + imperfect often appears outside an explicit conditional sentence to make a wish, request, or opinion less direct:

• Θα ήθελα να έρθεις. — “I would like you to come.”
• Θα μπορούσατε να με βοηθήσετε; — “Could you help me?”
• Θα προτιμούσα ένα τραπέζι έξω. — “I would prefer a table outside.”

These forms share the distancing effect of unreal conditions: the speaker steps back from a blunt θέλω (“I want”) or direct command. Learn them as conventional polite expressions, not merely as sentences with omitted words.

Conditions without αν

Greek can express a condition through an imperative or coordinated phrase, especially in lively speech:

• Κάνε άλλο ένα βήμα και θα πέσεις. — “Take one more step and you’ll fall.”

The first clause functions like αν κάνεις άλλο ένα βήμα even though αν is absent. This is useful to recognize, but the explicit αν-pattern remains the clearest choice for learners.

Emphasis and probability

Choosing a real pattern does not guarantee that the event will happen; it only presents it as open. Likewise, an unreal-present pattern can convey tactful distance rather than literal impossibility. Compare:

• Αν έχεις χρόνο, έλα μαζί μας. — “If you have time, come with us.” The condition is open.
• Αν είχες χρόνο, θα ερχόσουν μαζί μας; — “If you had time, would you come with us?” The speaker frames it more remotely or tentatively.

The grammar expresses the speaker’s stance, not an objective percentage of probability.

Practice Tips

1. Build three versions of one idea. Start with έρχομαι: Αν έρθεις, θα χαρώ; Αν ερχόσουν, θα χαιρόμουν; Αν είχες έρθει, θα είχα χαρεί. Say what changes in the reality and time of each sentence.
2. Mark the two halves in different colors. Underline αν and the condition verb in one color, then θα and the result verb in another. This quickly breaks the habit of putting θα after αν.
3. Practice aspect with paired situations. Make pairs such as αν γράφεις (“if you are writing”) and αν γράψεις (“if you write/finish writing”), then add a natural result to each.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Future Tenses — the use of θα and the perfective/imperfective contrast are essential for open future conditions.
• Useful foundation: Past Perfect (Υπερσυντέλικος) — needed to build unreal past conditions such as αν είχα φύγει, θα είχα προλάβει.