Question Formation in Greek

In Brief

Greek usually turns a statement into a yes/no question without adding a word like English “do” and without reversing the word order: Μιλάς ελληνικά; means “Do you speak Greek?” Information questions begin with a question word such as τι (what), πού (where), or γιατί (why). In standard written Greek, the question mark is ;, which looks like an English semicolon.

Overview

Questions are an A1 building block: they let you ask for directions, meet someone, check a price, and repair a conversation. The main pattern is simpler than English question formation. English changes “You live here” to “Do you live here?”; Greek can use exactly the same words as the statement and mark the question through intonation in speech or punctuation in writing.

There are two essential types. A yes/no question asks whether something is true and can normally receive ναι (yes) or όχι (no). An information question asks for a missing detail with words such as πού (where) or πότε (when). Greek verbs already show person through their endings, so the subject—the person or thing performing the action—is often left unstated: Πού μένεις; already means “Where do you live?”

For a beginner, three habits matter most: do not insert an equivalent of English “do,” put the question word near the beginning, and write ; rather than ?. Later details, including the changing forms of ποιος and the accents on πού and πώς, are explained separately below.

How It Works

Yes/no questions: keep the basic sentence

A neutral yes/no question generally has the same word order as the corresponding statement. In speech, the speaker’s intonation signals that an answer is expected. In writing, the final ; does that work.

Greek	English	Note
Μιλάς ελληνικά.	You speak Greek.	Statement
Μιλάς ελληνικά;	Do you speak Greek?	Same words, now a question
Η Μαρία δουλεύει σήμερα.	Maria is working today.	Statement
Η Μαρία δουλεύει σήμερα;	Is Maria working today?	No inversion or added auxiliary
Είναι ανοιχτό.	It is open.	Statement
Είναι ανοιχτό;	Is it open?	Same structure

Greek therefore has no general question-building word equivalent to English do/does/did. Translate the meaning, not every English word. Έχεις χρόνο; is literally structured like “You have time?”, but its natural English translation is “Do you have time?”

A stated subject can appear when it identifies or contrasts someone:

• Εσύ μένεις εδώ; — Do you live here?
• Ο Νίκος έρχεται μαζί μας; — Is Nikos coming with us?

Without that need, Greek commonly omits subject pronouns such as εσύ (you), because μένεις already has the second-person singular ending.

The Greek question mark

Standard modern Greek uses the erotimatiko (ερωτηματικό), written ;, at the end of a direct question:

• Τι κάνεις; — How are you? / What are you doing?
• Είναι κοντά; — Is it nearby?

The mark looks like an English semicolon, but it functions as a question mark. Do not add a second mark: write Πού πας;, not Πού πας;? In informal messages, Greek speakers may sometimes use ? under the influence of international keyboards, but ; is the standard form to learn and use.

Core question words

Greek	English	Typical use
τι	what	A thing, action, or description
ποιος / ποια / ποιο	who; which	A person or a choice; form changes
πού	where	Place or destination
πότε	when	Time or date
πώς	how	Manner, condition, or name in a set phrase
γιατί	why	Reason; also “because” in an answer

The most useful beginner frame is:

question word + verb + other information + ;

• Τι θέλεις; — What do you want?
• Πού δουλεύει η Άννα; — Where does Anna work?
• Πότε φεύγετε; — When are you leaving?
• Πώς ταξιδεύουν; — How are they travelling?
• Γιατί περιμένεις; — Why are you waiting?

This is a strong default, not an unbreakable law. Greek word order is flexible, and speakers can move an element to emphasize it. At A1, placing the question word first will usually produce a clear, natural question.

Using τι

Τι is invariable: its form does not change for gender, number, or grammatical role. It can stand alone or come before a noun.

• Τι αγοράζεις; — What are you buying?
• Τι ώρα είναι; — What time is it?
• Τι μουσική ακούς; — What music do you listen to?
• Τι σημαίνει αυτό; — What does this mean?

In Τι κάνεις;, context decides between the literal “What are you doing?” and the everyday greeting “How are you?”

Using ποιος, ποια, and ποιο

Unlike τι, ποιος behaves like an adjective: it changes to agree with gender and number, and it also has case forms. A case is a form that helps show a noun’s role in the sentence. Begin with the three singular subject forms:

Form	Basic meaning	Example
ποιος	who/which, masculine	Ποιος είναι; — Who is he?
ποια	who/which, feminine	Ποια είναι η Ελένη; — Which one is Eleni?
ποιο	which, neuter	Ποιο λεωφορείο πάει στο κέντρο; — Which bus goes downtown?

When the person is the direct object—the person directly affected by the action—masculine ποιος usually becomes ποιον:

• Ποιον περιμένεις; — Who are you waiting for?
• Ποια βλέπεις; — Which woman do you see? / Whom do you see?

The common plural forms are ποιοι (masculine), ποιες (feminine), and ποια (neuter). You do not need the full set to begin asking questions, but you should expect the form to match the person or thing being asked about.

English “who” and “which” do not map perfectly onto separate Greek words. Ποιος can mean either, while τι often asks what something is or what kind of thing is involved:

• Ποιος γιατρός είναι εδώ; — Which doctor is here?
• Τι δουλειά κάνεις; — What do you do for work?

Accent marks matter: πού/που and πώς/πως

The interrogative words πού (where) and πώς (how) carry an accent, including when they introduce an indirect question. Their unaccented look-alikes have different connecting functions:

Greek	English	Function
Πού μένεις;	Where do you live?	Direct question
Δεν ξέρω πού μένει.	I don’t know where he/she lives.	Indirect question
Το σπίτι που βλέπεις.	The house that you see.	που, not “where?”
Πώς είσαι;	How are you?	Direct question
Ξέρω πώς λειτουργεί.	I know how it works.	πώς means “how”
Νομίζω πως έφυγε.	I think that he/she left.	πως, not “how?”

An indirect question reports or embeds a question inside a larger sentence. It does not by itself make the whole sentence a direct question, so Δεν ξέρω πού μένει. ends with a period.

Asking and answering γιατί

Γιατί; can be a complete question: “Why?” In a question, γιατί asks for a reason; in an answer, the same word commonly means “because.”

• Γιατί φεύγεις; — Why are you leaving?
• Γιατί είμαι κουρασμένος. — Because I am tired. (male speaker)
• Γιατί είμαι κουρασμένη. — Because I am tired. (female speaker)

Negative questions

Put δεν before the verb just as you do in a negative statement:

• Δεν δουλεύεις σήμερα; — Aren’t you working today?
• Δεν είναι εδώ; — Isn’t he/she here?

A negative question often suggests that the speaker expected the opposite or is surprised. Because English answers to negative questions can be confusing, listen to the full Greek reply: Ναι, δουλεύω (Yes, I am working) versus Όχι, δεν δουλεύω (No, I am not working).

Examples in Context

Greek	English	Note
Μιλάς ελληνικά;	Do you speak Greek?	Yes/no question; no Greek equivalent of “do”
Έχετε τραπέζι για δύο;	Do you have a table for two?	Polite or plural you
Είναι ελεύθερη αυτή η θέση;	Is this seat free?	Everyday yes/no question
Πού μένεις;	Where do you live?	Place with πού
Πού είναι η στάση;	Where is the bus stop?	Asking for a location
Πότε ανοίγει το μουσείο;	When does the museum open?	Time with πότε
Τι θέλεις να πιεις;	What do you want to drink?	τι asks for a thing
Τι σημαίνει αυτή η λέξη;	What does this word mean?	Useful classroom question
Ποιος είναι ο κύριος Παπαδόπουλος;	Who is Mr Papadopoulos?	Masculine ποιος
Ποιο τρένο πάει στην Αθήνα;	Which train goes to Athens?	Neuter ποιο agrees with τρένο
Πώς σε λένε;	What’s your name?	Literally “How do they call you?”; informal
Πώς πάμε στο κέντρο;	How do we get downtown?	Asking for a route
Γιατί μαθαίνεις ελληνικά;	Why are you learning Greek?	Reason with γιατί
Δεν έχεις χρόνο;	Don’t you have time?	Negative question
Ξέρεις πού είναι η τράπεζα;	Do you know where the bank is?	Direct yes/no question containing an indirect question

Common Mistakes

Adding an English-style “do”

• Wrong: Κάνεις μιλάς ελληνικά;
• Right: Μιλάς ελληνικά;
• Why: Greek does not use κάνω (do/make) as an auxiliary to build ordinary questions. The verb form, intonation, and punctuation are enough.

Reversing words mechanically

• Awkward as a default: Μένεις εσύ στην Αθήνα; when no contrast is intended
• Natural: Μένεις στην Αθήνα;
• Why: Greek does not require English-style subject–verb inversion. Εσύ is useful if you mean “Do you live in Athens?” but is normally unnecessary.

Using the English question mark in standard Greek

• Nonstandard: Πού πας?
• Standard: Πού πας;
• Why: The Greek question mark is shaped like ;. A normal period still ends an indirect question inside a statement: Δεν ξέρω πού πάει.

Dropping the accent from πού or πώς

• Wrong: Που μένεις; / Πως είσαι;
• Right: Πού μένεις; / Πώς είσαι;
• Why: The accents distinguish interrogative πού/πώς from connecting που/πως. Keep the accent in both direct and indirect questions.

Treating every form of “who” as ποιος

• Wrong: Ποιος περιμένεις;
• Right: Ποιον περιμένεις;
• Why: The man being waited for is the object of the verb, so masculine ποιος takes the object form ποιον. Learn this as a useful whole phrase before mastering all cases.

Translating “What is your name?” word for word

• Unnatural beginner choice: Τι είναι το όνομά σου;
• Natural, informal: Πώς σε λένε;
• Natural, polite/plural: Πώς σας λένε;
• Why: Languages package everyday questions differently. Greek normally asks literally “How do they call you?” rather than copying the English structure.

Usage Notes

Informal and polite “you”

Verb choice can make a question informal or polite. Use second-person singular forms with one person you address informally: Μιλάς αγγλικά; Use second-person plural forms for more than one person or as polite singular address: Μιλάτε αγγλικά; The same contrast appears in Πώς σε λένε; versus polite Πώς σας λένε;

Politeness also comes from phrasing, not only verb endings. A request framed with Μπορείτε…; (“Can you…?”) is softer than a bare command: Μπορείτε να με βοηθήσετε; (“Can you help me?”).

Short questions in conversation

Greek often uses compact questions when the missing information is obvious:

• Πού; — Where?
• Πότε; — When?
• Γιατί; — Why?
• Ποιος; — Who?
• Αλήθεια; — Really?

These are complete conversational turns. Tone can make the same short form sound curious, surprised, doubtful, or impatient.

Natural translations are not always literal

Τι κάνεις; often means “How are you?”, Πώς σε λένε; means “What’s your name?”, and Παρακαλώ; can mean “Pardon?” when asking someone to repeat. Memorizing these as conversational chunks is more reliable than rebuilding them from English each time.

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

You do not need to master the following points at A1, but they explain patterns you will hear later.

Greek has additional question expressions beyond the core set. πόσος / πόση / πόσο asks “how much” or “how many” and changes to agree with a noun: Πόσο κάνει; (How much is it?) and Πόσα εισιτήρια θέλετε; (How many tickets do you want?). ποιανού asks “whose?” in everyday speech: Ποιανού είναι αυτό; (Whose is this?).

Question words can stay in the position associated with the missing information, especially in echo questions expressing surprise or requesting repetition:

• Πήγες πού; — You went where?
• Αγόρασες τι; — You bought what?

This is marked and expressive. Use question-first order—Πού πήγες;, Τι αγόρασες;—for neutral information questions.

Indirect questions frequently follow verbs such as ξέρω (know), ρωτάω (ask), and θυμάμαι (remember): Δεν θυμάμαι πότε φεύγει το τρένο. (“I don’t remember when the train leaves.”) Greek does not apply English-style inversion inside them; the clause keeps ordinary Greek structure.

Finally, questions can function as requests rather than genuine requests for information. Μπορείς να κλείσεις την πόρτα; literally asks “Can you close the door?” but normally means “Please close the door.” Intonation, relationship, and added words such as παρακαλώ (please) determine how gentle or forceful it sounds.

Practice Tips

1. Convert statements without translating word by word. Take five present-tense statements, such as Δουλεύεις σήμερα., replace the period with ;, and say each aloud as a question. This builds the no-“do” habit.
2. Make a six-word question drill. Choose one familiar verb and ask a question with τι, ποιος, πού, πότε, πώς, and γιατί. Not every combination will be equally natural; deciding what context it needs is part of the exercise.
3. Collect whole service phrases. Practice Πού είναι…;, Πόσο κάνει;, Τι σημαίνει…;, and Μπορείτε να με βοηθήσετε; as complete units. When listening, pay attention to both the final intonation and the omitted subject pronoun.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Present Tense (Group A: -ω) — supplies the verb forms used in basic present-tense questions.